A California federal court granted a motion to compel arbitration by retail franchisor Batteries Plus and its two executives, and dismissed a franchisee’s action alleging violations of the California Franchise Investment Law,...more
Issues surrounding unconscionability and severance are commonplace in motions to compel arbitration, especially in California. Under California Civil Code section 1670.5, a court has three options when presented with an...more
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
In a recent decision, EDVA Judge Rossie Alston invalidated the arbitration clause in the terms and conditions for online sales through the Lowe’s Home Centers website on the grounds that the terms and conditions were illusory...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
A California appellate court recently denied a motion to compel arbitration, finding the agreement unconscionable in part because it (1) applied to all claims rather than just those arising from employment, (2) was unlimited...more
On July 15, 2024, the Supreme Court of California issued a decision that could provide courts in the state with significant discretion to refuse to enforce employment arbitration agreements even if only one term is determined...more
In a recent decision, the California Supreme Court held that courts cannot refuse to enforce arbitration agreements simply by finding that three or more provisions are unconscionable. Rather, courts must use a three-prong...more
A federal court in California recently granted a motion brought by a franchisor and two of its employees to compel arbitration and dismiss an action alleging violations of the California Franchise Investment Law, breach of...more
In this appeal, the Eleventh Appellate District affirmed the trial court’s decision to grant the defendant summary judgment, finding, among other things, that equitable estoppel was a defense, not affirmative cause of action....more
QAD Inc. petitioned the Delaware federal court to confirm an arbitration award it obtained against Block & Company Inc. Block cross-moved to vacate the award. The arbitrator awarded QAD more than $740,000 in connection with a...more
It is not unusual for a party to regret signing a contract. The terms “buyer’s remorse” and “seller’s remorse” would not be part of the lexicon if it was. However, with good reason, the law does not allow a party that...more
In 2015, our colleagues in the white-collar criminal defense bar braced for the impact of a memorandum penned by then Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates. The Yates Memo encouraged both federal prosecutors and civil...more
On March 30, 2020, in The Chemours Company v. DowDuPont Inc., et al., C.A. No. 2019-0351-SG (Del. Ch. Mar. 30, 2020), the Delaware Court of Chancery issued an important decision reaffirming bedrock principles of Delaware...more
While much of the world came to a halt in response to the coronavirus pandemic, the California Courts of Appeal were busy issuing important decisions on the enforceability of arbitration clauses. As the economy starts to...more
The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas recently compelled arbitration despite an insured’s claim that the operative arbitration clause was unconscionable because it required the arbitration panel to...more
Of the state law defenses, unconscionability is the most often used and most effective legal justification for invalidating arbitration agreements. As a creature of state common law and state versions of the Uniform...more
The Eight Circuit has rejected a plaintiff’s claim that an arbitration clause in a retainer agreement she signed with a law firm after receiving a call from a purported agent of the firm informing her of a purported...more
The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas compelled arbitration in a putative Fair Labor Standards Act class action based on language in a “notice to employees” that put the plaintiffs on notice that they...more
Concluding that TWC Dealer Group, Inc.’s arbitration agreements were both procedurally and substantively unconscionable, California’s First Appellate District’s recent decision highlights certain contractual terms and...more
A group of small businesses and their individual owners have filed a putative class action lawsuit in a New York federal district court against online lender Kabbage, Inc. that alleges Kabbage engaged in a “rent-a-charter”...more
Recently, the California Supreme Court invalidated a mandatory arbitration agreement in OTO, LLC v. Kho (August 29, 2019) finding the agreement was both procedurally and substantively unconscionable. The case involved...more
On August 29, 2019, the California Supreme Court held in OTO, L.L.C. v. Kho, S244630, that a mandatory arbitration agreement may be unenforceable against employee wage claims if it requires the employee to forego the “Berman”...more
A district court has granted a motion to compel arbitration based on an arbitration clause in an agreement sent via text message and agreed to via a reply text. ...more
The plaintiff challenged the formation of an arbitration clause contained in her employment contracts and acknowledgment of employee handbooks, arguing: (1) there was no “meeting of the minds” and therefore there was not the...more