UNIVERSITY OF AKRON SCHOOL OF LAW
Akron Law news archive
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10/29/2014
Professor Van Tassel highlights constitutional concerns with Ohio’s Public Health Laws and Ebola in Crain’s Cleveland Business article
Ebola concerns are causing companies to seek legal advice By JEREMY NOBILE October 26, 2014 4:30 AM Americans are terrified of the Ebola virus. And while the country has yet to see any true outbreak, fear of the disease has skyrocketed since the first confirmed reports of the virus in North America. Citizens now rank Ebola among the biggest problems facing the United States, ahead of poverty and terrorism, according to a recent Gallup poll. In Ohio, there have been no confirmed Ebola cases, a couple quarantines, and about 160 reports of an individual coming in contact with an infected person, according to data from the Ohio Emergency Management Agency. But Ebola concerns are raising a litany of legal questions as well, from how companies should treat employees possibly exposed to the virus or an infected person to whether quarantines infringe on an individual's own civil liberties. Victor Geraci, a labor and employment attorney at Fisher & Phillips, said many employers are looking for help “digesting” laws and information already out there to evaluate their liability, particularly those in health care fields or where international travel is a part of the job. “There is confusion, and because there is a group of people who would normally look to law firms on workplace safety issues or protection of employee safety, they're doing so now,” Geraci said, adding that he's quick to remind clients “this is not a crisis at the moment.” “It's not an outbreak, it's a scare,” said Joe Gross, a partner at Benesch specializing in labor and employment law. “And because it's a scare, people are reacting.” Gross said he's fielding questions from supervisors and employers across numerous fields who are seeking similar counsel. Many worries center on labor laws, he said, as employers aim to protect their own companies from the potentially infected by encouraging people to stay home, even if they were just briefly in the same room as an infected person. But a thin line separates proper procedure and potential workplace discrimination. Out of date Katharine Van Tassel, director of the Public Health Law and Science Center and Health Law Program at the University of Akron, says part of the issue stems from America's antiquated health laws, written in 1953, that don't outline protocols for dealing with a potential pandemic like Ebola. Those laws create the power to impose quarantines. The lack of clarity creates unknowns, which begets fear. Van Tassel calls it “emotional epidemiology.” How to treat an employee who may have only been near an infected person is a significant gray area, Van Tassel said. If an employee with no diagnosis of Ebola and questionable symptoms was forced to stay home by the government or their boss, have they been unfairly labeled as disabled? Would such actions hold up if challenged in court? If that employee is not being paid, Van Tassel thinks not. In contrast, the law provides for other similar situations where a person could miss work, like if someone were called upon for jury duty, or even to serve in the National Guard. In both cases, the government is asking a person to miss work to benefit the greater good, Van Tassel said, but the individual is protected in those cases from losing pay or otherwise being retaliated against. She argues the same protections need to be created in public health law not only for potentially ill Ebola victims, but to address future issues that could stem from the appearance of an infectious disease on American soil. Similar fears have arisen before with the threats of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), Avian influenza (bird flu), even decades ago with the spread of AIDS in the 1980s. All are diseases that once belonged solely to animals and found their way to humans, Van Tassel notes. And similar issues are bound to happen again. “We need a process in place that says you don't lose your personal rights because you're in quarantine,” Van Tassel said. “It just boggles my mind that if we ask these people to sacrifice for the community ... that we're not handing them a brochure saying, "These are your rights.'' Balancing act Gross said one employer was asking how to treat an employee who lived with someone who had contact with a person who “may” have had Ebola-related symptoms. The person was seeking advice on how to be fair not only to the individual, but to other employees possibly fearing exposure, regardless of the likelihood. Gross said he encourages employers to consider drafting their own policies for dealing with the potential effects of Ebola and the complications arising from it to establish protocols that can be applied equally. If a person is being asked to stay home for any reason against their will, Gross suggests drafting an agreement allowing the person to continue earning pay to avoid any possible legal ramifications. “Some employers may want to be in front of the issue, many others would not,” Gross said. “But if they deal with it once, they should deal with it in a policy sense so they treat everyone the same.” Meanwhile, Van Tassel said the federal government could take some similar advice. “We want to have a plan in place so that people trust the government and choose to cooperate,” Van Tassel said. “If people do not trust the government, they may not come forward and report that they have been exposed to an infected person, and then they could spread the virus further,” she added. “It is imperative that lawyers, healthcare providers and public health officials come together to update Ohio law to properly balance the protection of public health with the constitutional rights of its citizens. ” -
10/24/2014
Sports law expert, Law Professor Jack Sahl, weighs in on Ray Rice NFL drama.
