News & Insights

Many Orange County business owners require that employees sign arbitration agreements at the outset of their employment. These agreements state that in the case an employment claim arises, the employer and employee agree to avoid court and head to arbitration to resolve the issue. While certain kinds of claims (such as workers’ compensation claims) must…

With the holidays around the corner, many California employees will be asking for time off to celebrate with loved ones, dressing in the holiday spirit, and generally just enjoying the holiday season. What happens if your employer discriminates against you because you are celebrating a holiday he or she doesn’t believe in? You may have…

Religious discrimination in the workplace involves treating a person (an applicant or employee) unfavorably because of his or her religious beliefs and/or treating someone differently because that person is married to (or associated with) an individual of a particular religion or because of his or her connection with a religious organization or group. California and…

Generally speaking, employee non-compete agreements are unenforceable in California. But there are several exceptions to this rule; including the seller of a business’s goodwill or a membership interest in an LLC, and where the non-compete is necessary to protect an employer’s trade secret information. In our digital age, it is all too important for a…

In California, where it seems that we are always on the road, there has been an increase in class action litigation against employers for the alleged failure to reimburse employees for business expenses, particularly mileage reimbursement. For example, in a recent class action lawsuit involving prominent retailers, employees alleged that they were not reimbursed for…

In California, there has been a recent wave of cases brought by employee plaintiffs who claim their employers have underpaid wages and cheated them out of benefits. California state laws, in addition to federal laws, play a role in the legal standards an employer must follow when it comes to overtime and related entitlements. Read…

In a recent decision involving a Northern California hospital (Fahlen v. Sutter Central Valley Hospitals), the California Supreme Court unanimously ruled that a physician has the right to bring whistleblower lawsuits to challenge adverse peer reviews. In a world of online review sites and offline peer review team building exercises, the decision is likely to…

California Governor Jerry Brown recently signed into law a bill that will make it more and more challenging for California employers to discriminate against women because of their gender when it comes to compensation. The California Fair Pay Act is said to be the nation’s most aggressive equal pay law and becomes effective January 1,…

Sex and gender discrimination in the California workplace is an increasingly hot topic as more women and openly gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender individuals enter the workforce. While state and federal laws require that these employees are given equal access and protections, they often do not receive these mandated benefits and instead are discriminated against…

Employment discrimination is a hot topic these days and unfortunately, not for good reasons — Employment discrimination cases are on the rise in California. Employment discrimination is illegal under state and federal law. This means that California employers generally cannot discriminate against employees on the basis of race, sex, pregnancy, religion, national origin, disability, age…