Patent Infringement: Successful Litigation Stays the "Course"
Despite its best efforts, the California Legislature has been unable to substantially curtail the popularity of employment arbitrations in California. The hostility to employment arbitration remains evident, however, among...more
Online retailers routinely include arbitration clauses in the terms of service for their website, seeking to send any consumer claims to arbitration and to eliminate a consumer’s right to file a class action lawsuit....more
On June 23, 2023, the Supreme Court of the United States held district court proceedings must be put on hold during an appeal on the question of whether claims are subject to arbitration. The ruling is a big win for...more
As litigation costs continue to explode, more and more businesses have been including arbitration clauses in contracts with employees and customers. These clauses, which frequently include class action waivers, allow...more
Plaintiffs filed a putative class action against Norwegian Cruise Lines claiming that Norwegian failed to disclose profits it earned when the plaintiffs elected to purchase travel insurance during the cruise booking process....more
A recent Ninth Circuit decision centered on something most consumers use many times every day: smartphone apps. In Wilson v. Huuuge, Inc., the Ninth Circuit affirmed the denial of defendant Huuuge’s motion to compel...more
A District Court in California denied Uber’s motion to arbitrate a TCPA class action claim after the ride-sharing company failed to authenticate the information from its database that allegedly confirmed the arbitration...more
For an arbitration agreement to be enforceable, the parties must have a reasonable opportunity to understand its terms. See Fagerstrom v. Amazon.com, Inc., 141 F. Supp. 3d 1070 (S.D. Cal. 2015). With this principle in mind,...more
Employers may choose to implement arbitration programs to manage the costs and risks of employment-related litigation. Arbitration may minimize negative publicity, and may further assist employers to keep costs low and reduce...more
GC Services Limited Partnership (“GC Services”), a debt collector hired by a bank to collect an allegedly unpaid balance on a credit card, advised plaintiff Francina Smith (“Smith”) that it would commence a collection...more
• The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio has ruled that the arbitration provision of an employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) does not apply to the plaintiff's class representative because she had "cashed...more
The First Circuit recently held that an arbitration clause contained in the online contract of the ride sharing app, Uber Technologies, Inc., is unenforceable under Massachusetts law. ...more
Ruling in a class action brought against Uber Technologies, Inc., the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit recently held that the company's arbitration clause could not be enforced because it was not "reasonably...more
Addressing an important contract-formation issue that has divided federal courts, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania recently denied a company's motion to compel arbitration because the consumer...more
In a proceeding under the Federal Arbitration Act (“FAA”) to determine if a dispute must be arbitrated, a federal district court performs a more limited function than in a plenary civil action. On an application to stay an...more
Plaintiff filed a class action against Barnes & Noble in the Southern District of New York, alleging that it violated her privacy by sharing information about her purchases with Facebook. Barnes & Noble moved to compel...more
The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that a non-party online behavioral advertising firm could not benefit from the arbitration clause in the agreement between Verizon and its customers because it was not a party to that...more
In an unpublished opinion, the Ninth Circuit affirmed a lower court’s ruling that had sent a putative class action against Amazon over its pricing practices to arbitration, as per Amazon’s terms of service. (Wiseley v....more
A pair of recent opinions proves that when it comes to compelling arbitration in a consumer class action, presentation of the arbitration clause may matter more than favorable Supreme Court precedent. First, in Norcia v....more
The Third Circuit Court of Appeals recently held that Samsung cannot force arbitration in a consumer fraud class action about the battery life of its Galaxy Gear S Smartwatch. ...more
Four of the eight court cases we report on below in our February 2017 monthly update of IC misclassification cases involve Uber, and each of those cases were victories for the ride-sharing, on-demand company. Although none of...more
In 2010, two employees filed a claim against their former employer, Robert Half International, Inc., alleging that it violated the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”). In addition to individual claims, the plaintiffs brought a...more
The Ninth Circuit issued two similar opinions arising out of Samsung’s appeals of orders denying arbitration in two putative class actions filed against it. The claims against Samsung allege that the smartphone maker...more
Adding more complexity to the issue of arbitration contract formation, the Ninth Circuit has rejected Samsung's attempt to compel individual arbitration of fraud claims asserted by plaintiffs in two class actions. Ruling in...more
A recent decision from the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida is a reminder that if a litigant intends to enforce its contractual arbitration provision, the issue must be raised at an early...more