Employee Who Wanted To Donate/Freeze Her Eggs Was Not Protected By Pregnancy Statute -
Paleny v. Fireplace Products U.S., Inc., 103 Cal. App. 5th 199 (2024) -
Erika Paleny alleged harassment, discrimination and...more
8/1/2024
/ ADEA ,
Age Discrimination ,
Appeals ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Background Checks ,
Chevron Deference ,
Chevron v NRDC ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
FEHA ,
Fraud ,
Loper Bright Enterprises v Raimondo ,
Lyft ,
Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) ,
Retaliation ,
SCOTUS ,
Settlement ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Sexual Assault ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Whistleblowers
The Empire Struck Back last week when the California Court of Appeal held that the state’s latest back-door attempt to outlaw employment arbitration by any means necessary is preempted by the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA). ...more
Does the First Amendment right to free speech permit an employer to hire or fire an employee based on race? On its face, the proposition may seem absurd, especially as we approach the 60th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act...more
4/11/2024
/ Affirmative Defenses ,
Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Anti-SLAPP ,
Appeals ,
Civil Rights Act ,
FEHA ,
First Amendment ,
Gender Identity ,
Race Discrimination ,
Retaliation ,
SCOTUS ,
Students for Fair Admissions v Harvard College ,
Title VII
Hohenshelt v. Superior Court, 318 Cal. Rptr. 3d 475 (Cal. Ct. App. 2024) -
For the seventh time since they became effective in 2020, the California Court of Appeal has published an opinion holding that Cal. Code Civ. Proc....more
Kader v. Southern Cal. Med. Ctr., Inc., 99 Cal. App. 5th 214 (2024) -
The Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act (9 U.S.C. §§ 401, et seq.) became effective on March 3, 2022. A “statutory...more
On Jan. 1, new legislation aimed at curbing the use of unenforceable noncompete agreements took effect in California.
The new laws, which impose potentially harsh consequences on employers for requiring employees to sign...more
Art Teacher’s Age Discrimination Case May Not Be Barred By “Ministerial Exception” -
Atkins v. St. Cecilia Catholic Sch., 2023 WL 3142316 (Cal. Ct. App. 2023) -
Frances Atkins was a long-term employee of St. Cecilia...more
The long-running feud between California and the “gig economy” shows no sign of ending soon. On April 28, 2023, the State of California submitted a petition to the Ninth Circuit in Olson v. California, No. 21-55757 (9th...more
Age/National Origin Case Was Properly Dismissed Despite “Direct Evidence” Of Discriminatory Animus -
Opara v. Yellin, 57 F.4th 709 (9th Cir. 2023) -
Joan Opara was terminated from her employment as an IRS revenue...more
2/9/2023
/ Age Discrimination ,
Anti-SLAPP ,
Appeals ,
Breach of Contract ,
Criminal Convictions ,
Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) ,
Independent Contractors ,
Minimum Wage ,
Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) ,
Rest and Meal Break ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour ,
Wrongful Termination
In recent years, employees (and their lawyers) have taken a variety of approaches to challenging the enforceability of workplace arbitration agreements. One common tactic has been to claim that they “don’t remember signing...more
Trujillo v. City of Los Angeles, 2022 WL 15119812 (Cal. Ct. App. 2022) -
In a negligence case, the City of Los Angeles made a settlement offer to the plaintiff pursuant to Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 998 a few days before the...more
Killgore v. SpecPro Prof’l Servs., LLC, 51 F.4th 973 (9th Cir. 2022) -
While consulting for an environmental project for the United States Army Reserve Command, Aaron Killgore believed he was being required to prepare an...more
CSV Hospitality Mgmt. LLC v. Lucas, 84 Cal. App. 5th 117 (2022) -
CSV Hospitality Management LLC obtained a restraining order under the Workplace Violence Safety Act against Jermorio Lucas who was living at the Aranda...more
A federal appeals court recently affirmed a summary judgment entered in favor of WinCo Foods in a class action alleging that WinCo should have reimbursed successful job applicants for the time and travel expenses they...more
6/17/2022
/ Appeals ,
California ,
Compensation & Benefits ,
Conditional Job Offers ,
Drug Testing ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Employment Policies ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Job Applicants ,
