Volume 12, Issue 09
The PEACEKEEPER
Page 8
From the JAG’s Desk
STUPID continued from pg. 7
paraphernalia in considera on for their services. According to Chen, this arrangement violated both the FLSA and
the New York Labor Law, notwithstanding the par es’ prior mutual understanding that the volunteers would not receive ?nancial compensa on.
What Does This Mean for My Company?
The MLB lawsuit serves as yet another reminder that the recent groundswell of li ga on ins gated by unpaid
laborers has only just begun. And given at least one court’s recep veness to such claims where unpaid interns are
concerned, it is exceedingly unlikely that unpaid laborers will, at any me in the near future, be deterred. Indeed,
the only inevitability in an otherwise uncertain area of wage-and-hour law is that the plain ?s’ bar will con nue to
wage a full-scale war against the sustained use and viability of unpaid labor. Employers should thus consult with
counsel, if they have not already done so, to assess their poten al exposure and to determine whether the use of
unpaid labor – be it unpaid interns, volunteers, or some other itera on thereof – makes sound business sense.
MAN BITTEN BY HIS DOG ‘HAVOC’ SUES KENNEL
A man blames the kennel where he purchased his dog for causing the dog to bite
him, saying it failed to properly train the dog before selling it.
Gaute Larsen is suing Real Presa doing business as Cabeza Grande Kennel and
David Meyer of Pocahontas. The suit was originally ?led in Cook County (Illinois) in February, but was transferred to Madison County Circuit Court on Sept. 3.
In his complaint, Larsen claims he a empted to give his Presa Canario dog
named Havoc a bath on Feb. 13, 2011, at about 7:15 a.m. However, when the water
touched Havoc, he a acked Larsen, according to the complaint.
Because of the a ack, Larsen su?ered severe puncture wounds, the suit states.
He blames Real Presa for the dog a ack, saying it failed to properly train Havoc before selling him.
In his complaint, Larsen seeks a judgment of more than $300,000, plus costs.