On July 1, 2024, California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed into law two bills that significantly reform the California Private Attorneys General Act of 2004 (PAGA). California employers will soon benefit from a myriad of reforms...more
On July 1, 2024, Governor Gavin Newsom signed legislation to reform California’s Private Attorneys General Act (“PAGA”). These changes aim to balance PAGA enforcement with fairness to employers, offering new avenues for...more
California’s legislative leaders and Governor Newsom reached an agreement on reforms to the Private Attorney Generals’ Act which will change the landscape of PAGA going forward. PAGA has cost businesses billions of dollars in...more
This November, California voters may have the opportunity to replace the controversial Labor Code Private Attorneys General Act (“PAGA”) by voting on a proposed bill that would double penalties for willful labor-law...more
California’s Private Attorneys’ General Act, or PAGA, just celebrated its 20th birthday despite repeated, failed attempts at its repeal. California’s Labor Code is among the strictest in the nation and California law affords...more
Now That California Courts Have Been Stripped of Authority to Dismiss Unmanageable PAGA Claims, How Will Employers Manage PAGA Litigation? The California Supreme Court, on Jan. 18, issued its decision in Estrada v. Royalty...more
Last week a trial court in Alameda County entered an order permitting Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc. to recover nearly $125,000 in costs from the California Labor and Workforce Development Agency (LWDA). Hobby Lobby incurred these...more
An employee who settled her individual claims against her employer for alleged Labor Code violations was not precluded from subsequently bringing a Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) enforcement action with the same...more
Last month, a split emerged in the California Court of Appeal regarding whether trial courts have authority to strike or limit unmanageable claims under the Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA). In Estrada v. Royalty Carpet...more
On March 23, 2022, in Estrada v. Royalty Carpet Mills, Inc., the California Court of Appeal, held that “a court cannot strike a PAGA claim based on manageability.” This decision creates a split of authority with Wesson v....more
Considering the intersection of the Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) and the doctrine of relation back, a California appellate panel found that the doctrine can apply to the statute, opening the door to a subsequent...more
On February 11, 2022, the 9th Circuit issued its decision in Saucillo v. Peck, — F.4th —, 2022 WL 414692 (9th Cir. 2022), holding among other things that a nonparty aggrieved employee does not have standing in federal court...more
The Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) has been in the news lately with a proposed state Proposition seeking to reform it, and the Supreme Court taking up a case regarding PAGA and arbitrations. Though recent developments...more
In recent months, a split of authority has emerged in the California Court of Appeal regarding whether a nonparty aggrieved employee has standing to intervene in a Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) action to challenge a...more
On September 30, 2021, the California Court of Appeal (4th District) decided Uribe v. Crown Building Maintenance Co., Case No. G057836. At issue in Uribe was a Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) settlement that purported to...more
Earlier this month, a coalition including the California Chamber of Commerce, California New Car Dealers Association and Western Growers filed a proposed initiative measure entitled The Fair Pay and Employer Accountability...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: On Monday, September 27, Governor Newsom signed a number of employment-related bills, including bills aimed at combatting wage theft and wage/hour violations by garment manufacturers, all of which go into...more
We have long reported about that modern marvel of well-intentioned legislation gone awry known as the Private Attorneys General Act (“PAGA”) – and we also have noted that in practice, PAGA stands for Pretty-much All Goes to...more
Although the Supreme Court of the United States has not yet taken up the issue, California courts routinely hold an employee cannot be compelled to submit to arbitration an action seeking penalties under the Private Attorneys...more
Although the Trump administration rescinded its guidance on worker misclassification earlier this year and appears to have otherwise taken a “softer approach” to misclassification enforcement, California employers should...more
Buried in an appropriations bill designed to address no fewer than 42 separate issues is a small, but important item for California employers. In response to requests for legislative restrictions on the Private Attorneys...more