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
Johnson v. Lowe’s Home Centers, LLC, 93 F.4th 459 (9th Cir. 2024) -
The Ninth Circuit vacated a district court’s dismissal of a former employee’s “non-individual” Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) claims in the wake of...more
Dominguez v. Better Mortgage Corp., 88 F.4th 782 (9th Cir. 2023) -
Underwriter Lorenzo Dominguez filed this putative class and collective action against his former employer, alleging that the company failed to pay proper...more
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
Back in the “good old days,” arbitration agreements barred just about any type of civil litigation that was filed in court. Then, as we reported in 2014, the California Supreme Court determined that Private Attorneys General...more
In recent years, employees (and their lawyers) have taken a variety of approaches to challenging the enforceability of workplace arbitration agreements. One common tactic has been to claim that they “don’t remember signing...more
A California court has ruled that an arbitrator (not a judge) should decide on the applicability of California Labor Code Section 925 to a dispute between a law firm partner and his former law firm. Zhang v. Superior Court,...more
Espinoza v. Superior Court, 83 Cal. App. 5th 761 (2022) -
Rosa M. Quincoza Espinoza sued her former employer, Centinela Skilled Nursing & Wellness Centre West, LLC, for discrimination and retaliation. The employer filed a...more
As we previously reported here, in Chamber of Commerce of the U.S.A. v. Bonta, 13 F.4th 766 (9th Cir. 2021), a three member panel of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals resurrected California Labor Code Section 432.6, which...more
On June 15, 2022, in Viking River Cruises, Inc. v. Moriana, Case No. 20-1573,_ U.S. _ (2022), by an 8-1 majority, the U.S. States Supreme Court held that the Federal Arbitration Act (“FAA”) preempts the California Supreme...more
6/24/2022
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
California ,
Class Action ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Employment Litigation ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Federal v State Law Application ,
Iskanian v CLS Transportation ,
Labor Law Violations ,
Preemption ,
Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) ,
SCOTUS ,
State Labor Laws ,
Viking River Cruises ,
Viking River Cruises Inc v Moriana
It’s only been two weeks since President Biden signed the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act of 2021 (the “Ending Forced Arbitration Act”) into law, and there is already a new major...more
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
Ninth Circuit Resurrects California’s Anti-Arbitration Statute -
Chamber of Commerce of the U.S.A. v. Bonta, 13 F.4th 766 (9th Cir. 2021) -
The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals reversed in part a 2020 preliminary...more
11/15/2021
/ Age Discrimination ,
Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Attorney's Fees ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Contingency Fees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Employment Litigation ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Independent Contractors ,
Labor Regulations ,
Lost Wages ,
Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) ,
State Labor Laws ,
UTSA ,
Wage and Hour
On Monday afternoon, a San Francisco federal court jury awarded $137 million to a Black former elevator operator who worked at Tesla’s Fremont facility for approximately one year before quitting his employment in 2016. ...more
On Wednesday, in a surprising turn, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit reversed in part a 2020 preliminary injunction issued by a district court and resurrected California Labor Code Section 432.6, the Golden...more
9/17/2021
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Contract Terms ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Labor Disputes ,
Labor Regulations ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
State Labor Laws
From pay equity to an increased minimum wage, pro-worker and pro-union labor policies, and additional anti-discrimination protections, President-elect Biden has touted support for numerous legislative and regulatory proposals...more
1/11/2021
/ ADEA ,
Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Biden Administration ,
But For Causation ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Minimum Wage ,
NLRB ,
Pay Equity Laws ,
Title VII ,
Wage and Hour
Kec v. Superior Court, 2020 WL 3869721 (Cal. Ct. App. 2020) -
Nichole Kec brought individual, class and Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) claims against her employer, R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co., et al. Kec had signed a...more
On January 31, 2020, Chief United States District Judge Kimberly J. Mueller enjoined California from enforcing AB 51. This new legislation prohibits employers from requiring their employees to sign arbitration agreements....more
As we reported previously, Assembly Bill 51, which would impose criminal penalties upon employers seeking to have their employees sign arbitration agreements, has been challenged in federal court...more
As we reported previously, the California legislature recently passed and Gov. Newsom signed into law Assembly Bill 51, which would impose criminal penalties upon employers seeking to have their employees sign arbitration...more
As expected, California’s effort to ban employers from requiring employees and applicants to sign an arbitration agreement has been challenged in federal court. The lawsuit was filed by a business coalition that includes the...more
12/12/2019
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Employment Litigation ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
FEHA ,
Labor Code ,
New Legislation ,
Preemption ,
State Labor Laws
In this episode of The Proskauer Brief, partners Tony Oncidi and Kate Gold discuss California’s most recent legislative response to the #MeToo movement. These developments include new restrictions on confidentiality and...more
12/2/2019
/ #MeToo ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Confidentiality Agreements ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
FEHA ,
Non-Disparagement Provisions ,
Retaliation ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Sexual Harassment ,
State Labor Laws ,
State Legislatures ,
Statute of Limitations