News: October 2006
Madison Teachers Inc. Prevails in an Arbitration
Attorney Linda Harfst, on behalf of Madison Teachers Inc., prevailed in an arbitration on behalf of the District's Early Childhood teachers that strengthened teachers' contractual rights under the collective bargaining agreement to be assigned to a specific school. In Spring 2003, claiming that a mistake had been made, the Madison Metropolitan School District unilaterally changed the contract locations of the District's Early Childhood teachers, designating all of them as "Educational Services" on their individual teaching contracts, regardless of the actual work location of the teacher. The District's action had the potential to undercut all teachers' rights under the collective bargaining agreement to continued work at a given school. The arbitrator declined to believe that a mistake occurred. He held that in changing the contract locations, the District had not exercised its discretion reasonably, nor consistently with the intent of prior written agreements. He ordered that the District correct the individual contract locations for the affected individuals. He also ordered the District to issue individual contracts for Early Childhood teachers for 2007-2008 consistent with the location categories previously agreed by the parties. October 2006
$80,000 Dispute Claim Settled
Attorney Lester Pines, assisted by paralegal Genny Gibbs-Benesh, who coordinates the Cullen Weston Pines & Bach workers' compensation practice, settled a disputed claim for $80,000 for a special educational assistant who was a member of Madison Teachers Inc. She was in her early sixties when she suffered a disabling back injury and subsequently retired from her position with the Madison Metropolitan School District. The District and its insurer had denied that she was disabled. October 2006
Pines Debates Constitutional Marriage Ban
Attorney Lester Pines appeared as a panelist on a Milwaukee Public Television broadcast of the 4th Street Forum's debate on the proposed constitutional amendment to ban same sex marriage entitled: "Will the 'Marriage Protection Amendment' Make Us a Better Society?" This was one of numerous presentation he made this Fall in opposition to the amendment. A podcast of the program is available online. October 2006
Brief filed in response to Mark Green petition
On behalf of the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign, Attorney Tamara Packard filed this amicus curiae brief in response to the petition in the Wisconsin Supreme Court filed by Republican gubernatorial candidate Mark Green seeking leave to proceed in an original action before that court to challenge the order of the Wisconsin Elections Board directing him to refrain from using $495,000 that he improperly transferred from his federal campaign account to his state campaign account. Before filing in the Supreme Court, Green had unsuccessfully sought an injunction against the Elections Board in the Dane County Circuit Court. The Supreme Court accepted the amicus brief. The case is pending for a decision as to whether the Court will allow Green's action to proceed.
Permanent Injunction Obtained on Behalf of Sierra Club
In a citizen's lawsuit to enforce the provisions of the Clean Air Act, Attorneys Kira Loehr and Lester Pines, representing the Sierra Club, obtained a permanent injunction from the federal court in the Southern District of Illinois against Franklin County Power of Illinois LLC, EnviroPower, LLC, and Khanjee Holding (US), Inc. prohibiting them from constructing a 500 MW coal-fired power plant in Benton, Illinois that they were attempting to build in violation of their Clean Air Act permit. Read the court's decision. October 2006
CWPB Councels Class Action Lawsuit
Cullen Weston Pines & Bach, along with Lieff, Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein LLP, of San Fransciso, and Tousley Brain Stephens PLLC, and Edwards & Hagen PS of Seattle are plaintiffs' counsel in a class action lawsuit filed in Wisconsin against the Carrier Corporation for marketing and selling thousands of high efficiency furnaces that have defective secondary heat exchangers. Attorney Lester Pines is the lead Wisconsin attorney on the case. Review the Plaintiffs' Complaint. October 2006
Packard Speaks Against Gay Marriage Ban
Topping off numerous speaking engagements on behalf of the Fair Wisconsin campaign to defeat the proposed constitutional amendment banning civil unions and marriage for gay and lesbian couples, Attorney Tamara Packard explained to Rotary club members in Waukesha and Waunakee how the amendment failed the Rotary "Four Way Test." Read her presentation. October 2006.
