Many California employers require their employees to sign agreements to submit any disputes arising out their employment to binding arbitration. If an employee files a lawsuit in court, the employer then has the option of...more
The United States Supreme Court recently resolved a circuit split regarding when a party has waived its contractual right to arbitrate by participating in litigation prior to seeking to arbitrate a dispute. In Morgan v....more
Many contracts these days, including employment contracts, have provisions requiring that disputes be arbitrated rather than filed in a court. Nevertheless, a party to such an agreement will often file a lawsuit in court, and...more
A recent decision of the United States Supreme Court addressed a circuit split regarding the propriety of arbitration-specific procedural rules. In support of adopting such rules, nine of the eleven federal circuits...more
Resolving an issue over when a party has waived their right to arbitrate, the United States Supreme Court recently granted plaintiff’s a major victory, holding that litigants are no longer required to show prejudice when...more
A unanimous Supreme Court held May 23 that a party’s waiver of its arbitration right does not require showing prejudice to an opposing party, because the Federal Arbitration Act (“FAA”) prohibits arbitration-specific rules....more
In Morgan v. Sundance, Inc., decided May 23, a unanimous Supreme Court addressed the standard for determining whether a party has waived its right to arbitrate a controversy by first engaging in litigation. Overruling...more
Earlier this week, the Supreme Court unanimously held in Morgan v. Sundance that litigants are no longer required to show prejudice when opposing a party’s delayed attempt to compel arbitration. Previously, an Eighth Circuit...more
With the increasing use of arbitration clauses and agreements, courts have been required to address challenges to the enforceability of such contracts. One such situation is where one party to an arbitration agreement delays...more
Employers sometimes favor resolving disputes with their employees in arbitration as opposed to in front of a jury. Such a private tribunal may streamline discovery procedures, offer a quicker resolution, and, theoretically,...more
In a much-anticipated opinion, the Supreme Court unanimously held that a party claiming waiver of the right to arbitrate need not show prejudice, in Morgan v. Sundance, Inc., Case No. 21-328 (May 23, 2022). While the holding...more
In this episode, partners Jackie Celender and Lindsay Sampson Bishop, along with associate John Gavin, discuss the oral argument recently heard by the U.S. Supreme Court in Morgan v. Sundance dealing with the question of...more
Concerns about bias and prejudice from multiple repeat appointments have plagued party-appointed arbitrators for years. This is true of international arbitration, commercial arbitration and, of course, insurance and...more
The plaintiff and intervenor-defendant entered into a contract wherein they agreed to arbitrate claims arising out of the contract. Following a dispute, the plaintiff asserted that the intervenor-defendant had waived its...more
Defendants in a lawsuit didn’t waive their right to arbitrate even after moving to dismiss and answering a complaint, a court held last week. Arbitration wasn’t waived because the defendants hadn’t filed affirmative defenses...more
If you’re a California employer, perhaps no single law strikes fear into your heart quite as much as the Labor Code Private Attorneys General Act of 2004 (PAGA). PAGA allows individual “aggrieved employees” to bring...more
The Tenth Circuit recently held that Cox Communications, Inc., (Cox) had waived its right to arbitration while defending a class action lawsuit brought on behalf of its cable subscribers. These subscribers sued the...more
In a post last week, we noted a recent trend of federal courts strongly enforcing employment arbitration agreements under the Federal Arbitration Act (“FAA”)....more