Directors Often Fear Risks of Personal Liability
Board members face potential liability for their own actions in causing injury to others, or in breaching a fiduciary duty to the organization.
Although board members can cut the risk of personal liability by conforming their conduct to the appropriate standards, they cannot control whether or not they will be sued. Therefore, they should be sure that the organization maintains proper insurance to protect them against foreseeable hazards, including general liability coverage, professional liability coverage where appropriate, and directors and officers liability insurance.
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Court permits employee to pursue retaliation claim
Stating that there were too many “loose ends” in the termination of an employee who filed several claims of racial discrimination and retaliation with the EEOC, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals has reversed a summary judgment for the defendants and allowed the employee to go to trial on the issues.
Sorority moms lose claims for damages
Although the federal District Court for the District of Columbia had held that two mothers whose daughters were denied admission to the prestigious Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority chapter at Howard University qualified for federal court jurisdiction because they might have had $75,000 in damages at stake, it has now denied them any recovery and dismissed the case as moot.
Court dismisses case against Lois Lerner
A federal District Court in Texas has dismissed a series of claims brought by an applicant for 501(c)(4) tax-exempt status against Lois Lerner, former Director of Exempt Organizations Division of the IRS. The Court said that Freedom Path, Inc., an organization caught up in the IRS “Tea Party scandal” and required to provide additional information, had not shown that it had personal jurisdiction over Lerner in Texas. The Court also dismissed a number of claims that Freedom Path brought against the IRS itself.
Pa. Supreme Court To Consider Attorney-Charity Confidentiality
Party claims charity’s lawyer may report suspicious activity to Attorney General without regard to current Rules
The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania has agreed to consider whether an attorney for a public charity who believes that charitable assets are being unlawfully diverted for private purposes may notify the Attorney General.