Attorney Lucas Newbill is a civil rights and employment lawyer in Brookline, Massachusetts, serving the Greater Boston region in cases that include accommodation (religious, disability, and pregnancy), discrimination, equal pay, parental leave, sexual harassment, contracts, wage theft, free speech, defamation, religious freedom, equal protection, police misconduct, and DCF related matters.
“A gem cannot be polished without friction, nor a man [or woman] perfected without trials.” – Seneca
I recently came across a GBH news article wherein an attorney advised people to avoid political protest because their employer may fire them for such activity. The First Amendment says otherwise. Political speech is at the heart of the First Amendment, which protects government employees. Government employees cannot be fired for political speech unless the …
Continue reading “No, government employees cannot be fired for political protest”
On April 14, 2020, the Brookline Department of Public Health issued the following advisory: “Effective April 17, 2020 every individual is required to wear a protective face covering at all times when in the public.”[1] The mandate contains no expiry. This article poses constitutional questions relevant to the town’s broad rule. In order to challenge …
Continue reading “Is Brookline’s Face Mask Mandate Constitutional?”
As part of the federal response to the Novel Coronavirus outbreak, restaurants are eligible for loans to cover their payroll costs through the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), which can include tips paid to wait staff. Such loans are then forgiven if certain conditions are met, meaning the restaurant does not have to pay the money …
Gonzaga Law Review published Attorney Newbill’s article titled Violating Free Speech in the War on Opioid Addiction: The Washington Legislature’s Voice in the Doctor’s Office, wherein he examines how a Washington state regulation violates physicians’ First Amendment right to free speech, which includes the right not to speak. The regulation requires physicians to obtain permission from their patients to contact law enforcement if they believe their patient is engaging in “illegal activity.” Aside from the intrusion on the doctor-patient relationship, such requirement could be considered compelled speech in violation of physicians’ First Amendment rights.
In A Nurse’s Face: The Burqa in the Hospital, published in the North Carolina Central Law Review, Attorney Newbill explores discrimination and religious freedom in one of the most sensitive of work environments: The hospital. Relying on scientific studies, Attorney Newbill makes the case that a hospital would not have to accommodate the wearing of a burqa under federal anti-discrimination law, but that a nurse may rely on her state’s religious freedom laws to pursue a career in nursing while remaining steadfast to her religious beliefs.
This website is designed for general information only. The information presented here should neither be construed as legal advice nor the formation of a lawyer/client relationship. If you seek legal advice or representation, you must first enter a formal agreement.
An expert at conveying legal concepts, Attorney Lucas Newbill’s work has been published in academic legal journals on topics ranging from a physician’s right to free speech to the right of a nurse to wear a burka in the hospital. As a law clerk at the Superior Court of Connecticut prior to opening his practice, Lucas was designated to the Complex Litigation Docket, where he helped resolve some of the state’s most complex and high profile cases.
Attorney Newbill was selected by Thompson Reuters’ Super Lawyers as a Rising Star in 2019 and 2020. Lucas finished law school in the top ten percent of his class, earning his law degree from City University of New York (CUNY) School of Law, then ranked number one in the nation for public interest by National Law Journal and number three in the nation for clinical training by U.S. News and World Report.
Attorney Newbill is admitted to the bar in Massachusetts, the United States District Court of Massachusetts, and the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit. Lucas is a Committee Member of the Solo & Small Firm Section at the Boston Bar Association.
Please call Attorney Newbill at 617-918-7567 to discuss your legal issues and explore your options.
This website is designed for general information only. The information presented here should neither be construed as legal advice nor the formation of a lawyer/client relationship. If you seek legal advice or representation, you must first enter a formal agreement.
