Employment Law This Week®: Sexual Orientation Bias, Religious Discrimination, At-Will Employment Provision, Class Arbitration
The Supreme Court’s 2018 decision in Epic Systems Corporation v. Lewis, 138 S. Ct. 1612 (2018), validated the use of class action waivers, providing employers with a valuable tool to preserve bilateral employment arbitrations...more
The United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit recently articulated a new statutory framework for determining whether notice to a putative plaintiff should be issued under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). At...more
As this blog has previously discussed, the availability of class arbitration has been significantly restricted after a series of U.S. Supreme Court decisions. However, we have also noted that express preclusion of class...more
In a predictable decision, the Fifth Circuit has held that the availability of class arbitration is a gateway issue for the courts to decide, absent “clear and unmistakable” language in the arbitration agreement to the...more
Oracle America Inc. appealed the trial court’s order compelling class arbitration in an employment dispute in which there were two agreements at issue, one with, and one without, a class action waiver. The Ninth Circuit...more
A majority of the U.S. Supreme Court held that the Federal Arbitration Act ("FAA") bars class arbitration actions when the agreement is ambiguous about the availability of such arbitration. The opinion strengthens protections...more
Yesterday, the Supreme Court extended its prior rulings looking skeptically at the idea of classwide arbitration, holding that even when an agreement is “ambiguous” about the availability of classwide arbitration, such...more
The interplay between arbitration agreements and employment-based class actions has been the subject of extensive and often conflicting legal opinions for the last half-decade. While many hoped the issue would gain clarity...more
The U.S. Supreme Court has pointed out consistently in recent years that the relatively new construct of “class arbitration” is very different from your uncle’s classic bilateral arbitration. (“Class arbitration” signifies...more
The United States Supreme Court is taking another bite at the arbitration waiver apple. In addition to its landmark decision in Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis, where the Supreme Court held that class and collective action...more
Arbitration is often promoted as faster, cheaper, more predictable, and more controllable than litigation. But to many, arbitration’s promise comes up short on delivery. Why? A prime reason is that many parties do not make...more
In a series of articles over the past several months, we asked whether “class arbitration” — meaning the utilization of the Fed.R.Civ.P. 23 class action protocol in an arbitration proceeding — is ultimately viable in U.S....more
After an employer allegedly released personally identifiable information of its employees as the result of a phishing scam, plaintiff employee filed a putative class action lawsuit, alleging claims including negligence,...more
When is “silence” in an arbitration clause concerning class arbitration not “Stolt-Nielsen silence”? And what is the difference between a “claim” and a “procedure”? The Ninth Circuit seemingly took hair-splitting to a new...more
In a recent series of articles, we asked whether “class arbitration” — meaning the utilization of a Fed. R. Civ. P. 23 class action protocol in an arbitration proceeding — is ultimately viable. Given the nature of...more
We recently began a series of articles in which we ask whether “class arbitration” — meaning the utilization of a Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23 class action protocol in an arbitration proceeding — is ultimately viable,...more
“Class arbitration” — the utilization of a class action mechanism in an arbitration proceeding — is considered by some to be the unicorn of ADR; desirable but elusive. Another view is that it is the Frankenstein’s monster of...more
As we stated previously, the potential impact of whether entitlement to class arbitration is a “gateway issue” will likely diminish with each passing year. (See our March 12, 2015, blog article on the denial of certiorari in...more
In a Special Focus article Rollie Goss previews another arbitration case coming before the United States Supreme Court involving the issue of whether a class arbitration waiver is unconscionable, and the impact of such a...more
Applying the Supreme Court’s recent decision in Oxford Health Plans v. Sutter, the 11th Circuit affirmed an arbitrator’s conclusion that the parties’ agreement permitted class-wide arbitration....more
On June 20, 2013, the Supreme Court ruled for American Express in a closely watched class action case. In American Express v. Italian Colors Restaurant (No. 12-133), the Court ruled on a 5-3 vote (with Justice Sotomayor...more
In the last several years, the enforcement of agreements to arbitrate disputes, whether between businesses or between businesses and their employees, has become a hotly contested issue in the courts. The U.S. Supreme Court...more
The First Circuit Court of Appeals recently issued a decision that has a significant impact on the ability of employers to avoid class-wide arbitration. In Fantastic Sams Franchise Corporation v. FSRO Association Ltd., the...more