On Monday, May 21, 2018, in a 5-4 opinion, the United States Supreme Court issued a long-awaited decision in the case, Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis, on the issue of the enforceability of class action waivers in arbitration...more
On May 21, 2018, the Supreme Court of the United States settled the contentious class action waiver issue that has riled courts for the past six years. In a 5-4 opinion, the Court upheld class action waivers in arbitration...more
In an issue of first impression in the state of New York, last week the New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division (the state’s intermediate appellate court) weighed in on the enforceability of arbitration provisions that...more
The Supreme Court granted petitions for certiorari in three lawsuits challenging the legality of arbitration agreements that bar workers from pursuing class actions. The Court consolidated the cases, Murphy Oil USA Inc., Epic...more
As we previously reported, the Supreme Court granted petitions for certiorari in three lawsuits challenging the legality of arbitration agreements that bar workers from pursuing class actions. The Court consolidated the...more
The United States Supreme Court recently granted certiorari in a trio of cases—Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis, No. 16-285; Ernst & Young LLP v. Morris, No. 16-300; and NLRB v. Murphy Oil USA Inc., No. 16-307—to decide on a...more
The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to review the validity of class action waiver clauses in employment arbitration agreements to resolve a conflict among the federal appellate courts. As our firm has explained in prior blog...more
The U.S. Supreme Court recently granted certiorari in class action cases involving: (1) class action waivers in employment contracts; and (2) whether filing of a securities class action tolled a statute of repose. In both...more
The United States Supreme Court decided last week to resolve a split in the lower courts as to whether the National Labor Relations Act (“Act”) preempts class-action waiver clauses in arbitration agreements with their...more
On January 13, 2017, the Supreme Court agreed to consider whether employee arbitration agreements containing class/collective action waivers are unlawful and unenforceable. The Court’s decision to consider this issue portends...more
Apologies to Winston Churchill, but the conflict over the enforcement of arbitration agreements with class waivers has become an ongoing legal and ideological struggle. Some view individual arbitration as a quicker and less...more
Last week, the Supreme Court consolidated and agreed to hear three appeals of Circuit Court decisions concerning whether class action waivers contained in employment arbitration agreements infringe on employees’ rights under...more
On Friday, January 13, 2017, the Supreme Court agreed to consider arguments over whether employer arbitration policies that prohibit employees from filing class or collective actions are violative of the National Labor...more
On January 13, 2017, the U.S. Supreme Court granted certiorari in three cases involving the lawfulness of class and collective action waivers in arbitration agreements. Since the National Labor Relations Board’s 2012...more
The United States Supreme Court granted and consolidated three petitions for certiorari related to the validity of class action waiver clauses in employer/employee arbitration agreements. The Court has consolidated the...more
The 2016 Presidential election was arguably the most contentious, unpredictable, and politically polarizing race in this nation's history. The contours of the electoral map changed by the hour in the days leading up to...more
The Second Circuit issued a summary order affirming a decision by the Southern District of New York compelling arbitration pursuant to class-action and collective-action waivers contained in an employment arbitration...more
In a recent opinion, Morris v. Ernst & Young, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals followed the Seventh Circuit and held that employers violate the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) when they require employees to sign an...more
Many employers enter into arbitration agreements with their employees to expedite resolution and mitigate the risk of jury trials. For the most part, a proper arbitration agreement would have the effect of requiring both the...more
As a condition of employment, Ernst & Young’s employees were required to sign agreements that contained a “concerted action” waiver requiring employees to pursue legal claims against E&Y exclusively through arbitration, and...more
Ninth Circuit Strikes Down Employer's Class Action Waiver - Morris v. Ernst & Young, LLP, 2016 WL 4433080 (9th Cir. 2016) - As a condition of employment, Stephen Morris and Kelly McDaniel were required to sign...more
In Morris v. Ernst & Young, LLP, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit recently reviewed an arbitration agreement that required employees “as a condition of employment” “to sign agreements not to join with other...more
Ernst & Young’s (“E&Y”) employment agreements contained “separate proceedings” and arbitration provisions, which together required that disputes be resolved individually through arbitration, rather than collectively through...more
Oh boy, what a year 2016 is shaping up to be! Employers faced some daunting changes to: Sick Leave, California Minimum Wage, the DOL final rule re salary thresholds and now – class action waivers. We feel like doing a Liz...more
The Ninth Circuit and the California Court of Appeal have each issued decisions that may fundamentally affect how employers deal with arbitration agreements in the future. In Morris v. Ernst & Young, the Ninth Circuit held...more