Author: calmediation

Reviews: Trap for the Unwary: Malpractice and the Missed Attorney’s Fees Issue

December 6, 2019 · Reviews

Your Blogger Is Also A Co-Contributor To California Attorney's Fees Blog.     My colleague Mike Hensley and I are co-contributors to the blog California Attorney's Fees. We blog about attorney's fees issues in California state courts and the Ninth Circuit, and we have been doing so since 2008. I have an article about attorney's fees in […]

Arbitration, Unconscionability: 3rd Appellate Districts Reminds Us That Unconscionability Doctrine Applies To Commercial As Well As Consumer Contracts

College That Wanted To Participate In Intercollegiate Athletics Had No Choice Other Than To Contract With Athletic Association.     Bakersfield College et al. v. California Community College Athletic Association et al., C085099 (3d Dist.  10/31/19) (Robie, Duarte, Renner), was described both by the trial court and the appellate court as a "close case". However, […]

Arbitration, FAA, Vacatur: Sixth District Holds FAA Preempts Argument That Arbitration Is Incompatible With Following Commercial Code Sections Governing Wire Transfers

Plaintiff/Appellant Unsuccessfully Argued Following California Commercial Code Required Legal Proceeding, Not Arbitration.     Plaintiff/Appellant Prima Donna Development Corporation appealed from a judgment confirming an arbitration award in favor of Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., and challenged an order compelling arbitration and denying its motion to vacate the award. Prima Donna Development Corporation v. Wells Fargo […]

Arbitration, Disclosures: 9th Circuit Panel Holds That JAMS Arbitrator Must Disclose Ownership Interest In JAMS

October 23, 2019 · Arbitration: Disclosures

Judge Friedland Dissents. Billboard for Chero-Cola, a long-defunct soft-drink brand, in Louisville, a town in northeastern Georgia. Carol M. Highsmith, photographer. Library of Congress.      Monster Energy, FKA Hansen Beverage Company, designates JAMS as an arbitral forum in its agreements with distributors. So when a dispute arose between Monster Energy and its distributor City Beverages, LLC, […]

Settlement Agreements: On Second Thought, Trial Judge’s Speculation About Rekindled Romantic Relationship Is Removed From Modified Appellate Opinion

September 30, 2019 · Uncategorized

The Case Held That Judgment Creditor's Release Of Judgment Debtor Does Not Preclude Creditor's Attorney From Pursuing Contingency Fee And Costs From Judgment Debtor.     We posted about Mancini & Associates v. Jason Schwetz, B290498 (2nd Dist. Div. 6) (Gilbert, J.) on September 5, 2019. This is an unusual case in which the judgment […]

Mediation/Attendance: Fifth District Holds That Agricultural Employees Do Not Have Right Of Access To On-The-Record Mandatory Mediation And Conciliation

September 25, 2019 · Uncategorized

California's Labor Code Provides For A Mandatory Mediation And Conciliation  (MMC) Process To Promote The Collective Bargaining Process In Agricultural Labor Relations.     When collective bargaining between the United Farm Workers Union and Gerawan Farming, Inc. reached an impasse, the UFW requested, and the California's Agricultural Labor Relations Board ordered the parties to mandatory mediation and […]

International Arbitration: 9th Circuit Holds Case Seeking To Collect International Arbitration Award Properly Belonged In State Court

September 24, 2019 · Arbitration: Foreign Arbitration

Collection Efforts Case Was Not Related To International Arbitration Agreement Or Award, And So Belonged In State Court.     The District Court for the Western District of Washington denied plaintiff Cerner's motion to remand to state court an action that defendants had removed to federal court on the basis that it related to an international […]

Arbitration, Waiver, Standard Of Review: Delay, Substantial Invocation Of Litigation Machinery, And Prejudice Result In Waiver Of Right To Arbitrate

Was Delay In Requesting Arbitration Simply A "Strategic Convenience" For Defendants?     Spracher v. Paul M. Zagaris, Inc. [Zagaris], and Higashi v. Disclosure Source, A1952941, A152962 (1/3   9/17/19) (Petrou, Siggins, Fujisaki), is a consolidated appeal brought by defendants in a class action in which plaintiffs alleged that defendants schemed to defraud plaintiffs. Plaintiffs were […]

Arbitration, PAGA, Employment: California Supreme Court Holds Labor Code Section 558’s Civil Penalty Does Not Include Unpaid Pages

September 16, 2019 · Arbitration: Employment

The Practical Consequence Is That There Is No Private Right Of Action Under Section 558 To Collect Civil Penalties, And Hence Such A Claim Is Not Arbitrable.     The California Supreme Court granted an employer's petition for review in ZB, N.A. v. Superior Court, S246711 ((Cal. Sup. Ct.  9/12/19) (Cuéllar, J.), "to resolve the […]