VM Recommends is a monthly feature where members of our Team give suggestions on podcasts, television, movies and books for you to spend time with.

For April, see what Supervising Editor Mary Ann Demos is recommending.

This month, we are delighted to put the VM Spotlight on our Supervising Editor and Paralegal, Mary Ann Demos, who leads our valiant team of Editors. Since joining VM in 2014, Mary Ann has worked assiduously to make sure the attorneys’ work is polished to perfection, and she also lends her editing touch to correspondence, surveys, and handbooks for the Firm

This new series from VM gives you insight into the terms and concepts of neutral investigations. In this edition, we focus on the term PROMPT, the second of three critical requirements of a workplace investigation.

Most businesses, understandably, want their workplace investigations completed as fast as possible. But balancing speed with thoroughness—all while maintaining impartiality and respecting procedural fairness and due process—is of critical importance in conducting a process that has integrity.

This month, we are delighted to put the VM Spotlight on our Chief Operating Officer, Jennifer “Jen” Maguire. Jen has been with the Firm for 6 years. During that time, she has helped the Firm grow and develop in many different ways.

VM Recommends is a monthly feature where members of our Team give suggestions on podcasts, television, movies and books for you to spend time with. 

For March, see what Chief Operating Officer Jennifer Maguire is recommending.

While sports teams may not be traditional “workplaces,” it is still important for teams, and the leagues they operate under as a whole, to ensure everyone feels safe and comfortable coming to work each day. A recent racial discrimination lawsuit filed by a former head coach in the NFL highlights the significance of equity and fairness in hiring practices in the sports industry.

When you choose VM, it may appear as though you have one investigator assigned to your case. But in reality, you are benefitting from a team of investigators and professional staff drawing from a wealth of knowledge.

VM Recommends is a monthly feature where members of our Team give suggestions on podcasts, television, movies and books for you to spend time with. 

For February, see what Partner Jen Doughty is recommending.

This month, we are delighted to put the VM Spotlight on one of our Partners, Jennifer “Jen” Doughty. Jen is the Firm’s longest employee. She recently celebrated her 10-year anniversary with VM!

This new series from VM gives you insight into the terms and concepts of neutral investigations.  In this edition, we focus on the term IMPARTIAL, one of the three critical requirements of a workplace investigation.

VM Recommends is a monthly feature where members of our Team give suggestions on podcasts, television, movies and books for you to spend time with. 

For January, see what Senior Partners, Sue Ann Van Dermyden and Eli Makus are recommending.

At Van Dermyden Makus, we have a keen interest in all things workplace investigation. This includes watching, learning from and assessing public investigations to see how they play out.

Learnovation is not two distinct values displayed together. It embodies one concept. It is our Firm’s promise to utilize the depth of our experience and creativity to constantly improve not just our own work, but our entire field.

In the legal world, everyone is held to the standard of behaving like a “reasonable person.” Can someone who always makes the best choices and always perceives the world in an accurate way really exist?

In its Guiding Principles, the Association of Workplace Investigators states “There are many different ways to effectively document an investigation. Whichever method is used, the investigator should take steps to ensure the reliability of the documentation.” Thus, an investigation may yield different reports – an oral report, executive summary, or a full investigative report. As with other decisions, there are pros and cons to each. The type of report best suited for a particular complaint, employer, or situation varies.

What follows is a brief overview of the types of reports and the pros and cons of each.

On December 7, 2020, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) ruled that Nestlé, USA Inc.’s handling of an internal workplace investigation violated the National Labor Relations Act. The case (1) revisits the issue of confidentiality admonitions; (2) flags a new concern about interim measures (administrative leave/suspension); and (3) cautions investigators against probing too deeply into a Complainant’s motives to fabricate without directly confronting the Complainant about those motives. After reciting the factual background, this blog highlights some the key lessons learned from this ruling. Thanks Nestlé, for reminding us to avoid making the same mistakes.

Asking key, tough questions in an investigative interview is not always easy, but it is unavoidable in the world of workplace investigations. Tough questions afford critical witnesses the opportunity to clarify, correct, or challenge inconsistent witness statements, contradictory documentary evidence, and matters that cast doubt on their credibility. This is vital to quality investigations.

To highlight the resilience of local businesses, we spoke with three San Diego business owners to learn how they handled COVID-19. Earlier this summer, Kelly Gemelli, Managing Partner of our San Diego office, and Susanna R. Matingou, Of Counsel in the firm’s San Diego office, had the pleasure of sitting down with Bob Walin, the owner of a couple restaurants, Peter Smith, who has a bike shop, and Elizabeth Wampler, who runs a non-profit.

Jurisdictions split over how much information to provide to public safety employees prior to follow-up investigative interviews. This blog post discusses how every investigator should consider the landscape of the jurisdiction in which they are conducting an investigation, particularly before any follow-up interviews involving public safety officers.