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Breaking News and Announcements

13 March 2023 / Case law
USA – Employees fired for failure to comply with the vaccine mandate must be rehired, New York Public Employment Relations Board (PERB) holds
During the pandemic, the New York State Unified Court System – which employs more than 15,000 staff members and 3,000 judges – issued a vaccine mandate requiring all its employees to submit proof of having taken the COVID-19 vaccine or undergo regular testing. While administrative and non-judicial employees could be fired if they failed to meet COVID requirements, judges could be referred to the State Commission on Judicial Conduct to urge disciplinary action against them.
13 March 2023 / Case law
Singapore – Man sentenced to jail for setting up a fraud scheme in order to obtain COVID-19 support monies
On 23 February 2023, a court in Singapore sentenced a man to 13 months of jail for creating a scheme to cheat the government and trick it into disbursing COVID-19 relief money both for himself and other people.
13 March 2023 / Case law
The Netherlands – Court dismisses trade unions’ claims for compensation for healthcare workers with long-COVID
On 8 March 2023, the Hague District Court released a preliminary relief judgment in the case of Federatie Nederlandse Vakbeweging and CNV Connectief against the State of the Netherlands, represented by three ministers. The case concerns a collective action by trade unions representing healthcare workers who were infected with the coronavirus while providing care to COVID-19 patients in 2020 and are now suffering from long-term symptoms known as long-COVID.
10 March 2023 / Case law
United Kingdom – Court rules against jurisdiction in Middle Eastern business interruption insurance claims
On 31 January 2023, the England and Wales Court of Appeal (Civil Division) has overturned a decision by the Commercial Court and held that the English court does not have jurisdiction to hear business interruption claims under various multi-risk insurance policies issued in the Middle East.
10 March 2023 / Case law
Singapore – Man is jailed for not wearing mask during the pandemic
On 21 February 2023, a court in Singapore sentenced a man to two weeks of prison for not wearing masks in two occasions during the pandemic, one inside and outside courts during judicial proceedings and one at a food court in the city. The defendant was previously known for claiming to be an assistant to a famous anti-mask activist. He argued that he was the son of a sultan and therefore he did not accept being governed by law on account of its status.
8 March 2023 / Case law
USA – Nursing home’s immunity claim rejected in COVID-19 wrongful death lawsuit
The heirs of a man who had died after having contracted COVID-19 in a skilled nursing home filed suit for negligence and wrongful death against the facility alleging that it failed: (i) to adequately screen visitors and staff; (ii) to properly isolate patients, (iii) to consistently conduct COVID-19 screenings of patients, and (iv) to timely refer patients to a higher level of care when there was a significant change in condition.
8 March 2023 / Case law
India – Court dismisses plea asking for benefits for prison inmates during the pandemic
On 9 February 2023, the Delhi High Court dismissed a plea from two inmates of the Tihar jail asking for benefits and facilities related to video calling, dietary needs and internet access.
7 March 2023 / Case law
Japan – Man sentenced for computer fraud in COVID-19 relief money scam
On 28 February 2023 the Yamaguchi District Court sentenced a man to prison (with a suspended sentence) for computer fraud. The defendant was entitled to COVID-19 relief money from his town administration, but due to a mistake of town officials he received ¥46,300,000 instead of ¥100,000.
7 March 2023 / Case law
USA – Federal court affirms ski pass insurer’s denial of COVID-related claims
When they purchased a popular multi-resort ski pass for the 2019/2020 ski season, a number of skiers also stipulated a Ski Pass Preserver insurance policy. Such a policy provided coverage for “Season Pass interruption”, expressly stating that policyholders would have been reimbursed if, inter alia, they were “quarantined”.
7 March 2023 / Case law
Italy – Doctor’s privacy violated in disciplinary action over COVID criticism
An Italian doctor who criticized COVID-19 health measures faced disciplinary action by the Rome Provincial Order of Surgeons. The Order publicly disclosed details of the action being taken against the doctor on TV and in a press release. The doctor filed a complaint with the Italian data protection authority, arguing that his data had been unlawfully processed, thus violating the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
3 March 2023 / Case law
USA – Federal court rules in favor of employees retaliated for reporting coronavirus concerns
In January 2021, the U.S. Department of Labor took legal action on behalf of a dental hygienist and a dental assistant against their employers, i.e., two dental practice owners. In April 2020, they had furloughed their employees after the State of Texas had prohibited a number of dental procedures on account of the pandemic.
3 March 2023 / Case law
Vietnam – Korean men arrested for illegally smuggling people into country during the pandemic
On 15 February 2023, a Court in Danang (Vietnam) sentenced four South-Korean men for having illegally smuggled South Koreans in Vietnam during the pandemic, while the country’s borders were closed and only a small number of foreign experts and skilled workers was allowed entry.
