The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in New Prime v. Oliveira, No. 17-340 (Jan. 15, 2019), has added uncertainty to arbitration agreements in the transportation industry by holding that the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) § 1 exception covers both employees and independent contractors of a trucking company. In a unanimous opinion written by Justice Neil Gorsuch, … Continue Reading
As we noted in our Dec. 19, 2018, blog article, there were three arbitration cases involving the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA), all argued in October 2018, pending on the Court’s docket. Now, in a unanimous opinion written by Justice Brett Kavanaugh, Henry Schein, Inc. v. Archer & White Sales, Inc., No. 17-1272 (Jan. 8, 2019), … Continue Reading
There are at least four cases now before the U.S. Supreme Court that may be of significant interest to employers. Three were argued in October 2018, and certiorari was granted in the last case on Dec. 10. The Three Cases Already Argued The three cases argued all involve arbitration. The first, New Prime Inc. v. … Continue Reading
On Oct. 30, 2018, Rep. Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., and Rep. Bobby Scott, D-Va., together with 58 Democratic cosponsors, introduced the Restoring Justice for Workers Act, H.R. 7109. Unlike some earlier bills, this proposed legislation would prohibit all pre-dispute arbitration agreements covering employment claims, forbid retaliation against employees for refusing to arbitrate those disputes and amend … Continue Reading
As we await the Supreme Court’s decision on the enforceability of class action waivers, the Court has accepted certiorari on another arbitration-related case, this one relating to the application of the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) to the trucking industry. The U.S. Supreme Court on February 26 granted the certiorari petition of trucking company New Prime, … Continue Reading
In Oliveira v. New Prime, Inc., No. 15-2364 (May 12, 2017), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit confronted two arbitration-related questions of first impression in that Circuit. In the case, Dominic Oliveira had signed an Independent Contractor Operating Agreement with New Prime, Inc., which contained an arbitration provision governed by the Commercial … Continue Reading
In an October 22, 2014, posting, we addressed the growing divide between California federal district courts and the California Supreme Court over whether an arbitration agreement can waive an employee’s right to pursue a representative claim under the state’s Private Attorney General Act (PAGA). That divide has now widened as two more federal district courts … Continue Reading
A Sixth Circuit panel found the text of an updated arbitration agreement indicated it did not apply to a wage and hour class action already pending when the agreement was signed. Russell v. Citigroup, Inc., Case No. 13-5994 (6th Cir. April 4, 2014). Keith Russell had worked at a Citicorp call center in Florence, Kentucky … Continue Reading
On Second Thought… Court Begrudgingly Reverses Its Own June 2013 Decision On Class Arbitration In Light of SCOTUS’s Amex Decision Eight days prior to the Supreme Court’s decision in American Express Co. v. Italian Colors Restaurant, 133 S.Ct. 2304 (2013) (“AMEX”) (which we blogged here), the Massachusetts Judicial Court held that the Federal Arbitration Act … Continue Reading
This blog post was co-authored by: Dustin Dow The U.S. Supreme Court rejected the contention that a class arbitration waiver was unenforceable under the Federal Arbitration Act (“FAA”) when the cost of arbitrating individually would be greater than any potential recovery. Writing for a 5-3 majority of the Court, Justice Antonin Scalia ruled in American … Continue Reading
Mandatory retirement ages have been largely eliminated for most employees, but still continue in a handful of areas. For many years, the Federal Aviation Administration prohibited pilots over the age of 60 from flying for commercial airlines. In 2007, that limit was raised to age 65 for domestic flights. But what about private pilots working … Continue Reading
Is the Supreme Court’s January 10th opinion in CompuCredit Corp v. Greenwood.pdf a potential antidote for the National Labor Relations Board’s (“NLRB”) decision in D.R. Horton? Perhaps. CompuCredit Corp. considered whether the Credit Repair Organizations Act (“CROA”), 15 U.S.C. § 1679 et seq., foreclosed enforcement of an arbitration agreement in a class action filed in the … Continue Reading
In the much anticipated ruling in D.R. Horton, Inc. and Michael Cuda.pdf, released Friday, January 6, the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”) held that the Company violated Section 8(a)(1) of the National Labor Relations Act (“NLRA”) by “requiring employees to waive their right to collectively pursue employment-related claims in all forums, arbitral and judicial.” The … Continue Reading
In a terse but well-reasoned decision, the Eighth Circuit recently affirmed the grant of a motion to compel arbitration and enforced a class action waiver despite arguments that it was unenforceable under Minnesota law. The Appellate panel also considered whether cases sent to arbitration should be stayed rather than dismissed. In Green v. SuperShuttle International, … Continue Reading
The battle between California courts and the U.S. Supreme Court over arbitration agreements wages on. Though California courts frequently make perfunctory statements about the strong public policy in favor of arbitration agreements, these statements are undercut by the many cases in which the courts appear to bend over backwards to find arbitration agreements unconscionable or … Continue Reading
In the wake of the Supreme Court’s April 27th decision in AT&T Mobility v. Concepcion.pdf, Senator Al Franken (D-Minn) and others re-introduced legislation (S.987, H.R. 1873.pdf) that would forbid pre-dispute mandatory arbitration agreements in employment, consumer or civil rights disputes. The Concepcion opinion (reviewed in Greg Mersol’s April 27, 2011 post on this blog and in the … Continue Reading