By Andra J. Hutchins Esq. ~ Email: ahutchins@kcl-law.com Tel. (781) 997-1564

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, or FERPA, is a Federal law that protects the privacy of students’ education records and access to those records, and applies to schools that receive federal financial assistance under the U.S. Department of Education, including elementary and secondary schools as well as postsecondary schools.  FERPA prohibits the disclosure of a student’s education records to others without consent from the parents or eligible student.  Most private elementary and secondary schools are not subject to FERPA as they do not generally receive federal funding.  However, most private colleges and universities receive federal funding and, as such, are subject to FERPA.

                                                                                                              By Milton L. Kerstein, Esq.  ~ Email: mkerstein@kcl-law.com Tel. (617) 965-9698

For those businesses that utilize independent contractors as part of their business model, employee misclassification has become a major issue.  It is one that is taking on increasing importance within the United States, as well as here in Massachusetts.   In Massachusetts, employers who are found to have misclassified their W-2 employees as independent contractors face both civil and criminal penalties.  This issue originally appears to have arisen due to the exploitation of recently arrived immigrants and low-income workers by the construction and agriculture industries.  The issue has blossomed into one that has the potential to effect every business in the United States.

 By Katie A. Meinelt, Esq.  ~ Email: kmeinelt@kcl-law.com Tel. (781) 997-1590

Imagine this scenario: you walk into a cafeteria filled with others who are giving you dirty looks, pointing and laughing at you, whispering things to their friends as you walk by, and not allowing you to sit with them. Am I talking about middle school? High school? Well, it certainly happens there, but that is not what I am referring to here. I am talking about nursing homes, senior citizen centers, retirement communities, and assisted living homes, and the behaviors are very similar to students bullying other students, except this involves grown adult men and women excluding others, spreading rumors, gossiping, and just being plain nasty. Unfortunately, common elder diseases, like dementia and Alzheimer’s, attribute to both the mean behavior and also to the vulnerability of the victims.  

It has been just over a year since Governor Patrick enacted the Massachusetts law on bullying, making Massachusetts the 42^nd state to pass such a law. [1] The law quickly became known as one of the strictest anti-bullying laws in the country, and the 2010-2011 school year was the first test run for school districts, charter schools, non-public schools, approved private day or residential schools, and collaborative schools across the state. Looking back over the past year, it is appropriate timing to reflect on the various legal implications that the law has created for all those involved – schools, students, and their respective parents.