• News

Liz Valerio and Nick Dominello to Present at 2020 MMA Annual Meeting & Trade Show

On January 24, 2020 Liz Valerio and Nick Dominello will present at the Massachusetts Municipal Association’s Annual Meeting & Trade Show at the Hynes Convention Center in Boston, MA. Liz and Nick will be panelists on an MMA workshop panel entitled, “Social Media: Policies, Ethics and the Law Workshop.” The MMA has described the panel […]

Liz Valerio Receives Life Membership in the MASC

Valerio Dominello and Hillman congratulates Liz Valerio who received Life Membership in the Massachusetts Association of School Committees (MASC) on November 8, 2019.  Liz was recognized for her involvement in and commitment to MASC, as well as her advocacy for the children of Massachusetts through her years of assistance to MASC and her membership on […]

Liz Valerio to Present at COSCAP Fall Conference

On November 8, 2019 Liz Valerio will present at the Council of School Committee Administrative Personnel’s 2019 fall conference at the Resort and Conference Center at Hyannis.  Liz will be presenting on personnel files and “everything you want to know about school committee meetings.”

Liz Valerio and Elizabeth Paris to Present at MMHR Annual Labor Relations Seminar

On November 1, 2019 Liz Valerio and Elizabeth Paris will present at the Massachusetts Municipal Human Resources Association’s annual labor relations seminar at the Devens Common Center in Devens, MA. Liz and Elizabeth will be presenting on 2019’s major labor law cases.

Four VDH Attorneys Named 2019 Massachusetts Super Lawyers and Rising Stars

Robert D. Hillman and John Foskett have been named Massachusetts Super Lawyers for 2019 and Nicholas J. Dominello and Jennifer F. King have been named Massachusetts Rising Stars.  Super Lawyers is a rating service of outstanding lawyers from more than 70 practice areas who have attained a high-degree of peer recognition and professional achievement.  This […]

Ethics Commission Disposition Addresses Tour Company Rewards to Teachers for Organizing School-Sponsored Student Travel

There is a widespread practice in Massachusetts in which teachers organize school-sponsored trips overseas for students through tour companies such as EF Tours. These companies offer rewards programs in which teachers who organize tours through those companies can earn stipends and points towards products and free travel for themselves. In a disposition agreement recently issued […]

Supreme Judicial Court Sustains Decision Regarding Managerial Authority

On October 7, 2019, the Supreme Judicial Court addressed the inherent managerial authority of a public employer to take unilateral employment actions by examining the distinction between “broad” and “narrow” statutory authority in Board of Higher Education v. Commonwealth Employment Relations Board, SJC-12621. Specifically, the SJC held that a statute granting the state employer the […]

Law Extending Union Rights Goes Into Effect

On September 18, 2019, the Massachusetts Senate passed over Governor Baker’s veto of House Bill 3854, “An Act Relative To Collective Bargaining Dues”.  The bill was drafted in response to the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Janus v. AFSCME as an effort to strengthen union presence in the workplace.  The Legislature inserted emergency language in […]

Attorney Liz Valerio to Present at MMMA Monthly Meeting

Attorney Liz Valerio will present at the Massachusetts Municipal Management Association’s (MMMA) monthly meeting on September 19, 2019.  Liz will provide a labor law update. https://www.mma.org/event/management-association-monthly-meeting-3/

Reminder – Massachusetts Paid Family and Medical Leave Law Going Into Effect

Several components of the Paid Family and Medical Leave (“PFML”) law[1] are going into effect beginning the end of this month.  As a reminder, employers must follow the timeline below to comply with the law: September 30, 2019 – Notify all covered individuals of their rights and obligations under PFML by posting the “Notice of […]