Courtney Blanchard News Archive

Posted January 21, 2026 with Tags Corporate Immigration, Immigration Law

Operation Metro Surge: How Employers Can Prepare & Respond

We are fielding many questions from our clients stemming from Operation Metro Surge in the Twin Cities and Minnesota. Below, we’ve included some information about common topics to assist employers in navigating this difficult and unprecedented situation. ICE/DHS Onsite Visits. …

Posted December 9, 2025 with Tags The Equal Pay Advisor

How to Talk to Your Team About Pay Equity: A Guide for In-House Counsel

After pushing through the frantic period of year-end reviews and open enrollment, Human Resource and Payroll teams may bristle at another task. But after the 2025 dust settles, early 2026 is the perfect time to develop a plan for pay …

Posted July 17, 2025 with Tags Firm News

Nilan Johnson Lewis Attorneys Recognized by Super Lawyers

We are pleased to announce that 22 attorneys at Nilan Johnson Lewis have been selected for inclusion in the upcoming Super Lawyers list. This recognition reflects their standing among their peers and their dedication to legal excellence. Super Lawyers is …

Posted March 12, 2025 with Tags The Equal Pay Advisor

Pay Data Reporting – Off the Hook or Temporary Reprieve?

In 2016, the EEOC announced big changes to EEO-1 reporting. The new initiative, led by Obama-era appointees, required employers to report an entirely new category of data covering pay and hours worked for the purpose of identifying potential pay equity …

Posted August 16, 2024

NJL Attorneys Recognized in Best Lawyers®

We are proud to recognize several attorneys who have been selected for the 2025 edition of Best Lawyers in America.  Judith Bevis Langevin (Labor and Employment), Doug Elsass (Commercial Litigation), Joel Andersen (Labor and Employment), and John Wackman (Product Liability Litigation and Commercial Litigation) were …

Posted November 20, 2023 with Tags Firm News

Best Lawyers® Recognizes Firm and Multiple Attorneys

NJL and numerous attorneys have been recognized in the 2024 editions of Best Law Firms and Best Lawyers respectively. As a firm, NJL has been recognized for the Minneapolis metro area for practices in Business Litigation, Labor and Employment, and …

Posted July 19, 2023

19 NJL Attorneys on 2023 Super Lawyers and Rising Stars Lists

Super kudos to our 10 Super Lawyers and 9 Rising Stars for 2023: 2023 MN Super Lawyers (given to no more than 5% of state attorneys) Heidi Neff Amanda Cialkowski Kathleen Curtis Doug Elsass Brian Johnson Judy Langevin Don Lewis …

Posted May 18, 2023 with Tags Firm News

Minnesota Legislature Passes Jobs Bill Providing for Paid Sick and Safe Time

The Minnesota Legislature passed a statewide paid sick and safe leave law on May 16, 2023 that will be sent to the governor’s desk for signature. The new law, which is expected to be signed and would take effect on …

Posted April 13, 2023 with Tags The Equal Pay Advisor

New York Clarifies Scope of Pay Scale Reports

For multi-state employers tracking pay transparency laws requiring salary ranges in job postings, recent amendments to the New York law provide welcome clarity. In its original form, the New York law would have required most employers to provide a range …

Posted February 24, 2023 with Tags NLRB, NLRA, National Labor Relations Board, National Labor Relations Act, Severance Agreements

Advice for Employers: NLRB McLaren Macomb Decision

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB or Board) recently issued a decision aimed at severance agreements with confidentiality and non-disparagement provisions. In McLaren Macomb, the Board held that an employer violates Section 8(a)(1) of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) …

Posted December 18, 2022 with Tags The Equal Pay Advisor

Equal Pay in 2023: A Preview

In recent years, equal pay legislation has taken a new form. Gone are the days in which recruiters must merely avoid questions about prior salary history. Now, various states require recruiters to respond to requests about the expected salary for …

Posted September 20, 2022 with Tags The Equal Pay Advisor

Recruiting Under the Equal Pay Act: Top 5 Mistakes Made During the Hiring Process

Most recruiters and hiring managers are familiar with the concept of “prohibited questions” during the hiring process—topics the employer should avoid affirmatively raising during the interview to steer clear of potential discrimination. But as state and local governments pass legislation …

Posted September 7, 2022 with Tags Firm News

Best Lawyers Recognizes Multiple NJL Attorneys

Several NJL attorneys were named to the 2023 Best Lawyers in America list. Best Lawyers considers more than 12 million evaluations by asking attorneys to evaluate their peers through exhaustive, confidential peer-review surveys. NJL Of Counsel Elizabeth Thompson (labor and …

Posted July 11, 2022

Fifteen NJLers on 2022 Rising Stars, Super Lawyers Lists

Eight lawyers from Nilan Johnson Lewis (NJL) have been listed on the 2022 Minnesota Super Lawyers list. No more than 5% of lawyers in Minnesota are selected by Super Lawyers. Amanda Cialkowski Brian Johnson Don Lewis Doug Elsass Joe Schmitt …

Posted March 2, 2022 with Tags The Equal Pay Advisor

Top 5 Reasons to Do a Pay Equity Audit in 2022

There’s no time like the present to conduct a pay equity audit. This year, employers face historic competition to recruit and retain talent. With continued pressure to increase DE&I efforts and a wave of new pay equity laws, a pay …

Posted January 13, 2022 with Tags COVID-19, COVID-19 for Employers

Supreme Court Ruling Strikes Down OSHA ETS

UPDATE: In an order issued Jan. 13, 2022, the United States Supreme Court stayed enforcement of federal OSHA’s COVID-19 Vaccination and Testing ETS pending the disposition of the petitions for review in the Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. …

Posted January 7, 2022 with Tags Labor and Employment, COVID-19, COVID-19 for Employers

No Ruling, But SCOTUS Likely to Strike Down OSHA ETS

On January 7, 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments over whether two sets of vaccine and testing mandates should go into effect: (1) the OSHA ETS, applying to private employers with 100 or more employees; and (2) the …

Posted January 6, 2022

Nilan Johnson Lewis Elects Courtney Blanchard to Shareholder

MINNEAPOLIS (January 6, 2022) – Nilan Johnson Lewis, an innovative and independent law firm in Minneapolis, announces a new shareholder promotions, Courtney Blanchard of the Labor and Employment group. “Courtney has been vitally important to our team at Nilan Johnson …

Posted December 1, 2021 with Tags Labor and Employment, Employment law, COVID-19, COVID-19 for Employers

Stay Issued for Federal Vaccine Mandates

Originally published 11/08/21. Updated 12/01/21. As expected, the OSHA Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) faced immediate legal challenge, and on Saturday, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals issued a stay blocking the law from going into effect. Below, we outline the …

Posted September 10, 2021 with Tags COVID-19, COVID-19 for Employers, Labor and Employment, Employment law

Summary of President Biden’s Two Executive Orders on Mandatory Covid-19 Vaccines and Safety Protocols

On September 9th, President Biden signed two Executive Orders; one requiring COVID vaccines for federal employees and another ensuring adequate COVID safety protocols for federal contractors. The administration also announced plans to develop rules impacting private employers with more than …