Law professor Jack Sahl appeared on “The Average Joe Sports Show” on WAKR-AM to discuss former Baltimore Ravens player Ray Rice’s case against the NFL and his former team. For complete audio, click here: http://www.akronnewsnow.com/personalities/brad-russell -
10/24/2014
Associate Dean William Jordan named Fellow of the ABA Section of Administrative Law and Regulatory Practice
William S. Jordan III, Associate Dean of Academic Affairs at The University of Akron School of Law, was named a Fellow of the Section of Administrative Law and Regulatory Practice of the American Bar Association. With this honor, Dean Jordan joins a list of esteemed fellows, including present and former United States Supreme Court Justices Scalia, Breyer, and Rehnquist; Director of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs for the Obama Administration Cass Sunstein; C. Boyden Gray, White House Counsel to President George H. W. Bush and former United States Ambassador to the European Union; Ted Olson, former United States Solicitor General; and many other esteemed lawyers, judges and law professors. Bill Jordan has been involved with the ABA Section of Administrative Law and Regulatory Practice for over 15 years. For the last 12 years, he has written the “News from the Circuits” column reporting on Administrative Law decisions in the U.S. Courts of Appeals in the Section’s quarterly magazine. In addition, he has chaired the Judicial Review Committee. Further, he was elected to a 3-year term on the Council of the Section several years ago and has chaired the Publications Committee for several years, presiding over the publications of several books on administrative law each year. He has also organized or served on several panels at the Section’s annual Fall Conference in Washington, D.C.. and, for the past several years, Bill has reported on recent developments in Rulemaking at the annual conference. Congratulations, Dean Jordan! Akron Law is so proud of you! For more information about Bill Jordan, please see his complete bio here. -
10/14/2014
Professor Katharine Van Tassel discusses the Ebola crisis and Ohio’s quarantine laws on The Jasen Sokol Show on WAKR
Professor Katharine Van Tassel discusses the Ebola crisis and Ohio’s quarantine laws on The Jasen Sokol Show on 1590 WAKR (Akron) on Thursday, October 9th -
10/6/2014
U.S. Commission on Civil Rights Adopts Recommendations Made by Akron’s Public Health Law & Science Center
The eagerly anticipated Statutory Enforcement Report, Patient Dumping, issued by the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights was released in the last week of September 2014. The Report adopts several recommendations made by Professor Katharine Van Tassel in her testimony before the Commission in Washington D.C. last April, 2014 and in her Written Statement submitted to the Commission. The Report was sent directly from the Commissioners to President Barack Obama, Vice President Joe Biden and Speaker of the House, John Boehner. The research that formed the background for the Written Statement was performed by the Student Research Team for the Public Health & Law Center at Akron Law (pictured), along with the expert support of the Akron staff members of the PHLSC team, Anthony Colucci and Amy McCoy. This Written Statement was cited multiple times in the report. "This was definitely a team effort," states Professor Van Tassel. "It is amazing how our team pulled together to help with my testimony and with the research for the Written Statement. It shows what we can do together here at Akron Law to improve the human condition." "Patient dumping" is the practice of hospitals' denying individuals emergency medical screening and stabilization services, or transferring them to other hospitals, once a hospital discovers that the patients are uninsured or have no means to pay for treatment. The Report examines the effectiveness of the federal law that Congress passed to address such practices: the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA). The Report discusses what policies may be adopted to better protect the rights of the mentally ill, and makes detailed findings and recommendations for improvements. The recommendations include:- Better data collection
- Increased regulatory oversight
- Non-punitive methods for hospital reporting
- Electronic filtering of data that automatically flags inadequate reporting data
- Linking budgets of community-based mental health programs with local hospitals to recover costs from patients treated in centers rather than hospitals
- Making it mandatory for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to forward all EMTALA cases to the Office for Civil Rights in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
- Increased training and education
- Conforming EMTALA's definition of stabilization so that it is consistent with the medical definition
- Fostering learning from best practices
- Implementing consistent protocols and discharge planning
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10/6/2014
Over Seventy Law, Public Health and Medical Students Come Together from Several Universities to Create Interdisciplinary Teams to Discuss Ebola Crisis
Over 70 law, public health and medical students joined together to discuss the Ebola crisis in the first inter-professional class held between Akron Law, NEOMED and CEOMPH held this past Saturday, October 4. The students attended via web video conferencing classrooms located at University of Akron, Cleveland State University, Ohio University, and Youngstown State. The afternoon-long session explored the legal, ethical and medical issues arising out of a hypothetical outbreak of Ebola involving 200 individuals in Northern Ohio. There were short presentations and a panel discussion by faculty to introduce the problem. Then, the students held lively discussions in break-out sessions involving inter-professional teams of medical students, physicians, public health professional students and the law students who are part of the Health Law Certificate Program at Akron Law. Faculty presenters and panelists included the following:- Dr. Julie Aultman, who is an Adjunct Professor in Akron Law's Health Law Certificate Program and who is also an Associate Professor of Family and Community Medicine and Director for the Bioethics Certificate Program at the Northeast Ohio Medical University
