by KPMLAW | May 24, 2016 | KPMBlog, News, Profiles, Uncategorized
AM Best, the oldest and most widely recognized provider of ratings, financial data and news with an exclusive insurance industry focus, recently featured KPM’s Brian Cafritz on their “Best’s Directories Insurance Law Podcast.” Brian has been closely following news and rulings related to restroom access for transgender individuals. Listen to the podcast here or view the transcript below. You can follow Brian on Twitter at @briancafritz. John Czuba: Welcome to the “Insurance Law Podcast,” the broadcast about timely and important legal issues effecting the insurance industry. I’m John Czuba, managing editor of Best’s Directory of Recommended Insurance Attorneys. We’re pleased to have with us today attorney Brian Cafritz from KPM LAW in Richmond, Virginia, with additional offices in Fairfax, Norfolk, and Roanoke, Virginia. Brian is a partner in the firm, and helped to expand the firm’s regional defense network. He focuses his practice on the defense of Fortune 500 companies that operate under large self-insured retentions. He co-founded the National Retail and Restaurant Defense Association to promote the education and communication channels of industry leaders and counsel. Brian was elected to the first two terms as the association’s first president. He is also the only Virginia attorney selected to IALDA, a defense network dedicated to the defense of the amusements and leisure industry. We’re very pleased to have you with us today, Brian. Brian Cafritz: Thank you very much, proud to be here. John: Today’s topic is on legal issues pertaining to transgender restrooms, and Brian this has been a very topical issue of late, can you comment on which states have been the most impacted? How common is...
by KPMLAW | Apr 25, 2016 | KPMBlog, News, Uncategorized, Updates
The issue of transgender restrooms continues to evolve, and last week, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond, Virginia became the first federal court to weigh in on the issue. The ruling comes in the case of G.G. v. Gloucester County School Board. The case has received a great deal of attention due to the recent controversial legislative enactments in North Carolina and other states, which have attempted to legislate which restroom transgender persons must use. G.G. was born female and when the vents of this lawsuit had taken place, had begun hormone therapy. G.G. legally changed his name to a traditionally male name and prior to his sophomore year, informed the school that he was a transgender boy. By all accounts, G.G. lived all aspects of his life as a boy. In late 2014, the Gloucester County School Board prohibited G.G. from using the male restroom in his high school. G.G. sued the School Board on the grounds that the school discriminated against him in violation of Title IX and the Equal Protection Clause of the Constitution, and he moved for a preliminary injunction to stop the school’s restroom prohibition. The District Court denied the injunction, holding that G.G. lacked sufficient evidence after it refused to consider hearsay expert testimony on the topic. It further held that using a unisex bathroom in the school was not unduly burdensome compared to the hardship to the other students caused by G.G’s presence in the men’s restroom. Finally, the District Court granted the School Board’s Rule 12(b)(6) Motion to Dismiss the Title IX allegations, claiming that requiring G.G. to use...
