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
In a recent ruling, a California appeals court found an arbitration agreement with an eyewear store employee that was presented on a take-it-or-leave-it basis required an arbitrator to apply the laws of another state,...more
Cincinnati v. PE Alms Hill Realty, LLC, 1st Dist. Hamilton, 2023-Ohio-2784. In this appeal, the First Appellate District affirmed the trial court’s decision to grant commercial lenders summary judgment on their breach of...more
Employers seeking to move workplace claims from the courthouse to arbitration received some good news Friday from the U.S. Supreme Court. If a trial court denies a party’s request to compel arbitration, the court must pause...more
Employers that face lawsuits from employees often seek to move such claims from the courthouse to arbitration. But what happens if the trial court refuses to compel arbitration and the employer appeals the decision? Should...more
The Bullet Point: Ohio Commercial Law Bulletin Is my conduct a violation of the Consumer Sales Practices Act? Volume 4, Issue 18 October 2, 2020 Unconscionable arbitration agreement Klonowski v. Lynch, 8th Dist. Cuyahoga...more
The First Circuit Court of Appeals recently rejected a party’s argument that an arbitration agreement was unenforceable because the contract containing the arbitration clause had been allegedly terminated and superseded. The...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
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
Two California Courts of Appeal came to two different conclusions on motions to compel arbitration on the same day last week (April 10), again demonstrating the care that must be taken in drafting and presenting arbitration...more
Our April update covers recent developments in employment law, including cases on lawful grounds for suspending employees, communicating with women on maternity leave and a novel case on the limits of lawful positive...more
This case involves a dispute between American Family Life Assurance Company of Columbus (“Aflac”) and a group of independent contractors (“associates”), arising out of alleged misrepresentations by Aflac. Pursuant to their...more
This month’s key employment law cases address nonsolicitation provisions and arbitration agreements. AMN Healthcare, Inc. v. Aya Healthcare Servs., Inc., 28 Cal. App. 5th 923, 239 Cal. Rptr. 3d 577 (2018) Summary:...more
In a major victory for ride-share company Uber Technologies, Inc. ("Uber"), the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit issued its much anticipated opinion in O'Connor v. Uber Technologies, Inc., Case No....more
On September 4, 2018, the Mississippi Court of Appeals upheld an arbitration agreement between a nursing home and its resident. See Massey v. Oasis Health & Rehab of Yazoo City, LLC, No. 2017-CA-00086-COA, 2018 WL 4204207...more
On August 13, 2018, the California Supreme Court answered a question certified to it by the Ninth Circuit, holding that a loan with a high interest rate can be unconscionable, even if the legislature specifically declined to...more
Plaintiff argued both the delegation clause and the arbitration provision of the agreement at issue were unconscionable, requiring the trial court to resolve the merits of the challenge, which it did not. ...more
Applying Washington law, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a California federal court’s ruling that Amazon’s Conditions of Use (COU) created a valid contract between Amazon and its customers, and there was no...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
This month’s key California employment law cases involve arbitration and PAGA issues. Arbitration - Farrar v. Direct Commerce, Inc., 9 Cal. App. 5th 1257, 215 Cal. Rptr. 3d 785 (2017) - Summary: Arbitration...more
Health care providers may favor arbitration due to the perception that it is a faster, less expensive alternative to litigation. State and federal policy favors arbitration for the same reasons. Because of the strong public...more
Companies looking to waive class action rights of employees may instead be waving goodbye to provisions in their employment contracts. Two recent decisions in California—one administrative and one in the 9th Circuit—recently...more
In 2016, the Texas Supreme Court issued three important opinions affecting arbitration agreements. The most significant was Hoskins v. Hoskins, 497 S.W.3d 490 (Tex. 2016). The issue in that case was whether a party seeking to...more
In this case, a former employee of a retail store appealed to the California Supreme Court seeking reversal of an appellate court decision which found that an arbitration agreement in her employment application was not...more
On October 27, 2015, the California Court of Appeal, in an unpublished decision, issued yet another ruling applying the unconscionability doctrine to arbitration agreements in the employment context. In Prince v. Pletcher,...more