Last month, the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral argument in the case, Viking River Cruises, Inc. v. Moriana on the issue of whether employers may enforce valid arbitration agreements against employees for claims brought under California's Private Attorneys General Act...
Advising And Defending Businesses
Employment Law
Can you talk about religion with your employees?
Your religion has always been important to you. The company you started is not necessarily a religious business, but it's something that you talk about. You feel strongly that religion is important and you don't want to remove that part of your personality just...
Trial Court’s Order Decertifying Meal Period Class Action and PAGA Lawsuit Reversed
On March 23, 2022, a California court of appeal in Estrada v Royalty Cabinet Mills. Inc. reversed a trial court’s decision to decertify a class action alleging violations of California’s meal and rest period laws and its decision to dismiss the plaintiffs’ Private...
Protect Your Business from Wage Theft Lawsuits
With California’s ever-changing employment laws, it’s important to stay informed of legal updates that affect your business. Last fall, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill 1003 into law, which went into effect on January 1, 2022. Proposed by Lorena...
Can an at-will employee still claim wrongful termination?
At-will employment is a fairly simple concept. It just means that a company and an employee have a business relationship that they can each end when they want. You don't need a reason to fire an employee. They don't have to give you two-weeks notice before they quit....
Cal/OSHA Expands Its Definition of What Constitutes a “Repeat Violation”
There is now even greater cause for concern when an OSHA complaint shows up on your desk. Cal/OSHA recently amended its regulations to redefine what constitutes a “repeat violation” and the new amendment takes effect on January 1, 2017. In a nutshell: A...
Proposition 64 Passed; Here’s What that Means for Your Business
Californians may have legalized recreational marijuana this past November, but that does not mean employees can start showing up to work high. Employers still have the right to “maintain a drug and alcohol free workplace” under the new law. The first thing...
Employer’s Meal Period Policy That Does Not Comply With California Law Results in Liability Under PAGA
A decision published by a California court of appeal on December 19, 2018 in Carrington v. Starbucks Corp. again demonstrates how critical it is that employers have a well-written meal period policy in place that conforms to the law. A barista who worked at Starbucks...
More Bad News for Employers: The California Supreme Court Holds That Requiring Employees to Remain on Call During Rest Breaks Renders the Breaks Invalid
In Augustus v. ABM Security Services (ABM Security), a class action filed 11 years ago and certified as a class in 2009, the California Supreme Court ruled that ABM Security unlawfully required the class of security guards to remain on call during rest breaks,...
The Defend Trade Secrets Act of 2016
On May 11, 2016, President Obama signed the Defend Trade Secrets Act of 2016 (DTSA) into law. The new law creates a right for an “owner of a trade secret” to bring a civil claim in federal court for the misappropriation of such and obtain remedies that...