Arbitration provisions appear in millions of contracts that cover many different types of agreements and transactions. For decades, the United States Supreme Court has expanded the Federal Arbitration Act (“FAA”), which...more
Three recent decisions in New Jersey shed new light on the ongoing tension between the Federal Arbitration Act (“FAA”) and the standard of review utilized by the New Jersey courts concerning the enforceability of arbitration...more
As we reported in this space late last year, the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in AT&T Mobility LLC v. Concepcion, 131 S.Ct. 1740, 1745 (2011), tilted the scales toward federal power in the field of arbitration, preempting...more
The Ninth Circuit Decision - Delivering a perhaps unexpected blow to employers, the Ninth Circuit sided with the California Supreme Court earlier this week in upholding the state-court-fashioned Iskanian rule, which...more
Tuesday, by a two-to-one vote, the Ninth Circuit joined the California Supreme Court in holding that Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) claims are an exception to the Federal Arbitration Act. In Sakkab v. Luxottica Retail...more
Yesterday, by a two-to-one vote, the Ninth Circuit joined the California Supreme Court in holding that Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) claims are an exception to the Federal Arbitration Act. In Sakkab v. Luxottica Retail...more
In a dispute over the purchase of a car, the purchaser filed a class action in California against the car dealer, and the dealer moved to compel arbitration. The dealer invoked the arbitration agreement contained in the...more
In its recent decision in Am. Express Co. v. Italian Colors Rest., 133 S. Ct. 2304 (2013), the U.S. Supreme Court further buttressed the use of class-action waivers in arbitration agreements, finding such waivers enforceable...more
Prior to its summer recess, the U.S. Supreme Court issued another decision concerning class arbitration which has implications for unionized and non-unionized employers with agreements to arbitrate workplace disputes....more
In another employer-friendly decision, the U.S. Supreme Court reinforced its support for class action waivers, ruling in American Express Co. v. Italian Colors Restaurant that an explicit class action waiver in an arbitration...more
On June 20, 2013, the United States Supreme Court issued its decision in American Express Co. v. Italian Colors Restaurant, holding that the Federal Arbitration Act (“FAA”) “does not permit courts to invalidate a contractual...more
Additional questions concerning the applicability of AT&T Mobility v. Concepcion to representative actions arose this week when a California intermediate court of appeals ruled that claims under the state's Private Attorneys...more
Class action waivers in employment agreements have been a point of contention for quite some time. More often than not, courts around the country have found that employment arbitration agreements with class action waivers are...more
I. Introduction - There has been much debate concerning the scope of the Supreme Court’s recent decision in AT&T Mobility LLC v. Concepcion, and the enforcement of collective arbitration waivers — also called “class...more
The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in AT&T Mobility LLC v. Concepcion, 131 S. Ct. 1740, 2011 BL 110648, 79 U.S.L.W. 4279 (U.S. 2011), has been characterized as a ‘‘game changer’’ in the arbitration arena. Concepcion overturned...more
Last year, around this time in fact, we wrote about the Federal Arbitration Act and the effect of AT&T Mobility LLC v. Concepcion, 131 S. Ct. 1740 (2011), on an argument under Wisconsin law about the unconscionability of an...more
Israel Flores and Andrea Naasz sued West Covina Toyota (WCT) and Toyota Motor Sales for selling them a “lemon,” alleging both individual and class action claims, including claims for violations of the Consumer Legal Remedies...more
On January 30, the United States filed an amicus brief in the U.S. Supreme Court supporting the Respondents in American Express Company v. Italian Colors Restaurant, No. 12-133, an extremely important case involving the...more
A recent decision from a California court of appeals reflects a growing, if at times reluctant, acceptance by California courts of employment arbitration. In Outland v. Macy’s Department Stores, Inc., Case No. A133589 (Ct....more
Employers in California have been watching closely to see how courts will apply the United States Supreme Court’s decision in AT&T Mobility v. Concepcion, 131 S. Ct. 1740 (2011), which held that the Federal Arbitration Act...more
In Flores v. West Covina Auto Group, --- Cal.Rptr.3d ----, 2013 WL 139200 (Cal.App. 2 Dist. Jan. 11, 2013), the California Court of Appeal extended the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark decision in AT&T Mobility, Inc. v....more
In a significant victory for employers, the Eighth Circuit, in Owen v. Bristol Care Inc., No. 12-1719, overturned a Missouri district court ruling that class action waivers were unenforceable in FLSA cases....more
The Eighth Circuit recently upheld the validity of a mandatory arbitration agreement containing a class action waiver and ordered the arbitration of an employee's collective action under the Fair Labor Standards Act. See...more
In This Issue: - Southern District of New York Orders Arbitration Panel to Proceed with Umpire Selection: Finding the Federal Arbitration Act mandates that a provision in a reinsurance agreement establishing a...more
Decades ago, Congress passed the Federal Arbitration Act to combat the hostility courts showed towards arbitration agreements. Since that time, the Supreme Court has repeatedly pronounced the public policy in favor of the...more