California - General

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and other business organizations have filed suit in federal court against the State of California to have AB 51 declared preempted by the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA). Chamber of Commerce of the United States v. Becerra, No. 2:19-cv-2456 KJM DB. Alternatively, the lawsu

It’s hard to understate the range of issues the California Consumer Privacy Act (the “CCPA”) raises for covered businesses and their service providers. One of those issues involves the meaning of “consumer.” If you have been following CCPA developments, you know that at least for the first 12 months

California employers are not alone as they wrestle with AB 51’s January 1, 2020 new law on mandatory arbitration agreements. (For background on AB 51 see our article). On December 6, 2019, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and other business organizations filed suit against the State of California to hav

On Friday, December 6, 2019, a coalition of national and state trade associations filed suit in California federal court seeking to strike down the state’s recently enacted “anti-arbitration” law, A.B. 51.1 A.B. 51 effectively prohibits the formation and use of pre-dispute arbitration agreements in

The California Supreme Court announced that it would decide whether its April 30, 2018 landmark Dynamex decision is retroactive. The Supreme Court’s determination will have a significant impact on companies utilizing independent contractors in California.

On November 20, 2019, the Supreme Court of California announced it would review and decide whether its 2018 Dynamex decision has retroactive effect. The answer to this question could have a profound impact on any company using independent contractors in the Golden State.

As the cannabis industry has rapidly progressed over the years, states such as New York, New Jersey and Illinois have begun to implement legislation that encourages employers to engage in labor peace agreements with unions. On October 12, 2019, California went even further than encouragement when Go

On October 10, 2019, Governor Gavin Newsom signed AB 673 into law, expanding an employee’s right to collect penalties for an employer’s failure to timely pay wages.

In the wake of California’s enactment of Assembly Bill (AB) 5—legislation that threatens to reclassify 2 million California independent contractors as “employees” under California labor and employment laws—legal questions about the law’s application, scope, and future continue to dominate California

Businesses with operations in California have begun to identify options and implement strategies for compliance with Assembly Bill (AB) 5, which imposes the ABC test for identifying whether a worker is an independent contractor or an employee for not only employment law purposes, but also for state

Beginning with plan years that end in 2020 California employers maintaining flexible spending accounts, or “FSAs,” will be required by a new amendment to the state’s Labor Code, enacted August 30, 2019, to notify the employee participants of any “deadline to withdraw funds before the end of the plan

Upending the longstanding practice of employers including no-rehire clauses in agreements resolving employment disputes, California Governor Gavin Newsom has signed a new law that will prohibit such provisions in employment settlement agreements. Assembly Bill 749 (AB 749) is another #MeToo-inspired

California employers may face harsh consequences for failing to pay arbitration fees on time under a bill (Senate Bill 707) signed by Governor Gavin Newsom on October 13, 2019. The new law go into effect on January 1, 2020.

On February 21, 2019, California Attorney General Xavier Becerra and Assemblymember Marc Levine (D-San Rafael) announced Assembly Bill 1130 which intended to strengthen and expand California’s existing data breach notification law. On September 11, 2019, the bill passed both houses of the legislatur

On October 13, 2019, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill (AB) 51 into law, banning most employment arbitration agreements in California starting January 1, 2020. This new law is expansive in scope but short on certainty, as it raises several questions and will likely face legal cha

Introduction: For a little over a year, California employers and courts have been wrestling with the impact of Dynamex Operations West, Inc. v. Superior Court, 4 Cal.5th 903 (2018), which dramatically altered the independent contractor landscape in the Golden State last year. Dynamex upended a long-

A new California law, Senate Bill 142 (“SB 142”), effective January 1, 2020, expands on existing Labor Code requirements for employee lactation accommodations and provides significant new consequences to employers for non-compliance. Under pre-existing law (Cal. Labor Code 1030 et seq.), employers w

California has joined a number of states in passing legislation purporting to prohibit mandatory arbitration agreements for sexual harassment and other claims. Such laws have gained popularity in the wake of the #MeToo movement, but are subject to challenge under Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) preemp

With the usual flurry of activity at the end of the legislative session, California has enacted a slew of bills with labor and employment ramifications.1 Closing out his first year in office, Governor Gavin Newsom signed more than 40 such bills on a wide variety of topics, ranging from antidiscrimin

Lots of action for the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) in the last few days! After much anticipation, on October 10th, 2019, California Attorney General Xavier Becerra (“the AG”) announced the Proposed Regulations for the CCPA. The next day, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law si