Missouri

Recently the Supreme Court of Missouri held that The Protection of Lawful Commerce and Arms Act (“PLCAA”) preempts a negligence claim but allows a correctly pled negligent entrustment action against a firearm seller. Thus, the PLCAA is not only a hot political topic being discussed by the Presidential Candidates, but also one that is being litigated within the legal system.

In Delana v. Ced Sales, Inc., d/b/a Odessa Gun & Pawn, et al., (2016 WL 1357209 (MO en banc April 6, 2016, not released for publication) defendant Odessa Gun & Pawn (“Odessa) sold a firearm, to a mentally ill child of the plaintiff, Janet Delana, which the child used to kill her own father.  Plaintiff telephoned Odessa and asked the store manager, Derrick Dady, to refrain from selling a gun to her daughter, who was severely mentally ill and should not have a gun.  Plaintiff also told Mr. Dady that her daughter had purchased a gun at Odessa the previous month and attempted to commit suicide, and said, “I’m begging you, I’m begging you as a mother, if she comes in, please don’t sell her a gun. Two days later, Mr. Dady sold her a gun and ammunition which she used within an hour to kill her father.

On April 11, 2016, Missouri Governor Jay Nixon signed an Executive Order that immediately implemented a “Ban the Box” policy for Missouri state agencies, departments, boards, and commissions. Under this Order, state employers must amend their initial employment applications to remove questions relating to an individual’s criminal history unless a criminal history would render an applicant ineligible for the position. State employers may still request information about an applicant’s criminal past and may still conduct a criminal background check as a condition of employment, but the Order requires that state agencies wait until later in the application process to procure that information. The Order does not specify exactly when in the application process employers may make these criminal history inquiries.

This month the Missouri Court of Appeals for the Eastern District issued an opinion which slammed the door, once again, on the ability of employers to enter into an agreement with their employees whereby parties agree to bypass the court system in favor of private arbitration.  In Jimenez v. Cintas Corporation, S.W.3d (Mo. App. E.D. 2015) the Court found that there was insufficient consideration to support such an agreement due to lack of mutuality of obligation and the at will status of Jimenez’s employment.  This is not the first time in which a Missouri court has addressed this issue.  In Morrow v. Hallmark Cards, Inc., 273 S.W.3d 15 (Mo. App. W.D. 2008) these concepts were also addressed.  However, in Morrow, the issue of consideration was in reference to continued employment, not initial employment, which was the case in Cintas.  However, even more concerning was the fact that Cintas found that since the employer alone was exempt from arbitrating alleged violations of the non-compete provisions the agreement lacked mutuality.

In its 1984 decision in Hansome, the Missouri Supreme Court required an “exclusive causal connection” between the employee’s exercise of rights under the workers’ compensation statute and the adverse action the employee challenged.  No more.  Today, the Missouri Supreme Court swept Hansome aside and concluded the employee need only show that his exercise of rights under the workers’ compensation statute was a “contributing factor” to the adverse action. 

Missouri Lawyers Weekly honored Husch Blackwell Partner Cynthia Cordes as its 2014 “Lawyer of the Year” on January 24, 2014. Presented annually as part of the Missouri Lawyer Awards Program, the Lawyer of the Year is awarded to “the Missouri lawyer or judge who (has) made a substantial impact on the law or the Missouri legal community.” It is Missouri Lawyers Weekly’s highest honor. Cynthia is the first Husch Blackwell lawyer to be selected as “Lawyer of the Year.”

On July 29, 2006 a De Havilland DHC-6 Twin Otter departed the Sullivan, Missouri Regional Airport on a local skydiving flight.  Shortly after liftoff the right engine failed, the aircraft lost altitude, and crashed about ½ mile beyond the end of the runway. All on board died.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) found that the right engine turbine blades failed but could not determine the cause of the failure.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is launching a local emphasis program in Kansas, Nebraska and Missouri for programmed health inspections of industries known to use hazardous chemicals and who have reported release of such chemicals to the Environmental Protection Agency. Chemicals reported to the EPA that have been released into the environment include ammonia;…