Pre-Employment Health Screenings ,
Reimbursements ,
State Labor Laws ,
Travel Expenses ,
Wage and Hour
The California Court of Appeal has definitively resolved an issue that was until now somewhat ambiguous: Can volunteers in fact volunteer their time for nonprofit organizations without receiving pay or other forms of...more
1/3/2022
/ Appeals ,
Charitable Organizations ,
Class Certification ,
Compensation & Benefits ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Labor Law Violations ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Rest and Meal Break ,
State Labor Laws ,
Tax Exempt Entities ,
Unpaid Wages ,
Volunteers ,
Wage and Hour
In 2018, actress Ashley Judd (“Judd”) sued producer Harvey Weinstein (“Weinstein”) for sexual harassment, defamation, intentional interference with prospective economic advantage, and unfair competition. Judd alleges that...more
Herrera v. Zumiez, Inc., 953 F.3d 1063 (9th Cir. 2020) -
Alexa Herrera filed this putative class action against her employer, alleging that Zumiez failed to provide reporting-time pay to employees at its California retail...more
Nuño v. California State Univ., 47 Cal. App. 5th 799 (2020) -
Anthony Nuño, an assistant college professor, represented himself in this lawsuit against California State University, Bakersfield, in which he alleged...more
Noori v. Countrywide Payroll & HR Solutions, Inc., 2019 WL 7183403 (Cal. Ct. App. 2019) -
Mohammed Noori sued his former employer for violation of Cal. Lab. Code § 226(a) (setting forth certain very specific statutory...more
Rall v. Tribune 365, LLC, 2019 WL 6887261 (Cal. Ct. App. 2019) -
Frederick Theodore Rall III, a political cartoonist and blogger, sued the Los Angeles Times after it published a “note to readers” and (later) a more...more
Mathews v. Happy Valley Conference Ctr., 2019 WL 6769659 (Cal. Ct. App. 2019) -
Jeremiah Mathews worked as a maintenance supervisor and cook for Happy Valley Conference Center, which is a subordinate affiliate of...more
Safeway Wage & Hour Cases, 2019 WL 6954322 (Cal. Ct. App. 2019) -
Following a jury trial, the trial court entered judgment in favor of Safeway on the ground that plaintiff William Cunningham was subject to the executive...more
In a highly anticipated decision, the United States Supreme Court today held that it is a violation of the First Amendment to require public sector employees who are not members of a union to pay any union dues, even when a...more
6/28/2018
/ Appeals ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Fair Share Contribution ,
First Amendment ,
Janus v AFSCME ,
Non-Union ,
Payroll Deductions ,
Public Sector Unions ,
Reversal ,
SCOTUS ,
Stare Decisis ,
Union Dues
A recent California Court of Appeal opinion reminds employers of the need to carefully monitor parallel workers’ compensation proceedings involving litigants who also have civil claims pending against the employer. Ly v....more
11/1/2017
/ Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ,
Appeals ,
Collateral Estoppel ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
FEHA ,
Good Faith ,
Motion for Summary Judgment ,
National Origin Discrimination ,
Race Discrimination ,
Res Judicata ,
Workers' Compensation Claim ,
Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board (WCAB)
Jobseeker Website May Be Compelled To Disclose Identity Of Anonymous Posters Who Criticized Employer - ZL Technologies, Inc. v. Does 1-7, 13 Cal. App. 5th 603 (2017) - ZL Technologies brought suit, alleging libel per se and...more
9/13/2017
/ Accrual Requirements ,
Age Discrimination ,
Anti-SLAPP ,
Appeals ,
Burden-Shifting ,
CA Supreme Court ,
Cause of Action Accrual ,
Class Action ,
Class Certification ,
Day of Rest Laws ,
Demurrers ,
DFEH ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Discovery ,
Discovery Disputes ,
Dismissals ,
Evidence ,
FEHA ,
First Amendment ,
Former Employee ,
Genuine Issue of Material Fact ,
Independent Contractors ,
Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress ,
Interim Adverse Judgment Rule ,
Involuntary Reduction in Force ,
Libel ,
Litigation Fees & Costs ,
Malicious Prosecution ,
Motion to Compel ,
Pretext ,
Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) ,
Probable Cause ,
Public Policy ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Race Discrimination ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Remedies ,
Retaliation ,
Reversal ,
Right to Privacy ,
Section 998 ,
Settlement Offer ,
Statute of Limitations ,
Subpoenas ,
Summary Judgment ,
Telemarketing ,
Trade Secrets ,
Vacation Pay ,
Vicarious Liability ,
Waiting Periods ,
Websites