Articles

Plains Commerce Bank v. Long Family Land and Cattle Company
August 07, 2008

U.S. Supreme Court Clarifies the Scope of Tribal Civil Jurisdiction Over Nonmembers...

Navajo Nation Enacts Tribal Superfund Law
August 05, 2008

On February 26, 2008, the Navajo Nation Council enacted the Navajo Nation Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act, N.N.C. §§ 2104-2805, also known as the Navajo Superf...

Modrall Sperling Named a Go-To Law Firm for Technology Industry by American Lawyer
July 10, 2008

Modrall Sperling has been selected as a "Go-To Law Firm for Leading Technology Companies" by American Lawyer Media for 2008. In-House Law Departments at the Leading Technology Companies, published by ...

Employer Liability for Employee Actions: Derivative Negligence Claims in New Mexico
November 14, 2007

Every employer is concerned about potential liability for the tortious actions of its employees. Simply stated: Where does an employer’s responsibility for its employee’s actions end, the ...

Employees’ Right to Reinstatement Under FMLA
November 13, 2007

One of four articles in the Winter 2007 edition of the Employment Law Briefing newsletter, this article focuses on a case in the Fourth Circuit in Csicsmann v. Sallada (an unpublished decision), which...

Be Wary When Using Tests to Screen Job Applicants
November 13, 2007

One of four articles in the Winter 2007 edition of the Employment Law Briefing newsletter, this article focuses on the fact that the Eighth Circuit had to decide whether an employer engaged in sex dis...

Has the Social Security Administration’s “No Match” Letter Met its Match?
November 13, 2007

One of four articles in the Winter 2007 edition of the Employment Law Briefing newsletter, this article focuses on the fact that, much to the disappointment of many American employers, the complex int...

Sexual Harassment Not Limited to Male Against Female
November 13, 2007

One of four articles in the Winter 2007 edition of the Employment Law Briefing newsletter, this article focuses on the fact that, in Kampmier v. Emeritus Corp., 472 F.3d 930 (7th Cir. 2006), the Seven...

FLSA Applies to Business Located on Tribal Land
October 01, 2007

Businesses, and courts, have grappled with the question whether various federal employment laws apply to business activities on tribal land for many years. In June, 2007, the United States District Co...

Is Closeness In Time Enough to Establish Retaliation?
August 01, 2007

One of the articles in our "Employment Law Briefing newsletter highlighting important issues in Employment Law, featuring the following articles: 1. No age discrimination when replacement not subst...

Employer’s Failure To Act on a Complaint Leads to Title VII Liability
August 01, 2007

One of the articles in our "Employment Law Briefing newsletter highlighting important issues in Employment Law, featuring the following articles: 1. No age discrimination when replacement not subst...

Be Wary When Dealing with Perceived Disabilities
August 01, 2007

One of the articles in our "Employment Law Briefing newsletter highlighting important issues in Employment Law, featuring the following articles: 1. No age discrimination when replacement not subst...

No Age Discrimination When Replacement Not Substantially Younger
August 01, 2007

One of the articles in our "Employment Law Briefing newsletter highlighting important issues in Employment Law, featuring the following articles: 1. No age discrimination when replacement not subst...

Anatomy of Family Business Succession
July 31, 2007

Succession planning in family business is an issue of growing importance. Approximately 90% of the 21,000,000 businesses in the U.S. are family-owned and one-third of the Fortune 500 are either family...

Statutes of Limitation in 1983 Claims
May 01, 2007

In February, 2007, the United States Supreme Court began to clarify several points related to statutes of limitation for civil rights claims under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. The case, Wallace v. Kato, may expa...

Jane Doe v. Santa Clara Pueblo: Lessons From an Indian Gaming Case for Business Transactions with Indian Tribes and Pueblos
April 20, 2007

Gaming compacts between New Mexico and the Pueblos of Santa Clara and San Felipe were at the center of disputes that the Supreme Court of New Mexico recently decided. See Jane Doe v. Santa Clara Puebl...

Vistas And Energy Efficiency For Centuries: Tax Incentives For Land Conservation And Environmental Focus In New Mexico
April 03, 2007

In 2007, the New Mexico Legislature passed amendments to the Real Property Transfers Tax Credit and enacted the Sustainable Building Tax Credit. Because these tax credits are transferable, they are t...

Competitiveness of New Domestic Nuclear Power Post-EPAct, Post-Kyoto
March 20, 2007

This article briefly examines whether and to what extent the market environment for domestic nuclear power may be in the midst of a sea change thanks in part not just to the global warming catalyst, b...

The NEPA Process: What Do We Need To Do And When?
February 03, 2007

This paper reviews the basic nuts and bolts of the National Environmental Policy Act, 42 U.S.C. § 4321 et seq. (“NEPA”). The paper describes the types of proposed actions that trigger NEPA...

New Mexico Court of Appeals Clarifies the Circumstances Under Which an Insurer is Subrogated
January 17, 2007

The New Mexico Court of Appeals recently issued an opinion with implications for cases involving subrogation and joint liability, including cases involving vehicle accidents....

Environmental Permitting, Tribal TAS Status Under Federal Environmental Laws and Impacts on Mineral Development
January 08, 2007

This Nation’s major federal environmental laws were originally drafted to promote a federal-state partnership in environmental regulation. The federal government established basic standards and ...

Labor and Employment Issues in Indian Country: A Non-Indian Business Perspective
December 28, 2006

Many employers operate on or near Indian lands or in “Indian Country” throughout the United States, but particularly in the Southwest and Rocky Mountain regions. Although most companies a...

New Mexico Supreme Court Reinstates Regulatory Takings Claim against State Agencies Based on Mining Act Reclamation Program
December 26, 2006

After the passage of New Mexico’s tough mine reclamation law, the 1993 Mining Act (1978 NMSA §§ 69-36-1, et seq.), Challenge Mining Company (Challenge) filed a lawsuit in which it asserted that ...

Sacred Sites And Cultural Resource Protection: Implications For Mineral Development On – And Off – Indian Lands
December 26, 2006

“Cultural resources” – also known as cultural property and heritage resources, among other terms – have been broadly defined as “the tangible and intangible effects of an...

Three Barriers In The Nuclear Power Steeplechase
December 26, 2006

In last year’s nuclear power paper for this same energy conference, I likened this country’s decades-old encounter with nuclear power to a love-hate relationship, and pointed out that such...