Carranza v. City of Los Angeles, 111 Cal. App. 5th 388 (2025) -
Lilian Carranza, an LAPD captain, learned that a photo of a topless woman who looked like but was not Carranza was circulating electronically among LAPD...more
As we have previously reported here and here, “nuclear” verdicts from California juries in employment discrimination and harassment cases have become increasingly common over the past few years. Although these massive...more
On April 7, 2025, the California Court of Appeal reversed a whopping $10 million verdict in favor of an employee in a sexual harassment case due to the trial judge’s improper evidentiary rulings and inappropriate comments...more
4/14/2025
/ Appeals ,
California ,
Damages ,
Educational Institutions ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Employment Litigation ,
Race Discrimination ,
Retaliation ,
Reversal ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Sexual Harassment
We invite you to review our newly-posted, March 2025 California Employment Law Notes, a comprehensive review of the latest and most significant developments in California employment law....more
4/8/2025
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Appeals ,
Arbitration ,
CAFA ,
California ,
Defamation ,
Employee Rights ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) ,
FEHA ,
Hostile Environment ,
New Legislation ,
Retirement Plan ,
Sexual Harassment ,
USPS ,
Wage and Hour
On the 100th anniversary of the Federal Arbitration Act, it is worth recalling that the law was enacted in 1925 in response to what the U.S. Supreme Court later called, in its 2011 opinion in AT&T Mobility v. Concepcion,...more
3/27/2025
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
AT&T Mobility v Concepcion ,
Class Action ,
Confidentiality Policies ,
Consumer Protection Laws ,
Dispute Resolution ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Mandatory Arbitration Clauses ,
SCOTUS ,
Sexual Harassment
The California Court of Appeal dealt another blow to arbitration, just months after we reported the last such decision here.
This time, the Court ruled that the federal Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and...more
2/7/2025
/ Appeals ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
California ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Dispute Resolution ,
Employment Contract ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Employment Litigation ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Retaliation ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Title VII
It’s not like we didn’t tell you so, cuz we did! Just last year, we predicted that the latest assault on employer arbitration rights had the potential to destroy arbitration everywhere in the country. Is Arbitration Becoming...more
Last month, in Jane Doe v. Alkiviades David, a Los Angeles Superior Court jury returned a verdict in a sexual assault and harassment case in the amount of $900 million. This verdict is one of the largest ever for a...more
8/9/2024
/ Arbitration ,
Cause of Action Accrual ,
Compensatory Damages ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Jury Instructions ,
Jury Trial ,
Litigation Strategies ,
Punitive Damages ,
Retaliation ,
Risk Management ,
Sexual Assault ,
Sexual Harassment
Employee Who Wanted To Donate/Freeze Her Eggs Was Not Protected By Pregnancy Statute -
Paleny v. Fireplace Products U.S., Inc., 103 Cal. App. 5th 199 (2024) -
Erika Paleny alleged harassment, discrimination and...more
8/1/2024
/ ADEA ,
Age Discrimination ,
Appeals ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Background Checks ,
Chevron Deference ,
Chevron v NRDC ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
FEHA ,
Fraud ,
Loper Bright Enterprises v Raimondo ,
Lyft ,
Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) ,
Retaliation ,
SCOTUS ,
Settlement ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Sexual Assault ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Whistleblowers
Kader v. Southern Cal. Med. Ctr., Inc., 99 Cal. App. 5th 214 (2024) -
The Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act (9 U.S.C. §§ 401, et seq.) became effective on March 3, 2022. A “statutory...more
A Single Incident Of Harassing Conduct May Create A Hostile Work Environment -
Beltran v. Hard Rock Hotel Licensing, Inc., 97 Cal. App. 5th 865 (2023) -
Stephanie Beltran, a server at the Hard Rock Hotel in Palm...more
1/26/2024
/ Appellate Courts ,
Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
California ,
Class Action ,
Class Certification ,
Collective Actions ,
Employee Benefits ,
Enforcement ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Labor Code ,
Over-Time ,
Poison Pill ,
Pre-Employment Agreements ,
Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Release Agreements ,
Rest and Meal Break ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Wage and Hour ,
Whistleblowers
When Congress passed and President Biden signed the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act (“the Act”) last year, we predicted it was just the beginning of an all-out federal assault on...more
