Amy B. Yarbro Partner

Amy is a partner practicing civil defense litigation with a focus on employment law, professional liability, directors and officers (D&O) liability, and tort and general liability in Massachusetts and Rhode Island.  She defends nursing homes, assisted living facilities, large retailers, small businesses, home care agencies, medical and real estate professionals, and individuals in a wide range of matters involving employment discrimination and retaliation claims, wage and hour disputes, senior care medical malpractice, wrongful death, condominium disputes, premises liability, landlord-tenant matters, and transportation.  She represents clients in matters before state and federal courts as well as the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination, and the Rhode Island Commission for Human Rights. Amy is also the founder and Chair of the firm’s Wellness Committee.

Amy has tried cases in the Massachusetts Superior and District courts and successfully mediated and arbitrated numerous cases in Massachusetts and Rhode Island.  She has also prevailed on summary judgment in high exposure cases.

Representative Experience

• Obtained defense verdict in favor of a skilled nursing facility in a wrongful death case in which the plaintiff alleged that care provided to the decedent’s pressure sore did not comply with the standard of care.
• Successfully represented numerous clients in employment cases before the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination (MCAD), the Rhode Island Commission for Human Rights (RICHR), and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). 
• Obtained numerous summary judgments and dismissals for clients in Massachusetts and Rhode Island.

Publications

• Implied Warranty of Habitability in PI Actions, Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly, May 26, 2014
• No Duty, No Case: When Summary Judgment is Appropriate in Negligence Actions, The Standard, Feb. 14, 2014
• Mending Broken Promises: Allowing Homeowners to Pursue Claims of Promissory Estoppel Against Lenders When Denied Loan Modifications, 47 New Eng. L. Rev. 985 (2013)

Speaking Engagements

• Presenter at ALFAI Labor & Employment Regional Seminar – Atlanta: “Religious Accommodation and Undue Hardship Standard under Groff v. Dejoy,” September 19, 2023.

• Presenter at LeadingAge RI Annual Expo and Conference: "Senior Care Litigation," March 22, 2023

• Presenter on Employment Webinar "Massachusetts Wage Act: What Employers Need to Know," Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly May 10, 2022 

• Presenter at Long-Term Care Webinar: "Issues and Strategies for Minimizing Risk in Skilled Nursing Facilities" with CareSafely, January 19, 2022 

• Presenter at Long-Term Care Webinar: "COVID-19 Lawsuits: Protect Yourself from Civil & Criminal Liability" with CareSafely, November 24, 2020

Memberships

• ALFA International Labor & Employment Practice Group and Steering Committee
• Massachusetts Defense Lawyers Association (MassDLA)
• Rhode Island Bar Association, Alternative Dispute Resolution Committee 
• Defense Research Institute (DRI)
• Defense Counsel Rhode Island
• Massachusetts Bar Association

Honors & Awards

• Elected by her peers to The Best Lawyers in America© Ones to Watch: Labor and Employment Litigation guide (2021-2024)
• Selected as Top Attorneys in Massachusetts Rising Star (2022)
• Elected by her peers to the Best Lawyers: Medical Malpractice Law - Defendants List (2021-2022)
• Selected to the Women In The Law: Ones to Watch List (2021-2022)
• Named to Super Lawyers' Massachusetts 2020 Annual List of Top Lawyers: Top Women Edition
  
• Selected to the Massachusetts Super Lawyers magazine list as a "Rising Star" in Civil Litigation: Defense (2018-2022)
• While in law school, received the CALI Excellence for the Future Awards for Clinical Evidence and Family Law, was a member of Dean’s List, and named as a New England Scholar for academic achievement
• Served as editor on the New England Law Review