Arbitration

Labor Code sections 558 and 1197.1, allow the Labor Commissioner to sue for set civil penalties in addition to an amount sufficient to recover underpaid wages if an employer fails to pay overtime wages or minimum wages as required by California law.  This decision holds that in a PAGA suit, the employee plaintiff may recover only the set civil penalty… Read More

When the arbitration agreement delegates arbitrability issues to the arbitrator, a court must compel arbitration even if it finds the argument that the dispute is arbitrable to be “wholly groundless.” Read More

Delegation provision in the insurance contract’s arbitration clause was void because it was added by an endorsement that had not been filed with or approved by the Insurance Commissioner. Read More

The deadline for moving to vacate an arbitration award under the FAA is the same date as the third month after the award is issued unless it is a Saturday, Sunday or holiday. Read More

A broad arbitration clause in plaintiff's employment agreement was ended by the separation agreement which plaintiff signed on leaving the company's employment, so it did not govern plaintiff’s later claims that defendants breached their fiduciary duties owed to him as a minority shareholder. Read More

Trial court correctly compelled arbitration of plaintiff’s medical malpractice claim, after it was unpersuaded by plaintiff’s argument that she didn’t see or read arbitration warning in her contract with the physician. Read More

As the arbitration agreement did not delegate arbitrability to the arbitrator, the arbitrator erred in deciding a dispute was not arbitrable rather than deciding the merits of the dispute, and the party submitting the dispute to arbitration could raise that error as a ground for vacating the award. Read More

The arbitration clause in a law firm’s partnership agreement was unconscionable and unenforceable because it required the lawyer/partner to pay half the arbitration costs and her own attorney fees, because it restricted the arbitrators’ ability to “override” or “substitute [their] judgment” for that of the law firm’s management, and it required confidentiality about all arbitrations. Read More

Law firm’s investigative due diligence report, completed prior to an acquisition to determine whether target company was in possession of another’s protected trade secrets, is not protected from discovery by any attorney-client privilege because it was jointly directed by and shared with opposing parties in the acquisition negotiations; and it was not protected by the work product privilege because it… Read More

Law firm’s investigative due diligence report, completed prior to an acquisition to determine whether target company was in possession of another’s protected trade secrets, is not protected from discovery by any attorney-client privilege because it was jointly directed by and shared with opposing parties in the acquisition negotiations; and it was not protected by the work product privilege because it… Read More

The airline did not waive its right to compel arbitration of former employee’s retaliation claim by having earlier defended itself against a Department of Labor investigation triggered by the employee’s administrative complaint. Read More

The Anti-SLAPP statute protects the defendant, an employee of plaintiff, from plaintiff’s breach of contract action arising from the employee’s decision to file an employment lawsuit, notwithstanding the arbitration clause in his employment agreement. Read More

Uber's arbitration agreements with its drivers are enforceable and delegate arbitrability questions to the arbitrator and the named plaintiffs could not opt out of the arbitration agreement on behalf of all class members. Read More

By failing to raise it in the trial court, the defendant tribe waived its sovereign immunity defense as to an equipment rental agreement under which attorney fees had been awarded to the plaintiff. Read More

When the entire contract containing an arbitration clause is illegal as contrary to statute or to public policy (as, here, an attorney fee agreement that is unenforceable due to undisclosed ethical conflict) the arbitration clause and any subsequent arbitration award are unenforceable.  Read More

An arbitrator's “partial final award” determining only that the arbitration agreement permitted the claimant to move for class certification is not an "award" which a court could confirm or vacate, although the trial court's order "denying" the petition to vacate the award was itself immediately appealable. Read More

Defendant motorcycle dealer could not enforce an arbitration clause in financing agreement between motorcycle buyer and lender, as a dealer is not an express third party beneficiary of the arbitration clause. Read More

Arbitrator did not exceed his powers in dismissing plaintiff HOA’s claims against developer on the ground that HOA violated its own CC&Rs by bringing the claims without first having obtained approval from a majority of homeowners. Read More

Plaintiff was entitled to automatic vacatur of an arbitration award because the arbitrator knowingly violated ethical rules by receiving and accepting offers to arbitrate other disputes involving defendant or its attorneys without notifying plaintiff of those offers and acceptances. Read More

Employee’s claim that employer had breached its fiduciary duties under ERISA in managing an employee benefit plan was not subject to arbitration since the benefit plan was not a party to the relevant arbitration agreement. Read More