Main Menu

Arbitration

Arbitrators Take One More Step Toward Infallibility

By on October 8, 2019 in Arbitration

The U.S. Supreme Court has refused to review a decision of the Ninth Circuit (http://cdn.ca9.uscourts.gov/datastore/opinions/2018/12/04/16-16363.pdf) allowing an arbitrator to alter the terms of a collective bargaining agreement, despite contract language saying that the arbitrator could not alter the agreement in any way. ASARCO v. Steelworkers , No. 18-1415, Cert denied 10/7/19.  https://www.supremecourt.gov/search.aspx?filename=/docket/docketfiles/html/public/18-1415.html One thing that […]

Arbitrator’s Alleged Bias Against Homosexuals Is Not Grounds to Reverse Award

By on July 26, 2019 in Arbitration

Recently, a California Court of Appeal rejected a plaintiff/appellant’s claim that his case against his former employer — which went to arbitration pursuant to their employment agreement — should be reversed due to the arbitrator’s alleged undisclosed bias against homosexuals.  Bogue v. Anesthesia Service Medical Group, Inc., No. D073518 (Cal. App. 4th Dist. 7/17/19) (unpublished). […]

Uber Driver Must Ride Solo: Class Action Waiver Enforced Post Epic Systems

By on June 8, 2018 in Arbitration, Class Actions, Supreme Court Decisions

On May 21, the Supreme Court issued its decision in Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis, which we previously discussed at length.  That case, which upheld class action waivers in favor of individual arbitration, forces Gustavo Camilo to individually arbitrate his claim that Uber illegally charged him and other drivers a workers’ compensation fee. Just a […]

A Potentially Epic Alternative To Class-Action Waiver Arbitration Clauses

By on May 25, 2018 in Arbitration, Employment Contracts, Legal Developments

In the aftermath of Monday’s Supreme Court decision in Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis, as discussed on this blog, employers are free to include class-action waivers as part of their arbitration clauses in employment agreements. There is, however, a difference between whether employers can include such clauses and whether all employers should include them.  Some […]

Supreme Court Upholds Individual Arbitration Clauses In Employment Contracts

By on May 22, 2018 in Arbitration, Class Actions, Employment Contracts, Labor Law, Legal Developments

Mandatory arbitration clauses in employment contracts are increasingly a fact of workplace life.  What happens, though, when an employee signs an employment agreement requiring that any job-related disputes be submitted to individual arbitration, rather than class- or collective-action lawsuits?  Do longstanding federal labor laws protecting workers’ right to engage in “concerted activities for the purpose […]

Court Orders Arbitration in FMLA Termination Case

By on October 26, 2017 in Arbitration, FMLA

The question of whether and when an employer can compel an employee who is suing it to arbitrate her case rather than proceed in court depends upon the terms of the agreement between the parties.  In Mason v. Athletic & Therapeutic Inst. of Naperville, 2017 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 173046 (S.D. Ind. Oct. 19, 2017), a […]

Seventh Circuit Sides with NLRB on Arbitration Agreements, Creates Circuit Split

By on June 2, 2016 in Arbitration, Class Actions, Labor Law

In a surprising decision for atypically business-friendly appellate court, the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit has sided with the National Labor Relations Board’s position that a mandatory agreement requiring employees to waive the right to bring a class or collective action in arbitration violates the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA).  Lewis […]