Employment Law This Week®: Sexual Orientation Bias, Religious Discrimination, At-Will Employment Provision, Class Arbitration
In Pounds, et al. v. Portfolio Recovery Associates, LLC, the North Carolina Court of Appeals recently issued an opinion that may have a significant impact on collections law and arbitrability. Defendant is an entity that...more
Takeaway: The concept of class arbitration has endured stiff headwinds. In Lamps Plus, Inc. v. Varella, 139 S. Ct. 1407 (2019), the Supreme Court ruled that a party cannot be required to participate in a class arbitration...more
Arbitration provides a lower-cost alternative to litigation. Yet, a growing predicament continues to penetrate the conversation surrounding arbitration: mass arbitration. On the one hand, no rational customer or employee...more
The United States Supreme Court established that questions of arbitrability are presumptively for a court unless the parties clearly and unmistakability manifest their intention (i.e, agreement) that such issues should be...more
On April 16, 2020, the Fifth Circuit held that an employee is entitled to arbitrate his federal labor law claims as a collective action on behalf of his coworkers against their employer, Sun Coast Resources, Inc. (“Sun...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
In reversing a New York federal court, the Second Circuit found the arbitration was within the arbitrator’s authority in binding absent class members to class proceedings because, by signing the operative arbitration...more
For most small to medium-sized businesses, the threat of a class action is not usually front-of-mind. However, as a business grows, the threat can increase depending on the number of employees and the nature of the work being...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
The U.S. Supreme Court issued two 5-4 decisions in as many months regarding class procedures. Lamp Plus, Inc. v. Varela, 587 U. S. ____ (2019) was favorable to corporate defendants by limiting the availability of class...more
Much of the attention on the U.S. Supreme Court in the 2018-19 term has concerned its composition or its handling of cases involving some of the signature initiatives of President Donald Trump’s administration. Less noticed...more
Takeaway: As we explored in a prior post (“Class arbitration – can it even work?”), conducting a class arbitration like most class actions – that is, giving absent class members notice and an opportunity to opt-out – may not...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
As the U.S. Supreme Court kicks off its 2018 term this week, it prepares to take up a series of firsts, including questions about the America Invents Act, securities fraud and privacy-related class action litigation. At the...more
In a matter of first impression before the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals, and an issue left open by the U.S. Supreme Court, the Eleventh Circuit has ruled that who decides whether an action can be litigated as a class in...more
The U.S. Supreme Court has decided to hear two important cases next year involving important issues for class action lawyers and the clients they serve. In Lamps Plus Inc. v. Varela, the Supreme Court will decide “whether...more
On April 30, the U.S. Supreme Court granted certiorari in two class action cases, on issues involving cy pres awards and class arbitration. Both cases arise out of the Ninth Circuit. The Supreme Court’s decision in the cy...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
On February 1, 2017, a federal district court in South Carolina ruled that a standard arbitration agreement between a national homebuilder and purchaser does not permit the purchaser to pursue class arbitration. This appears...more
Last week, the CFPB announced two proposals related to the inclusion clauses that require arbitration to resolve all future disputes (“pre-dispute arbitration agreements”) in consumer financial products. The first proposal...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
An administrative law judge for the National Labor Relations Board (“Board”) found in favor of Talina Torres (“Torres”) against Employers Resource (“Employers”) after determining that an arbitration clause within an...more