Customer Agreement With Verizon And Samsung Product And Safety & Warranty Agreement In The Box Failed To Bind Plaintiff To Arbitrate. In Norcia v. Samsung Telecommunications America, LLC, et al., No 14-16994 (9th Cir. 10/17/17) (Ikuta, Thomas, Bea), Judge Ikuta provides in depth analysis of whether a 101 page brochure containing an arbitration provision […]
Two Separate Agreements, Rather Than One Fully Integrated Agreement, Governed The Relationship Between The Parties. Pacific Interventionalists, Inc. v. Pedes Orange County, Inc., G052815 (4/3 12/116/16) (O’Leary, Fybel, Ikola) (unpublished) delves into the application of the parol evidence rule to an agreement containing a promise to arbitrate. In order to determine if parties intend […]
Obama Administration Has Sought Change In Law To Prevent Educational Institutions Getting Federal Funds From Requiring Students To Sign Pre-Dispute Arbitration Clauses. Jillian Berman reports on July 22, 2016 in MarketWatch that students were able to sue Trump University in the courts because the students were not required to sign pre-dispute arbitration clauses. […]
Language In The Employee Handbook Undercut The Existence Of An Agreement To Arbitrate. When January Esparza sued her employer for sexual harassment and related causes of action, the employer petitioned to compel arbitration, based on the fact that Esparza had acknowledged receipt of an employee handbook, and the handbook mentioned that the employer’s […]
The next three cases show that, notwithstanding the trend to uphold agreements to arbitrate, there are still plenty of situations in which our California Courts of Appeal will agree that arbitration should be denied or stayed, and allow litigation to go forward. Tran v. Integra LifeSciences Corporation, No. G051620 (4th Dist. Div. 3 8/18/16) […]
Court Of Appeal Rejects Waiver, Estoppel And Forfeiture Arguments Made By Lessor Who Failed To Timely Exercise Right To “Baseball Arbitration” In Rental Dispute. Miss Myrtle Rowe holding a baseball bat. March 14, 2010. Library of Congress. “Baseball arbitration” takes its name from salary arbitration in Major League Baseball, in which the […]
Nor Was The Agreement Illusory Just Because The Agreement Provided The Employer Could Change It At Any Time. In Harris v. Tap Worldwide, LLC, B262504 (2/5 6/22/16) (Turner, Kriegler, Kumar) (certified for partial publication, except part III(C) covering unconscionability), the Court determined that, notwithstanding that the arbitration agreement was unsigned, there was a validate […]
Court Looks At Evolution Of Class Action Waiver Law In California For Help Construing Meaning Of The Contractual Language. In 2011, AT&T Mobility LLC v. Concepcion, 563 U.S. 333 (2011) held the Discover Bank rule, invalidating a class arbitration waiver, had been preempted by the Federal Arbitration Act. After Concepcion, employers frequently insert class […]
Authenticity Of Agreement To Arbitrate Was Called Into Question. The Court of Appeal has affirmed the trial court’s denial of a petition to compel arbitration, concluding “that the trial court did not err in finding that appellants failed to establish that [respondent] signed the employment agreement.” Joyce v. Volt Management Corp., D067867 (4/1 May […]
The Exception To Arbitration Simply Restates Existing Law. The California Supreme Court has ruled that an employment agreement providing for arbitration of disputes, but authorizing the parties to seek preliminary injunctive relief in the superior court, does not make the agreement one-sided and substantively unconscionable, even if employers are more likely to seek injunctive […]