After years of appellate cases and several rulings holding California employers to the very strict payment standards of the California Arbitration Act (CAA), the California Supreme Court has, for the first time, addressed...more
8/20/2025
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Arbitration Fees ,
CA Supreme Court ,
Cal Code of Civil Procedure ,
Dispute Resolution ,
Equitable Relief ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Fees ,
Late Payments ,
Preemption ,
Remand ,
State Arbitration Acts ,
Statutory Interpretation ,
Stays
A recent decision from California’s Fifth District Court of Appeal has deepened the divide among state courts on a critical issue under the Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA): whether a plaintiff may pursue representative...more
8/5/2025
/ Appellate Courts ,
Arbitration ,
Employment Litigation ,
Labor Code ,
Labor Law Violations ,
Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) ,
Split of Authority ,
Standing ,
State Labor Laws ,
Statutory Interpretation ,
Viking River Cruises Inc v Moriana ,
Wage and Hour
California is adapting to the prevalence of technology in the modern workplace – especially artificial intelligence – as these digital tools become more embedded in business infrastructure. ...more
As AI and automation tools become increasingly integrated into hiring and workplace operations, California’s Assembly Bill 1018 (AB 1018) is drawing significant attention for its potential to reshape how employers use these...more
Employers have long been scrutinized for perceived unequal bargaining power when it comes to enforcement of company-drafted arbitration agreements. Indeed, both the California legislature and the courts have aimed to protect...more
7/15/2025
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Contract Terms ,
Dispute Resolution ,
Employee Rights ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Responsibilities ,
Employment Contract ,
Employment Litigation ,
Employment Policies ,
False Statements ,
Human Resources Professionals
Cross Country Healthcare, Inc., a healthcare staffing company, believed that it had a “squeaky clean” Arbitration Agreement with its employees. ...more
7/9/2025
/ Appeals ,
Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Confidentiality Agreements ,
Contract Disputes ,
Contract Terms ,
Employment Contract ,
Employment Litigation ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Restrictive Covenants ,
Trade Secrets ,
Unconscionable Contracts
In the recent decision in Sanders v. Superior Court of Los Angeles County, the California Court of Appeal reinforced the consequences for employers who fail to timely pay arbitration fees in employment disputes....more
6/10/2025
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Arbitration Fees ,
Class Action ,
Employer Responsibilities ,
Employment Litigation ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Preemption ,
Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Wage and Hour
Until the United States Supreme Court’s decision in Viking River Cruises v. Moriana in 2022, California law had established that Private Attorneys General Act (“PAGA”) claims could not be subject to binding arbitration....more
Less than a year ago, the California Supreme Court in Ramirez v. Charter Communications, Inc. opined, in the context of employment arbitration agreements, that there is no bright line rule that requires a court to refuse...more
The case of Parra Rodriguez v. Packers Sanitation Services LTD., LLC typifies the reason employers and employment counsel must stay on top of arbitration case developments....more
4/1/2025
/ Appeals ,
Appellate Courts ,
Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Class Action ,
Class Representatives ,
Dispute Resolution ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Employment Litigation ,
Litigation Strategies ,
Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) ,
Split of Authority ,
State Labor Laws
The Private Attorneys General Act of 2004 (“PAGA”) was intended to allow employees to bring actions on behalf of the State of California against employers who failed to comply with Labor Code sections that were considered...more
Since its enactment in 2019, Code of Civil Procedure 1281.98, which governs arbitration fee payments, has been inviolate: arbitrators do not have the unilateral power to extend the fee payment deadline; “checks in the mail”...more
The Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act of 2021 (the “Act”), a federal law, is unique for its role in overriding the policy in favor of the enforcement of arbitration agreements. The Act was...more
Readers of this blog are, by now, aware of California’s judicial and legislative hostility toward arbitration. Over the last few months, however, employers have seen a surprising number of appellate victories in their...more
There is no greater threat to an employment arbitration than Code of Civil Procedure section 1281.98, which mandates that the party who drafted the arbitration agreement pay the fees and costs of the arbitration within 30...more
Prior to the United States Supreme Court’s decision in Viking River Cruises Inc. v. Moriana, California courts did not consider the components of a Private Attorneys General Act (“PAGA”) claim. ...more
2/20/2025
/ Appeals ,
Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Class Representatives ,
Employees ,
Employment Contract ,
Employment Litigation ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) ,
SCOTUS ,
Viking River Cruises Inc v Moriana
Tell me if you have heard this one before: ten companies are sued by a former employee as “joint employers”, even though the employee technically worked for, and signed a binding arbitration agreement with, only one of them....more
2/12/2025
/ Appeals ,
Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Binding Arbitration ,
Dispute Resolution ,
Employment Contract ,
Employment Litigation ,
Equitable Estoppel ,
Estoppel ,
Joint Employers ,
Motion to Compel ,
Non-Signatories ,
Split of Authority
In 2016, the city of Los Angeles passed the Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance (FCIHO). Preempting California’s Fair Chance Act (FCA) by nearly two years, the FCIHO prohibits private employers operating in the city...more
1/3/2025
/ Background Checks ,
Criminal Background Checks ,
Criminal Records ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Fair Chance Act ,
Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance (FCIHO) ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Job Ads ,
Job Applicants ,
Local Ordinance ,
Municipalities
In 2022, Congress enacted the “Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act” (the “Act”) which provides that, at the election of the person alleging conduct constituting a sexual harassment dispute or...more
California law has long held that an employer’s good faith dispute over wages owed, if any, to its employees will preclude the imposition of “waiting time” penalties otherwise due following the termination of their...more
In 2003, the California Supreme Court adopted a stringent test to determine whether an employer had waived its right to compel arbitration of an employee’s claims. The most critical, and often determinative, factor was...more
Live events are part and parcel of California’s landscape. From Coachella to county fairs, thousands of workers each year participate in setting up and tearing down the infrastructure at these public event venues....more
California has a habit of finding creative ways to protect employees from potential instances of discrimination or retaliation, no matter how remote. ...more
12/5/2024
/ Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Anti-Retaliation Provisions ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
First Amendment ,
Fourteenth Amendment ,
New Legislation ,
NLRA ,
Political Speech ,
Preemption ,
Religious Expression ,
State Labor Laws
In August 2000, the California Supreme Court handed down a landmark ruling that changed the face of employment arbitration agreements going forward. That case, known as Armendariz v. Foundation Health Psychcare Services,...more
Arbitration agreements, at their core, are contracts. As with any contract, there must be “mutuality” or, more colloquially, a “meeting of the minds” on what the contract is intended to encompass. For this reason, employment...more