Wednesday, July 22, 2009

A breath of fresh air.

Yesterday, the Michigan Supreme Court upheld the Michigan Court of Appeals decision in McNeil v Charlevoix County. According to the Michigan Supreme Court, local health departments may promulgate regulations that restrict smoking so long as they "[are] at least as stringent as the standard established by state law applicable to the same or similar subject matter." McNeil v Charlevoix County, No. 134437, slip op. at 6 (Mich., July 21, 2009) (citing MCL 333.2441(1)).


What's more, a Michigan health department regulation may provide employees with a private right of action to seek the regulation's enforcement and prohibit employers from retaliating. Regulations like the one at issue in McNeil fall within a public policy exception to Michigan's at-will work doctrine. See McNeil at 7 (stating that "[i]t is well settled [in Michigan] that an employer is not free to discharge an employee at will when the reason for the discharge contravenes public policy").

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