Enforceability of Physician Non-Compete Agreements
A recent federal appeals court decision rejecting a business’s attempts at enforcing its online arbitration agreement offers lessons for businesses across the country on how to craft a valid agreement for your website. The...more
In recent years, technology advancement has introduced new methods for contract formation. In particular, the rise of blockchain technology has led to the emergence of “smart contracts”, which are digital contracts which...more
A California appellate court recently denied a motion to compel arbitration, finding the agreement unconscionable in part because it (1) applied to all claims rather than just those arising from employment, (2) was unlimited...more
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) has issued a circular warning covered persons that including unlawful or unenforceable terms and conditions in consumer contracts can violate the prohibition on...more
Despite its best efforts, the California Legislature has been unable to substantially curtail the popularity of employment arbitrations in California. The hostility to employment arbitration remains evident, however, among...more
Dana Jennings and Joseph Furlong each bought a car from Carvana, a nationwide online used car dealer. On the day of their purchases, each signed three separate documents: a “retail purchasing agreement,” a “retail installment...more
In Munoz, v. Earthgrains Distribution, LLC, 2023 WL 5986129 (S.D. Cal. Sept. 13, 2023), the plaintiffs, members of a class of independent distributors of baked goods for Earthgrains and other bakeries, alleged that they were...more
The Nevada Supreme Court recently reversed the denial of a motion to compel arbitration, explaining that the plaintiff’s arguments that the contract at issue was illegal were not a valid basis to deny arbitration because...more
New York statutes classify certain civil service positions as exempt where such positions are confidential in nature and require personal qualities that cannot practicably be tested by an examination. These positions are...more
A recent decision reminds parties about the need to draft dispute resolution clauses that are tailored to the parties’ agreement. The Court of Appeal recently ruled that an alternative dispute resolution (ADR) clause in...more
Employers should be aware of recent updates regarding two #MeToo-related federal laws: the Speak Out Act and the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act....more
Ninth Circuit Reverses Class Action Settlement Approval and Fee Award - The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has reversed the approval of a $10 million voucher settlement and a $2.6 million attorneys’ fee award in a class...more
In another strike against restrictive covenants in employment contracts, Judge Paul G. Gardephe of the Southern District of New York ruled in Jessica Denson v. Donald J. Trump For President, Inc. that the non-disclosure and...more
Courts have struggled through the years when considering the enforceability of mandatory class action waivers and arbitration provisions contained within Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) plans and other...more
The Southern District of New York declared that plaintiff Monjasa A/S was not bound by an arbitration agreement to which neither it nor the defendant was a party. The case stems from a fuel delivery contract between two...more
It is a legal maxim that arbitration is a creature of contract. A recent District of Massachusetts decision explores critical questions about when that creature can exist outside of the confines of a binding agreement to...more
The Eight Circuit has rejected a plaintiff’s claim that an arbitration clause in a retainer agreement she signed with a law firm after receiving a call from a purported agent of the firm informing her of a purported...more
On November 26, 2019, San Francisco Superior Court Judge Richard B. Ulmer ruled that the Federal Arbitration Act (“FAA”) might not apply to Uber drivers who are engaged in interstate commerce while driving passengers to or...more
The plaintiffs brought a class action suit against Extra Space Storage Inc. for false advertising, unfair competition, and violation of the California Consumers Legal Remedies Act. After the case was removed to the U.S....more
We have been discussing arbitration agreements in the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) context lately, particularly with respect to class action waivers. But employers may not be aware that earlier this summer, the NLRB...more
Cessna Finance Corp. entered into contracts with Al Ghaith Holding Co. PJSC for purposes of guaranteeing aircraft lease agreements. Cessna filed a request for arbitration against Al Ghaith seeking payment under the guaranty...more
The British Columbia Supreme Court in MRC Total Build Ltd. v F&M Installations Ltd., 2019 BCSC 765 [MRC Total Build] recently considered an application by a general contractor to stay proceedings commenced by a subcontractor...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: The New Jersey Legislature recently passed Senate Bill 121 affecting claims of discrimination, harassment, and retaliation, which if signed into law, would render any prospective waiver of rights against...more
A day after the U.S. Supreme Court issued a decision seen as pro-arbitration – see our January 10, 2019 Blog Post, Arbitrator to Decide Whether Dispute is Subject to Arbitration Even if Argument is “Wholly Groundless,”...more
A recent opinion in the case of Susan L. O’Keefe v. Edmund Optics, Inc., addressed the question of whether an arbitration provision in a written employment agreement could survive the expiration of the agreement’s one-year...more