Court Rules FDNY First Amendment Suit Can Proceed

A US District Court judge has refused to dismiss a lawsuit brought by an FDNY deputy assistant chief who was denied a promotion for refusing to renounce letters to the editor he wrote decades ago relative to merit based testing. Even more interestingly, Judge Brian M. Cogan suggested that the proper First Amendment analysis for the case is not the traditional Pickering Balancing Test, but rather one that looks at the ability of government to compel the speech of public employees.

Appeals Court Reverses Non-Competitive Promotion Ruling For Cleveland Firefighters

The Ohio Eighth District Court of Appeals has for the second time had to reverse Cuyahoga Court of Common Pleas Judge Hollie Gallagher, ruling in favor of Cleveland Firefighters IAFF Local 93’s efforts to block non-competitive promotions to battalion chief and assistant fire chief.

Omaha Battalion Chiefs Sue to Block Fire Chief’s Appointment

Two candidates for the fire chief’s job in Omaha have filed suit claiming the mayor violated the city charter and city code by appointing Interim Fire Chief Dan Olsen as fire chief. BCs Robb Gottsch and Dan Stolinski filed the suit today seeking an order declaring the promotion to be void.

Fire Law Blog Fire Service and Public Safety Legal Issues Blog by Curt Varone

Tag Archives: merit system

Court Rules FDNY First Amendment Suit Can Proceed

Appeals Court Reverses Non-Competitive Promotion Ruling For Cleveland Firefighters

Omaha Battalion Chiefs Sue to Block Fire Chief’s Appointment