Quotable
“This holding is not about the importance of the Black Lives Matter message.”
– U.S. District of Massachusetts Judge Allison D. Burroughs
Whole Foods did not violate employees’ civil rights by firing them in the summer of 2020 because they wore masks that read “Black Lives Matter,” a federal judge ruled in January.
The masks violated the grocer’s dress code because they displayed a slogan, logo, or advertisement.
The employees sued Whole Foods under Title VII of the Federal Rights Act of 1964. But the judge ruled that Whole Foods uniformly enforced the dress code and didn’t single out the plaintiffs because of the message on their masks.
Source: Reuters
Tech Tip
How Many Emails Are In Your Inbox?
In the event of a data breach, you may be required to examine your emails to comply with requirements under Wisconsin Supreme Court rules and state substantive law, as explained in the article “Responding to a Data Breach,” published in the July 2022 issue of Wisconsin Lawyer.
Email in-boxes are common targets for hackers. They try to trick recipients into clicking on a malicious link or downloading a file that appears to come from a trusted source.
Regularly closing client files and storing them on a secure external hard drive that’s not constantly connected to your network are two ways to reduce the risk of a data breach.
If you have questions about protecting data, the State Bar of Wisconsin’s Law Office Management Assistance Program (Practice411TM) is available for free, confidential consultation. Call (800) 957-4670.
Source: Wisconsin Lawyer
Got a Nugget to Share?
Send your ideas for interesting facts, trends, tips, or other bits and bytes to wislawmag@wisbar.org, or comment below.
Good Idea?
Bake Sales Don’t Need License
A Dane County judge has ruled that Wisconsinites may sell homemade baked goods without first obtaining a commercial license or kitchen certification.
The three farmers who filed the lawsuit against the state Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection argued that state law allowed them to sell goods like cookies, cakes, and bread from their homes.
The farmers claimed that it was too expensive for them and other rural residents to obtain a commercial license or upgrade their kitchens.
Source: cbs58.com
Did You Know?
First Female Sikh Judge
Manpreet Monica Singh, sworn in as a Harris County Civil Court judge in Houston, Texas, on Jan. 6, is the first woman judge in the U.S. who is a Sikh. Sikhism is the fifth-largest religion in the world.
Singh worked as a trial lawyer for 20 years before being appointed to the bench. She is one of 5 million Sikhs in the United States and one of 20,000 in the Houston area.
“Manpreet is not only an ambassador for Sikhs, she’s an ambassador for all women of color,” said Ravi Sandill, the first person of south Asian descent to become a judge in Texas.
Source: Outlook.com
By the Numbers
6,000
– The number of wind farms needed to meet the Biden Administration’s 2035 carbon-free goal
The National Renewable Energy Laboratory estimates that the United States needs to build 6,000 wind farms to make the nation’s economy carbon-free by 2035, a goal set by the Biden Administration.
Many of those wind farms will be built in rural communities, where residents are increasingly opposing alternative-energy projects.
“Projects have been getting more contentious,” Sarah Banas Mills, a University of Michigan lecturer, told the New York Times.
Source: New York Times
» Cite this article: 96 Wis. Law. 13 (March 2023).
