Leaked Memo: Which Biglaw Firm May Bar Some Attorneys From Insurance Coverage?

Today, we can add one more firm to the growing list of legal employers where workers feel they've been wronged by management in terms of their insurance coverage.

As we get deeper into the fourth quarter of 2015, more and more Biglaw firms have decided to inform their employees about their intentions regarding health insurance benefits in light of the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) new coverage requirements. We already know of two firms — Debevoise & Plimpton and Davis Polk & Wardwell — that inspired associates’ anger when it came to the costly changes to their medical benefits.

Today, we can add one more firm to the growing list of legal employers where workers feel they’ve been wronged by partners in management in terms of their insurance coverage.

Frequent readers know that almost every year, we cover Fortune’s list of the 100 Best Companies to Work For. For the past six years, Tennessee-based Baker Donelson Bearman Caldwell & Berkowitz has been selected for inclusion on the list. After receiving an internal memo yesterday from Jennifer Keller, the firm’s president and COO, many employees at Baker Donelson no longer feel like the firm is one of the best companies to work for.

Keller’s email was sent to all staff attorneys, part-time attorneys, of counsel attorneys, and senior counsel attorneys (positions that are predominantly held by women at Baker Donelson, according to a source), and outlined new “hours worked” requirements necessary for those attorneys to maintain health insurance eligibility and coverage at the firm. At Baker Donelson, these employees aren’t classified as “regular, full-time employees,” but under ACA, they’re considered full-time equivalent employees entitled to health insurance coverage so long as they work at least 30 hours per week. Keller’s email serves as a warning for these employees, because if they fail to abide by Baker Donelson’s hours worked parameters, they’ll be barred from insurance coverage under the firm’s plan.

Here’s what an angry tipster had to say about Baker Donelson’s new insurance policy:

Baker states that “in accordance with” the Affordable Care Act it will cut off health insurance for the staff attorneys, part-time attorneys, and Of Counsel attorneys that do not bill 30 hours per week. Baker couches this new policy as required by ACA regulations. Needless to say, the ACA does not require any employer to cut off health benefits for its employees. Baker misrepresents the ACA and its new policy disparately impacts female attorneys. Ironically, this new policy comes at the hands of Baker’s new female president.

We’ve got Baker Donelson’s internal memo on the next page for your perusal. It’s worth noting that affected attorneys in this group were informed about one of the most important directives it contains — the November 1, 2015, start date of the “measurement period” for calculating hours worked for insurance coverage — more than two weeks after that date had already passed. If Baker Donelson really were one of the “best companies to work for,” perhaps this crucial information wouldn’t have slipped through the cracks.

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UPDATE (11/18/15, 9:25 a.m.): We received this statement from Jennifer Keller last night. Take a look:

I would like to emphasize that there has been no change in eligibility requirements for Baker Donelson’s health insurance. Our intent in circulating the disclosed memo was to encourage and help ensure access to coverage, not to impede it. Because the Firm is required to assure enrollees meet the eligibility requirements of our benefits plan, I wanted to remind our attorneys to track all of their time worked so that activities such as pro bono work, professional development and bar association involvement that is nonbillable time is properly captured and credited. The purpose of this memo was to remind our attorneys of the importance of being diligent in reporting their time to ensure that they are meeting the eligibility requirements of our benefits plan. Indeed, I started the memo with ‘To ensure compliance…’ and it continues with descriptions of how this is an opportunity for all to be eligible as long as hours are properly accounted.

Baker Donelson is committed to ensuring all our attorneys and employees have the best health coverage possible, which contributes to us consistently being recognized as a great place to work. This memo was part of our efforts to make sure all our employees have the information they need to ensure their access to the best benefits possible.

Is your firm instituting serious changes to its health insurance plan in 2016? Please drop us a line, and send us any documentation you’ve got. We’d love to hear from you.

(Flip the page to see Jennifer Keller’s memo regarding Baker Donelson’s new insurance coverage policies for staff attorneys, part-time attorneys, of counsel, and senior counsel.)

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