As we previously reported, California recently enacted AB 1076, which reinforces the state’s broad statutory ban on noncompete agreements. The law took effect on January 1, 2024, and expressly codifies Edwards v. Arthur...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
The California Supreme Court has issued its much-anticipated decision in Estrada v. Royalty Carpet Mills, Inc., determining whether Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) claims can be dismissed as unmanageable. The Court...more
A newly enacted, under-the-radar statute in California could undermine efforts by employers to challenge the expert opinion testimony regarding alleged emotional distress offered by employees at trial.
In many if not most...more
1/17/2024
/ Adverse Employment Action ,
Burden of Proof ,
California ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Emotional Distress Damages ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Employment Litigation ,
Expert Testimony ,
Harassment ,
New Legislation ,
Psychiatrists ,
Retaliation ,
Wrongful Termination
The Los Angeles Superior Court has bestowed some remarkable gifts upon plaintiffs this holiday season. Two juries have issued gigantic verdicts in favor of individual plaintiffs in separate employment lawsuits within the past...more
We invite you to review our newly-posted November 2023 California Employment Law Notes, a comprehensive review of the latest and most significant developments in California employment law...more
12/1/2023
/ Anti-SLAPP ,
Arbitration ,
Attorney's Fees ,
Bias ,
Breach of Contract ,
Compensation ,
Defamation ,
Employee Handbooks ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Labor Code ,
Popular ,
Trade Secrets ,
Vacation Leave
On September 1, 2023, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 699, which amends California Business & Professions Code Section 16600 to prohibit an employer from entering into or attempting to enforce a...more
On September 1, 2023, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 699, which amends California Business & Professions Code Section 16600 to prohibit an employer from entering into or attempting to enforce a...more
California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) is already one of the most employee-friendly state civil rights laws in the country. Until now, it was not clear whether employees could sue not only their direct employers...more
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
The so-called “Fight for 15” – those widespread protests for a $15 minimum wage – are so passé now! As of July 1, 2023, West Hollywood takes the crown for the highest mandated minimum wage in the United States at $19.08. Why...more
Many California employers and their counsel remain blissfully ignorant of the latest “gotcha” law in California, which can easily derail an otherwise perfectly planned arbitration. Back in 2019, the California legislature,...more
As we covered here, the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA) is effective today! As a reminder, the PWFA extends the requirements of the ADA to employees with known limitations related to, affected by, or arising out of...more
6/28/2023
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Legislative Agendas ,
New Guidance ,
New Legislation ,
Pregnancy Disability Leave Law ,
Pregnant Workers Fairness Act ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Reasonable Accommodation
Fed up with hearing “very offensive” songs like Eminem’s “Stan” and Too $hort’s “B*job Betty” on the job, Stephanie Sharp and several other employees (including a male) filed a hostile work environment claim under Title VII...more
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
The California Supreme Court has held that an employee who makes a whistleblower complaint to his or her employer may bring a retaliation claim under the whistleblower statute (California Labor Code § 1102.5(b)) even if the...more
Art Teacher’s Age Discrimination Case May Not Be Barred By “Ministerial Exception” -
Atkins v. St. Cecilia Catholic Sch., 2023 WL 3142316 (Cal. Ct. App. 2023) -
Frances Atkins was a long-term employee of St. Cecilia...more
In our recent blog post, we highlighted legislation that will impact employers this year related to nursing and pregnant employees: the Providing Urgent Maternal Protections for Nursing Mothers Act (the “PUMP Act”) and the...more
The long-running feud between California and the “gig economy” shows no sign of ending soon. On April 28, 2023, the State of California submitted a petition to the Ninth Circuit in Olson v. California, No. 21-55757 (9th...more
California is considering a new law (Assembly Bill 331), also known as the Automated Decision Systems Accountability Act. Modeled after the Biden Administration’s Blueprint for an AI Bill of Rights (whitehouse.gov), AB 331...more
Spring in California can only mean one thing, and no, it’s not Coachella, Dodgers games or even the return of the swallows to San Juan Capistrano—it’s the annual release of the California Chamber of Commerce’s list of “Job...more
4/13/2023
/ Business Closures ,
California ,
Caregivers ,
Criminal Convictions ,
FEHA ,
Healthcare Workers ,
Labor Code ,
Layoffs ,
Minimum Wage ,
Notice Requirements ,
Sick Leave ,
State Labor Laws
An astronomical $137 million jury verdict against Tesla has again been reduced, for a second (and potentially final) time. Last Monday, following a five-day trial on damages, a federal court jury awarded Owen Diaz, a former...more
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
On March 10, 2023, financial markets were rocked by uncertainty over the future of certain significant financial institutions. Among other concerns, bank failures raise the prospect of temporary or long-term cash flow...more
In the California Legislature’s latest attack on the fast-food industry, Assemblymember Chris Holden (D-Pasadena) introduced the Fast Food Franchisor Responsibility Act (“AB 1228”). AB 1228 was introduced shortly after a...more