8/23/2023
/ ADEA ,
Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
California ,
Cause of Action Accrual ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Labor Code ,
Mandatory Arbitration Clauses ,
Race Discrimination ,
Retaliation ,
Sexual Assault ,
Sexual Harassment
No Claim By Employee Who Was Friends With Alleged Harasser Atalla v. Rite Aid Corp., 2023 WL 2521909 (Cal. Ct. App. 2023) -
Hanin Atalla and Erik Lund had a social relationship and became “close friends” before Atalla...more
4/3/2023
/ Arbitration ,
California ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Labor Code ,
Over-Time ,
Pregnancy Discrimination ,
Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Rest and Meal Break ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Wrongful Termination
The Los Angeles County Superior Court has confirmed an arbitrator’s October 2021 award of $31 million to be paid by actor Kevin Spacey to producers of the Netflix show House of Cards for Spacey’s alleged breach of contract. ...more
As we have previously reported, jury verdicts in employment cases have continued to skyrocket in recent months, and there is no sign they are leveling off. Late last week, a Los Angeles Superior Court jury awarded a total of...more
6/6/2022
/ Compensatory Damages ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Harassment ,
Hostile Environment ,
Internal Reporting ,
Jury Trial ,
Jury Verdicts ,
Punitive Damages ,
Retaliation ,
Sexual Harassment
Yesterday, the Senate passed H. 4445, the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act (the “Act”), by a voice vote. The bill had previously passed the House of Representatives by a vote of 335-97....more
2/11/2022
/ #MeToo ,
Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Class Action ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Labor Reform ,
Labor Regulations ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Pending Legislation ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Sexual Assault ,
Sexual Harassment
On February 7, 2022, in a 335-97 vote, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bipartisan bill (“Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act of 2021”), which would prohibit “mandatory arbitration”...more
2/10/2022
/ #MeToo ,
Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Class Action ,
Collective Actions ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Labor Reform ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Sexual Assault ,
Sexual Harassment
Kevin Spacey’s legal troubles have taken a costly turn as the production companies behind Netflix’s House of Cards recently asked a California court to confirm an arbitration award of almost $31 million against Spacey for...more
11/30/2021
/ #MeToo ,
Attorney-Client Privilege ,
Discovery ,
Discovery Disputes ,
Employee Misconduct ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Hostile Environment ,
Legal Advice Privilege ,
Litigation Strategies ,
Privileged Communication ,
Reputation Management ,
Sexual Assault ,
Sexual Harassment
As anyone who has worked in a customer-facing job can tell you, dealing with difficult customers often comes with the territory. However, when customer behavior crosses a line into illegal conduct like sexual harassment, both...more
Judd v. Weinstein, 967 F.3d 952 (9th Cir. 2020) -
Actor Ashley Judd brought this sexual harassment claim against motion picture producer Harvey Weinstein under Cal. Civil Code § 51.9, which prohibits such harassment in...more
Blue Fountain Pools & Spas Inc. v. Superior Court, 2020 WL 4581664 (Cal. Ct. App. 2020) -
Daisy Arias alleged she suffered sustained, egregious sexual harassment for most of the time she was employed by Blue Fountain,...more
In 2018, actress Ashley Judd (“Judd”) sued producer Harvey Weinstein (“Weinstein”) for sexual harassment, defamation, intentional interference with prospective economic advantage, and unfair competition. Judd alleges that...more
Ducksworth v. Tri-Modal Distrib. Servs., 47 Cal. App. 5th 532 (2020) -
Bonnie Ducksworth and Pamela Pollock are customer service representatives at Tri-Modal Distribution Services who alleged a failure to promote based...more
Schmidt v. Superior Court, 44 Cal. App. 5th 570 (2020) -
Tamika Schmidt and Danielle Penny, two employees at the Hall of Justice for Ventura Superior Court, claimed they were sexually harassed by a security guard named...more
Time Spent By Employees In Exit Searches Is Compensable -
Frlekin v. Apple Inc., 2020 WL 727813 (Cal. S. Ct. 2020) -
In this opinion, the California Supreme Court answered a question certified to it by the United...more
3/17/2020
/ CA Supreme Court ,
Class Action ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Equal Pay Act ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Joint Employers ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Rules of Professional Conduct ,
Sexual Harassment ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour ,
Wage Orders ,
Workers' Compensation Claim