Hard-working individuals in Kansas City and throughout Missouri face discrimination every day. Nowhere is discrimination more pervasive than in the workplace. Luckily, most workers in Kansas City and Missouri who suffer employment discrimination have an avenue of relief under the Missouri Human Rights Act (the “MHRA”). Federal laws also offer employees certain protections separate and apart from the MHRA. This blog focuses on Missouri law. What is the Missouri Human Rights Act and What Does it Prohibit? The MHRA applies to Missouri employers with six (6) or more employees during twenty (20) or more weeks in the current or prior calendar year. As to those employers, the MHRA prohibits

Non-solicitation agreements, like non-compete agreements, are becoming increasingly common. We have addressed the basics of non-compete agreements in a previous blog post: Introduction to Non-Compete Agreements in Kansas and Missouri. This post focuses on non-solicitation agreements—what they are and when they are enforceable. What is a Non-Solicitation Agreement? Non-solicitation agreements prohibit individuals or companies from trying to go after someone or something. Typically, a non-solicitation agreement will prohibit an employee from soliciting an employer’s employees and clients. These agreements are sometimes referred to as “anti-raiding” agreements. How is a Non-Compete Agreement Different than a Non-Solicitation? The Missouri Supreme Court uses the term “non-compete agreement” to describe both non-competition agreements and

Personal injury is one of the various fields of law that encompasses several different types of injuries, all arising from the negligence, carelessness, or wrongdoing of another. It may not seem so, but these incidents occur often, with the country listing a whopping 31 million people on average each year, who suffer injuries resulting from another party acting negligently, recklessly, and even maliciously. Common Types of Personal Injury Cases In the US, and very likely in other countries as well, the most common cause of personal injuries is auto accidents. In fact, data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration show that approximately 5 million car accidents happen in the

Thousands of people in the Kansas City area place their life savings and investments decisions in the hands of financial advisors. In a complicated financial market, people look to financial advisors for help with general investing, college investing, and retirement planning. Investment advisors can be a valuable resource for Kansans and Missourians who are looking to plan for their future. Unfortunately, in some cases, they can cause unnecessary losses for investors through conduct aimed at enriching the advisors. In general, there are two ways an advisor gets paid: (1) they can earn a commission on each investment bought or sold for a client or (2) they can earn a

For decades, the state of Kansas has had a cap on the non-economic damages Plaintiffs can recover in personal-injury lawsuits. No longer. On June 14, 2019, in Hilburn v. Enerpipe Ltd., the Kansas Supreme Court ruled that caps on non-economic damages in personal-injury cases are unconstitutional. What Kinds of Damages and Cases Does the Ruling Apply to? The Court’s ruling applies to K.S.A. 60-19a02, Kansas’s statute on personal-injury claims (including medical malpractice). It does not apply to wrongful-death claims, which are governed by K.S.A. 60-1903. The cap of $250,000 for non-economic damages in wrongful-death claims remains in place—for now. (The Court’s language in Hilburn signals that the wrongful-death cap may soon be

Most people are lucky enough to go many years, or their whole life, without suffering a personal injury caused by someone else’s negligence. Those who are less fortunate are faced with a host of challenges, ranging from uncertain medical costs to a lengthy physical recovery. Many of those who are injured want to pursue a legal claim but do not know where to start. Chief among their questions is, how long will my personal-injury claim take? That question is best answered by breaking down the stages of an injury claim. HIRING A LAWYER It doesn’t take long to find a personal-injury lawyer in Kansas City. They’re everywhere—on TV, on