PA Employers Must Be Represented By Legal Counsel At Unemployment Compensation Hearings
"Employers statewide will be impacted by a recent ruling from the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court, holding that employers cannot have non-lawyers represent them at Unemployment Compensation proceedings...
Despite a well-reasoned dissent that pointed out the flaws in the majority's opinion, including a double standard for claimants and employers, the ruling stands that employers now may not use non-lawyers to represent them in unemployment compensation hearings. This will require many employers to change their practices and make the decision either to run up costly attorney’s fees in defending against UC claims, or forego fighting them altogether.
On February 14, 2005, the Department of Labor & Industry expressed its frustration with the Harkness decision's potential to complicate the unemployment compensation claim process, and announced that it was appealing the Harkness decision to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. Stay tuned for a decision from the state’s highest court."
From this Greater Valley Forge HR Law Link post.