3 March 2023 / Case law
Chile – Excluding children under 3 from national vaccination plan violates their rights, rules Santiago court
A claimant brought an action against the Ministry of Health for failure to design a vaccination campaign for children below 3 years of age, requesting his daughter to be administered COVID-19 vaccine.
1 March 2023 / Case law
Singapore – Court rules that business owners receiving COVID-19 relief subsidies cannot claim rent waiver from landlords
On 16 February 2023, the Singapore High Court ruled that businesses which have received COVID-19 relief grants cannot also claim rental waiver from landlords.
1 March 2023 / Case law
Spain – Airline ordered to refund passenger for operated flight amid pandemic uncertainty
On 22 November 2022, a first instance court in Marbella ruled that an airline, Iberia, must refund almost 900 euros to passengers who cancelled their flights in 2020 due to uncertainty surrounding the pandemic, despite the flights ultimately taking place as scheduled.
1 March 2023 / Case law
USA – The Supreme Court of Washington on COVID-related premium pay for gig workers for food delivery network companies
A few months after the United States declared COVID-19 a public health emergency, the City of Seattle passed an Ordinance requiring hazard pay for gig workers for food delivery network companies (the terms “gig work” and “the gig economy” are used colloquially to describe a business model that pays workers by the task and depends on freelance workers or independent contractors who do not receive protections usually afforded by employees, like the minimum wage, overtime, workers’ compensation, unemployment insurance, and the right to collectively organize and bargain).
27 February 2023 / Case law
Canada – Employers must pay COVID-related benefits (CERB) to employees in case of wrong dismissal
An employee brought a civil claim against its employer for damages for wrongful dismissal and sought aggravated and punitive damages for the alleged misconduct in the dismissal process. A judge of the British Columbia Supreme Court awarded the employee five months’ salary but declined to award punitive damages.
27 February 2023 / Case law
USA – Rule imposing healthcare employers to provide premium hazard pay for hospital workers during the pandemic was lawful, federal judge holds
During the pandemic, Culver City passed an ordinance aimed at compensating “essential Hospital Workers for their daily sacrifices and the ongoing risks and burdens they and their families face while providing vital services to the community during the pandemic”. The ordinance required Southern California Healthcare System (SCHCC) to provide covered workers an additional $5.00 per hour for each hour worked on site at the covered location during a three-month period.
27 February 2023 / Case law
India – Medical students doing super specialty courses may serve reduced compulsory service if they were on COVID-19 duty
On 2 February 2023, the Madras High Court ruled that doctors who have served on COVID-19 duty may have their two-year period of compulsory bond service adjusted in the light of the time they spent on duty during the pandemic.
24 February 2023 / Case law
Puerto Rico – Supreme Court holds that restrictive measures to avert the spread of the pandemic were lawfully adopted by the government
A group of claimants brought an action against the government of Porto Rico, arguing that all the measures adopted to avert the spread of the pandemic were ultra vires. In particular, the claimants submitted that the government had acted outside of the scope of the powers expressly granted by the Constitution since the executive power is not entitled to adopt measures that directly affect the full enjoyment of rights and freedoms by the population.
24 February 2023 / Case law
Spain – Catalonia’s regulation of commercial leases declared unconstitutional
On 29 November 2022, in a judgment that was published in January, the Spanish Constitutional Court declared Catalonia’s pandemic-era legislation on commercial leasing unconstitutional, as it violated the contractual freedom of the parties involved.
22 February 2023 / Case law
China – Court refuses to accept lawsuit on adverse effects of vaccines
A group of people, whose health has been allegedly harmed by adverse effects of vaccine inoculated by health authorities for different diseases, including COVID-19, tried to file a complaint against the national government before the Intermediate People’s Court in Beijing, but the court refused to accept the lawsuit.
22 February 2023 / Case law
USA – State Supreme Court: Still relevant to determine whether the executive had the power to enact COVID-related measures although they have now lapsed
In March 2020 the Governor of Minnesota declared a peacetime emergency for the COVID-19 pandemic under the Minnesota Emergency Management Act, according to which the Governor may declare a peacetime emergency “only when an act of nature, a technological failure or malfunction, a terrorist incident, an industrial accident, a hazardous materials accident, or a civil disturbance endangers life and property and local government resources are inadequate to handle the situation”.
22 February 2023 / Case law
Belgium - Constitutional Court validates most pandemic health measures but orders Flemish Community to revise legislation
On 16 February 2023, the Constitutional Court mostly validated the constitutionality of the several health measures taken during the pandemic by different levels of government but declared a measure adopted by the Flemish Community unconstitutional.
