In California, the “prevailing party” in litigation is entitled to recover its costs as a matter of law under California Code of Civil Procedure (“CCC”) §1032. But under CCP §998, a party may make an “offer to compromise,” which can cut-off and even reverse the parties’ right to recover costs after the date of the… Read More
Posts Categorized In: Employment Litigation
Corporate Owners and Officers are Individually Liable for PAGA Penalties
Readers of this blog know the potent plaintiff’s weapon that is California’s Private Attorneys General Act (“PAGA”). PAGA allows an individual employee to “stand in the shoes of the State” and sue his employer for civil penalties flowing from the employer’s wage-and-hour violations. What makes PAGA so devastating for employers is that the employee is… Read More
Governor Brown Signs AB 2770 Making Sexual Harassment Allegations Privileged
On July 9, 2018, California Governor Jerry Brown signed AB 2770 which protects both sexual harassment victims and their employers from being sued for libel, slander, or defamation in connection with allegations of sexual harassment. AB 2770 also gives an employer permission to tell a prospective new employer calling for a reference that a former… Read More
U.S. Supreme Court Upholds Class Action Waivers
It was only a few weeks ago. California employees and their lawyers were jubilant after the CA Supreme Court delivered its game-changing Dynamex decision that made it even harder for California employers to properly classify workers as independent contractors. As a result, employment protections were extended to millions of California workers who were also given the right… Read More
CA Supreme Court Delivers Bombshell Ruling — Even Harder Now for Employers to Classify Workers as Independent Contractors
Determining whether a worker should be classified as an employee or independent contractor has always been a challenging task that frustrates our clients. There are a variety of legal “tests” that are used in different contexts in order to make that determination. A worker can be considered an independent contractor by one state agency but… Read More
Arbitration Agreements — A Seawall to Surging PAGA Lawsuits?
Since its passage in 2004, California’s Private Attorneys General Act (“PAGA”) has been a weapon used by employees and their lawyers across California. PAGA allows one “aggrieved employee” to sue his/her employer in a representative capacity and to recover penalties and attorneys’ fees for technical violations of the California Labor Code suffered by that one employee… Read More
New U.S. Tax Law Impacts Sexual Harassment Settlements
When U.S. President Donald Trump signed the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act into law last month, everyone was focused on the corporate tax cuts and — especially here in California — the reduction of the deductions for mortgage interest, state income taxes, and local property taxes. But lurking in the new tax law was a… Read More
California Court Makes it Easier for Overweight Employees to Sue Their Employers
California law has not (yet) recognized weight as a protected category along with race, gender, gender identity, religion, sexual orientation, medical condition, and many others. However, more than 25 years ago, the California Supreme Court held that an overweight employee could qualify as a “disabled” under California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) — and,… Read More
Accidental Pay Stub Violations Create PAGA Liability
What happens when an employer inadvertently hands out pay stubs that the employer does not realize are missing some required information? Well, given that this is California, you can probably guess the answer.
CA Supreme Court — Employees Have Broad Discovery Rights in PAGA Actions
Yesterday, in a unanimous 7-0 opinion, the California Supreme Court held in Williams v. Marshalls of CA that plaintiffs suing employers in Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) are entitled to broad discovery rights. Specifically, the Court held that PAGA plaintiffs can force an employer-defendant to turn over the names and contact information of other current and former… Read More
