East News

The Hilb Group Adds Massachusetts’ BAR Insurance Brokerage

The Hilb Group LLC (THG) has added Needham, Mass.-based BAR Insurance Brokerage Inc. (BAR). The transaction became effective June 1, 2018. BAR is an employee benefits firm that provides a range of group benefits products and services to its customers. …

Opioid Makers Endure Setback as Judge Lets New York Lawsuit Proceed

Purdue Pharma LP, Johnson & Johnson and other opioid makers faced one of the first extensive reviews of their legal defenses to claims they violated consumer-protection laws and created a public nuisance with the sale of the pain killers. They …

Maine Employers Are Not Required to Reimburse Employees for Medical Marijuana Use

The Maine Supreme Court has ruled that employers in the state are not required to reimburse employees for their use of medical marijuana under the Maine workers’ compensation system because federal law preempts state law. This decision vacates a previous …

Maryland Governor Seeks Federal Disaster Declaration for Recent Floods

Maryland Governor Larry Hogan is asking for a presidential disaster declaration for Maryland following heavy rainfall and flooding that hit two western counties last month. The flooding in Frederick and Washington counties was the first of two major flooding events …

Kaplansky Insurance Acquires Massachusetts’ Kelleher & Mackey Insurance Agency

Kaplansky Insurance, a Needham, Mass.-based, independent and locally owned agency, has acquired Kelleher & Mackey Insurance Agency (K&M) in Quincy, Mass. Following the acquisition, K&M will be merging into Kaplansky’s new Weymouth, Mass., location. The addition of K&M marks the …

Appeals Court Lets Lawsuit Over NYPD Sound Cannons Proceed

A federal appeals court in New York says a lawsuit alleging the use of sound cannons by police constitutes excessive force can proceed toward trial. The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said that it agreed with a lower court …

Pennsylvania Allows ETP Mariner East 1 Pipeline to Resume Service

Pennsylvania’s Public Utility Commission (PUC) voted on Thursday to allow Energy Transfer Partners LP’s Sunoco Mariner East 1 natural gas liquids pipeline to return to service, reversing a suspension tied to safety concerns. The PUC stopped flows on Mariner East …

Maryland Suing EPA on Power Plant Pollution in Other States

A federal judge has ordered the Environmental Protection Agency to respond to Maryland’s request for a declaration that power plants in five upwind states are contributing to Maryland’s air quality problems. The judge on Wednesday ordered the EPA to take …

Insurer Must Defend Bill Cosby Defamation Suits, Court Says

A federal appeals court says an insurance company must pick up Bill Cosby’s tab to fight defamation lawsuits brought by women who accused him of sexual misconduct. But the ruling by the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston, …

Vermont to Require That All Have Health Insurance

Vermont is moving forward with its quest to ensure that as many residents as possible have health insurance by enacting a law that will require all to be covered or be penalized. The law, signed with no fanfare by Republican …

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