For more than a few years — at least since the United States Supreme Court’s seminal 2017 decision in Epic Systems v. Lewis — employers across the country have weighed whether to have their employees sign arbitration...more
1. The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) General Counsel directed NLRB regions to seek preemptive injunctions for alleged unlawful threats during union campaigns. NLRB General Counsel Jennifer Abruzzo issued a memorandum...more
The Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act of 2021 is expected to be signed into law soon by President Biden and will amend the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) to allow employees who are bound by...more
On Dec. 15, the United States Supreme Court agreed to take up what promises to be the most consequential PAGA case in nearly a decade. In Viking River Cruises, Inc. v. Moriana, No. 20-1573, the Court will decide whether...more
The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to consider whether the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) requires enforcement of a bilateral arbitration agreement mandating that claims be brought on an individual basis and that employees may...more
In a major turn of events for California employers, on December 15, 2021, the U.S. Supreme Court granted certiorari in a case that challenges California’s ban on arbitration agreements that limit employees’ right to sue their...more
Generally, the Federal Arbitration Act (“FAA”) has routinely been enforced by the balance of the nation’s courts over the years, as it codifies accepted deference to parties’ contracts and agreements and has been held to...more
On December 15, the U.S. Supreme Court changed course and announced that it would decide whether representative claims brought under California’s Private Attorneys General Act (known as “PAGA”) can be waived by an otherwise...more
More than three years after its landmark decision in Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis, the United States Supreme Court has granted certiorari in Viking River Cruises, Inc. v. Moriana to determine whether Epic Systems extends to...more
Since the Supreme Court’s 2018 decision in Epic Systems v. Lewis, which deemed class action waivers in employment agreements permissible, employers have increasingly relied upon mandatory arbitration provisions to limit...more
Confidential arbitration agreements between employers and their employees are commonplace. Employers favor such agreements for many reasons, including preserving privacy and allowing legitimate claims to be either settled or...more
On February 4, 2021, the Protecting the Right to Organize Act (the “PRO Act”) was reintroduced by Democrats in the United States House of Representatives. If enacted, the PRO Act would dramatically transform American labor...more
As someone who represents employers, I’ve long been a proponent of arbitration as a way to limit exposure to employment claims. I have colleagues who disagree and I recognize that it’s a complicated issue. So starting about...more
Given the ever increasing number of wage-hour class and collective actions being filed against employers, it is no surprise that may employers have turned to arbitration agreements with class and collective action waivers as...more
Even after the Supreme Court’s favorable decision in Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis (“Epic”), California courts will not compel a PAGA claim to arbitration. In Collie v. The Icee Co., a former employee of The Icee Company,...more
On May 21, 2018, in Epic Systems Corporation v. Lewis, the Supreme Court of the United States upheld class action waivers in arbitration agreements, ruling that the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) instructs “federal courts to...more
In many private arbitration agreements entered into in the non-union context, employers and employees agree that the proceedings shall remain confidential. On June 19, 2020, the Board addressed whether a confidentiality...more
In Hamlet’s Third Act, Hamlet discovers a plot against his life and resolves to counter it by letting Rosencranz and Guildenstern, whom he suspects are complicit in the plan, be "Hoist with [their] own petard," meaning, blown...more
On March 26, the American Bankers Association and the Consumer Bankers Association, represented by Ballard Spahr, filed an amicus brief in support of petitions for certiorari asking the Supreme Court to review the Ninth...more
Ogletree Deakins’ Traditional Labor Relations Practice Group is pleased to announce the publication of the winter 2020 issue of the Practical NLRB Advisor. This special double issue offers readers a thorough year in review of...more
In May 2018, the Supreme Court upheld the validity of arbitration agreements containing class action waivers in Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis, 138 S. Ct. 1612 (2018), resolving a circuit split and ending a six-year dispute...more
It’s no secret that many employers have employees sign arbitration agreements with class and collective action waivers in the hopes of avoiding the massive wage-hour lawsuits that have become so prevalent in the past two...more
The California Legislature’s attempt to circumvent both the Federal Arbitration Act (“FAA”) and the Supreme Court’s landmark decision in Epic Systems by crafting a new law prohibiting California employers from requiring...more
After denying the defendants’ petitions for panel and en banc rehearing in the Blair v. Rent-a-Center appeals, the Ninth Circuit has granted their motions to stay the issuance of the Court’s mandates for 90 days pending the...more
In its decision last term in Epic Systems Corp. V. Lewis, the U.S. Supreme Court concluded that the National Labor Relations Act does not preclude the use of mandatory arbitration agreements in employment which prevent class...more