EMPLOYMENT
Contact Attorneys: Gerald C. DeMaria, James A. Ruggieri

Higgins, Cavanagh & Cooney's Employment practice group is experienced in defending employers in both federal and state courts as well as the Rhode Island Commission for Human Rights. We have been called upon to defend discrimination claims based upon gender, sexual orientation, age and disability. We have also been involved in cases alleging wrongful termination, breach of employment contract and interference with contractual relations.

Our firm's Employment practice group complements our extensive Workers' Compensation department. The two groups must often work together to defend parallel claims brought by an employee arising out of alleged harassment or discrimination. There may be, simultaneously, claims pending in both the Workers' Compensation Court and the Commission for Human Rights as well as Superior or Federal Court.

Attorneys from this group successfully argued before the Supreme Court of Rhode Island that a special employer is an entity which is immune from suit under the Rhode Island Workers' Compensation Act.

The firm was also successful in arguing that a town provided adequate pretermination hearings to an employee before discharge. In addition, our attorneys were effective in arguing that no post termination hearing was required since due process was protected by the adequate pretermination hearing.

This group was also successful in a finding that the employer was not vicariously liable for an assault upon a patron by an employee that was acting outside the scope of his employment. Advocates were able to argue that there was no evidence that the employee was acting within his express or implied authority. Therefore, the patron could not recover from the employer under the theory of respondeat superior.

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