17 February 2023 / Case law
United Kingdom – Welsh coroner finds two nurses’ death due to COVID-19 was industrial disease
On 3 February 2023, a senior coroner in Wales found that the deaths of two nurses aged 63 and 65 due to COVID-19 should be a considered as industrial disease. The coroner found that both nurses had likely caught the virus at their respective hospitals. Although they were given appropriate personal protective equipment, they were still exposed to the virus while working and became infected, causing their deaths.
17 February 2023 / Case law
Malaysia - Court of appeal upholds lower court’s leave to hear a case challenging the government vaccination program
A bench of the Court of Appeal upheld the decision of the Shah Alam High Court which granted leave to hear a case filed by staff and teachers of the Universiti Malaya challenging the government’s vaccination program against COVID-19.
17 February 2023 / Case law
Italy – Constitutional Court: employers owe no alimony to employees who refuse to vaccinate
In judgment 15/2023 issued on 9 February 2023 together with other two judgments, the Constitutional Court has held that no alimony is owed by the employer to the employee when the latter, subject to the obligation to vaccinate, decides not to vaccinate and is temporarily suspended from its employment contract.
15 February 2023 / Case law
Singapore – Former nurse wins appeal on payment of child maintenance after being left disabled and unemployed by COVID-19 vaccine
A former nurse who suffered an adverse reaction to the COVID-19 vaccine won an appeal against a court’s decision which ordered her to pay 1,500 Singapore Dollars for the maintenance of her two children after divorcing her husband.
15 February 2023 / Case law
USA – Federal appeal Court states COVID-19-like symptoms entitled employees to apply for unpaid leave even at the onset of the pandemic
At the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, a lawyer employed in a law firm asked her employer for a leave to stay at home on account of her son showing symptoms resembling COVID-19 based on the limited knowledge of the virus at that time (a cough, runny nose, and gastrointestinal issues).
15 February 2023 / Case law
Spain – Supreme Court confirms legality of Cantabrian government closure of hospitality sector
On 7 February 2023, the Spanish Supreme Court has quashed a decision by the High Court of Justice of Cantabria that had annulled the Cantabrian government’s decision to close hospitality businesses’ interiors in November 2020.
13 February 2023 / Case law
USA – COVID-related order prohibiting non-residents property owners from accessing a county and using their vacation house was constitutional, Federal Appeal Court holds
In March 2020, Dare County Boards of Commissioners passed a number of COVID-related regulations aimed at limiting the spread of the virus. One of these measures prohibited non-resident property owners from entering the county. Non-resident owners were given four days to travel to the county and reach their houses; the restriction lasted for 45 days.
13 February 2023 / Case law
Argentina – Court refuses to hear action for damages brought against China for the spread of COVID-19
The Supreme Court of Justice of Argentina upheld the first and second instance decisions that declared the lack of jurisdiction to hear a lawsuit brought against the People’s Republic of China by a foundation for the alleged damages suffered by Argentinian due to the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.
13 February 2023 / Case law
Italy – Constitutional Court upholds law mandating vaccination for healthcare professionals
The Italian Constitutional Court, with three parallel judgements published on 9 February 2023, has rejected the claims of unconstitutionality referred by several administrative courts concerning the law on healthcare personnel vaccination.
10 February 2023 / Case law
United Kingdom – Air passenger awarded refund for flight that was not cancelled
The small claims court at the Gloucester and Cheltenham County Court awarded an air passenger £429 after arguing that he should have been refunded for a flight he did not take due to government advice against non-essential travel during the COVID-19 pandemic. The flight was scheduled on 30 July 2020, during the first months of the pandemic. The claimant was 65 years old.
10 February 2023 / Case law
India – Supreme Court rejects plea challenging a Court’s order demanding private university to charge half the rent for hostels during the pandemic
On 20 January 2023, the Supreme Court of India rejected a plea from a private university which sought to challenge a lower Court’s order concerning the charging of hostel rent to students during the COVID-19 pandemic. The High Court of Punjab and Haryana had pointed out that, since the school, during the pandemic, had charged 25% of the price for contractors of services such as canteens, shops, etc., charging the full price for hostels to students was unjustified.
8 February 2023 / Case law
USA – State Court declares vaccine mandate for healthcare facilities and their workers null and void
During the early stages of the pandemic, the New York State Legislature ceded powers to the then Governor on an emergency basis. On 24 June 2021, the Governor rescinded his previous COVID-related emergency orders, thus ending the emergency resulting from the pandemic. Nonetheless, on 22 June 2022 the Commissioner of Health adopted as a permanent regulation a COVID vaccine mandate for healthcare facilities and their workers.

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