There they go again! As we predicted last November, the California legislature is once again trying to outlaw arbitration agreements between employers and employees. Former Gov. Jerry Brown routinely vetoed similar bills that...more
Eddie Money Beats Discrimination Lawsuit Based On Free Speech Right -
Symmonds v. Mahoney, 31 Cal. App. 5th 1096 (2019) -
After 41 years, singer/songwriter Edward Joseph Mahoney (aka "Eddie Money") terminated the...more
3/18/2019
/ Breach of Contract ,
CA Supreme Court ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
FEHA ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Investigative Consumer Reporting Agencies Act (ICRAA) ,
Joint Employers ,
On-Call Employees ,
Popular ,
Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) ,
Statute of Limitations ,
Title VII ,
Unpaid Wages ,
Wage and Hour ,
Whistleblowers
Proving it still is possible to obtain a favorable jury verdict in California, a federal jury sided with Chipotle Mexican Grill last Wednesday in a case involving disability discrimination claims by former assistant store...more
A Los Angeles jury awarded more than $11 million to two former employees who claimed they were sexually harassed and retaliated against for complaining about the harassment.
Megan Meadowcroft and Amber Brown, who worked at...more
Employers are increasingly turning to social networking sites to find additional information about candidates. In fact, recent articles suggest that an applicant’s failure to have a social media presence is viewed by many...more
A San Diego jury awarded that amount to a former employee who claimed he was wrongfully terminated based on his arrest record and then defamed.
Michael Tilkey worked for Allstate Insurance for 30 years and was fired from...more
California Governor Jerry Brown has signed Assembly Bill 2770 (Assembly Member Irwin; D-Thousand Oaks), an act to amend Section 47 of the Civil Code. The bill should protect both sexual harassment victims and employers...more
Supreme Court Bars Mandatory Union Dues For Public Employees -
Janus v. AFSCME, 585 U.S. ___, 2018 WL 3129785 (2018) -
In a highly anticipated decision, the United States Supreme Court held that it is a violation of...more
7/12/2018
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Anti-Retaliation Provisions ,
Class Action ,
Discrimination ,
Employee Rights ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
FEHA ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Hostile Environment ,
NLRB ,
Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) ,
SCOTUS ,
Sexual Harassment ,
State Labor Laws ,
Statute of Limitations ,
Unions ,
Wage and Hour ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies ,
Whistleblowers
On Tuesday, a Los Angeles jury did what L.A. juries do so often these days — they awarded tens of millions of dollars to an ex-employee who claimed she had been the victim of discrimination, wrongful termination and...more
The California Office of Administrative Law recently approved new amendments to the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (“FEHA”), strengthening the protections afforded to applicants and employees, including...more
Two recent verdicts from California Superior Court juries have awarded former employees $6 million and $7.9 million, respectively, in compensatory damages after a finding of wrongful termination.
Martinez v. Rite Aid...more
We invite you to review our newly-posted May 2018 California Employment Law Notes, a comprehensive review of the latest and most significant developments in California employment law. The highlights include...more
5/11/2018
/ ABC Test ,
Anti-SLAPP ,
CA Supreme Court ,
Delivery Drivers ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Misclassification ,
Rest and Meal Break ,
State Labor Laws ,
Title VII ,
Wage and Hour
The California Chamber of Commerce has just identified a new raft of recently introduced “job killer” bills that have been proposed in the California Legislature.
This year’s list of 27 proposed laws includes measures that...more
Former LA Times Columnist's Age/Disability Discrimination Judgment Upheld, New Trial On Damages Ordered -
Simers v. Los Angeles Times Commc'ns, LLC, 18 Cal. App. 5th 1248 (2018) -
T.J. Simers, a well-known sports...more
3/23/2018
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Anti-SLAPP ,
Class Certification ,
Digital Realty Trust Inc v Somers ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
FEHA ,
Former Employee ,
Fraud Prevention ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Qui Tam ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
State Labor Laws ,
Title VII ,
Wage and Hour ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies
A federal court has struck down as unconstitutional a California law (AB 1687) that prohibits commercial online services from publishing actors’ ages without their consent. The law, which the California legislature enacted in...more
Trial Court Erroneously Granted Bill Cosby's Anti-SLAPP Motion -
Dickinson v. Cosby, 17 Cal. App. 5th 655 (2017) -
After Janice Dickinson went public with her accusations of rape against Bill Cosby, Cosby's attorney...more
1/17/2018
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Anti-SLAPP ,
Breach of Contract ,
CA Supreme Court ,
Defamation ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Discovery ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
FEHA ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Joint Employers ,
Layoffs ,
Misclassification ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Summary Judgment ,
Title VII ,
USERRA ,
WARN Act ,
Wrongful Termination
Continuing an alarming recent pattern of multi-million dollar jury awards, a Los Angeles jury panel recently awarded $17.4 million to a former employee of the Bureau of Sanitation. The employee claimed he had been retaliated...more
In a little-noticed provision buried deep inside the new Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (signed into law on Dec. 22) is the following “denial of deduction”:
“Payments related to sexual harassment and sexual abuse – No deduction...more
Newly Enacted California Statutes -
Statewide "Ban-the-Box" Legislation -
Known as "Ban-the-Box" legislation in reference to the box applicants are asked to check if they have any prior criminal convictions, the new...more
11/10/2017
/ Anti-Retaliation Provisions ,
Ban the Box ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
FEHA ,
Governor Brown ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Job Applicants ,
Mental Health ,
New Legislation ,
Parental Leave ,
Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) ,
Salary/Wage History ,
Sanctuary Cities ,
Sexual Harassment ,
State Labor Laws ,
Tip Credit ,
Wage and Hour ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies ,
Workers Compensation Act ,
Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board (WCAB)
On Saturday, October 14, 2017, California Gov. Jerry Brown signed Assembly Bill 1008 into law, which is set to take effect on January 1, 2018. Known as the “Ban the Box” legislation, in reference to the box applicants are...more
11/1/2017
/ Background Checks ,
Ban the Box ,
Criminal Background Checks ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Discrimination ,
FEHA ,
Governor Brown ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Job Applicants ,
New Legislation ,
State Labor Laws
California Governor Jerry Brown has signed into law a statewide salary history inquiry law that will largely restrict employers in the state from seeking and relying upon salary history information from applicants during the...more
California Governor Jerry Brown has signed into law a statewide salary history inquiry law that will largely restrict employers in the state from seeking and relying upon salary history information from applicants during the...more
On Thursday, October 5th, California Gov. Jerry Brown signed into law nearly a dozen new immigration-related bills, including AB 450, which prohibits employers from cooperating with federal immigration authorities in the...more
Jury panels in the Los Angeles Superior Court (which is often referred to as “The Bank” by the plaintiffs’ bar) have recently delivered multimillion-dollar verdicts to former-employee plaintiffs. Many employers doing business...more
9/5/2017
/ Arbitration Agreements ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Compensatory Damages ,
Emotional Distress Damages ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Former Employee ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Jury Verdicts ,
Punitive Damages ,
Wrongful Termination
San Francisco has become the latest jurisdiction to pass a law restricting employers from inquiring about prior salary history during the hiring process. The ordinance, which will go into effect on July 1, 2018, will restrict...more