- Professor Katharine Van Tassel, who is a Professor of Law and is the Director of the Public Health Law & Science Center and Health law Programs at the University of Akron School of Law
- Dr. Amy Lee, who is the Program Director for the Consortium of Eastern Ohio Master of Public Health Program (a partnership of The University of Akron, Cleveland State University, Northeast Ohio Medical University, Ohio University, and Youngstown State University) and who is also a Professor of Family and Community Medicine at the Northeast Ohio Medical University
- Dr. Michelle Chyatte, who is an Assistant Professor of Family and Community Medicine at the Northeast Ohio Medical University
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9/19/2014
Expert on sports law, Professor Jack Sahl, comments on lawsuits against universities and the NCAA brought by players released to play before recovering from concussions
Expert on sports law, Professor Jack Sahl, comments on lawsuits against universities and the NCAA brought by players released to play before recovering from concussions. -
8/29/2014
Akron Law students get practical legal experience
The University of Akron School of Law held another of its monthly outreach clinics on Saturday, August 23, 2014. Local citizens who attend the clinic have the opportunity to complete applications for the Certificate of Qualification for Employment (CQE) or applications for expungement (the court sealing of their criminal record). The purpose of the clinics is to increase employment opportunities for those who have a criminal record. Eighty-four people attended the clinic held on Saturday at the Mount Haven Missionary Baptist Church. During the 3-hour clinic, law student volunteers completed twenty-nine CQE applications, and twenty-six expungement applications. Twenty University of Akron law students staffed the clinic, including 8 first year students who had not yet attended their first official law school class. The law student volunteers raved about their volunteer experience at the clinic. First year student Kyle Cramer stated, “I greatly enjoyed the experience. It was very satisfying helping people. Most of the clients were very grateful.” Fourth year part-time student Kristen Guappone commented: “I truly felt I made a difference. [I helped] clients who [had] acknowledge[d that] they ... made a serious mistake in the past, and were now actively trying to turn their lives around. Frustrated that their past mistake was keeping them from employment or housing, the CQE petition we filed helped them demonstrate and show to the court that they were making a sincere[] . . . effort to remain a ... law-abiding citizen and to maintain those positive choices in their lives. The clients were overly thankful, some near tears, that [the] granting of this CQE might finally allow them . . . to leave some of their past behind, and have a second chance.” Third year student Dave Garnier had similar comments about his experience. The “ CQE Legal Clinic is a way for law students to help these people take steps to improve their lives and those of their family members. The CQE application process is not difficult for a law student, but our help makes a real difference in the lives of many Summit County residents with prior convictions. As students at the University of Akron School of Law, aware of the responsibilities of those entering the legal profession to the community ... we welcome such a wonderful opportunity to bring together a need and a possible way to meet that need.” Third year student Justin Burns also observed that “Akron Law's CQE Clinic is an example of how the University of Akron School of Law can partner with our community to facilitate ex-offenders' re-entry into society. Personally, I found it frustrating to hear of how our clients' past offenses, some [with] convictions over 15 years ago, still faced obstacles in finding employment based on their criminal record. Since the individuals with whom I worked had already demonstrated the ability to lead law-abiding lives in order to become eligible for the certificate, it was inspiring to become part of their journey as they apply to become active, engaged citizens in our community.” To date, the University of Akron School of Law has hosted 14 outreach clinics. 709 people have attended the clinics and they have been helped by 295 law-student volunteers. The law students have completed 225 CQE applications and approximately 191 expungement applications. The CQE clinic is supervised by Professor Joann Sahl, and the Expungement clinic is supervised by Attorney Russel Nichols. -
8/15/2014
Professor Katharine Van Tassel to speak at AALS annual Meeting on issues of law and policy arising from the Ebola outbreak in West Africa
The 2014 West African outbreak of the Ebola virus is the most severe epidemic attributed to this pathogen since 1976, when international health officials began keeping records on Ebola. As of August 2014, the total number of suspected cases has approached 2,000, and the number of suspected deaths has exceeded 1,000. The World Health Organization has designated the health crisis as one of international concern. The law has a strong stake in containing this outbreak and preventing future episodes of this kind. Professor Katharine Van Tassel will be speaking on a panel at the upcoming Annual Meeting of the American Association of Law Schools addressing issues of law and policy arising from the Ebola outbreak. Professor Van Tassel is the Director of the Public Health Law & Science Center and Health Law Program at the University of Akron School of Law.
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7/30/2014
New dean named to lead School of Law at UA
Matthew J. Wilson brings a wide range of experience to this leadership role, including his time spent teaching and living abroad.
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