Day: July 30, 2015

There are no federal or state laws that mandate employers to grant vacation time or routine sick leave. The federal Family and Medical Leave Act, however, does require certain employers to grant leave without pay, subject to restriction, to employees who are seriously ill or who have to care for a seriously ill family member. Any allowance for vacation time or routine sick leave, therefore, is something that is provided by the employer on its own initiative. The terms and conditions of employment are affected by many legal standards in both the private and public sectors. Things that are considered employee benefits, however, are normally in place because employers want

The State of Montana is one of 30 states that have statutes that specifically allow civil liability in cases of injury resulting from alcohol consumption. In Montana, a person or entity may be held liable for serving alcohol, which means that individuals serving alcohol to guests in their home or at social events can be sued for damages. The good news for individuals is that the circumstances under which they can be held liable is not as strict as for business entities. Under the law, business entities, typically bars, can be held liable for serving alcohol under the following three circumstances: to an individual it knows, or did not make a

In an effort to stem the number of medical malpractice suits being brought in the state court system, Montana has established a system of Medical legal panels to, in effect, pre-screen claims before they go to court. The law requires claims to be filed with the panel associated with the medical or chiropractic practice areas of health care provision. The stated goal is to keep cases that do not reasonably indicate that malpractice might have occurred from reaching the court system. Although the panels’ stated purpose is to prevent questionable claims from reaching court, they are also charged with facilitating the settlement of these claims. The panels are made up of three