Arbitration Agreements

In this issue of the Class Action Trends Report, Jackson Lewis attorneys discuss recent developments in arbitration and their impact on employment class actions. These include the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act of 2021, several impactful U.S. Supreme Court decisions, and the emergence of mass arbitration.

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Bilateral arbitration agreements governed by the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) may require arbitration of California Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) claims on an individual basis only, the U.S. Supreme Court has held. Viking River Cruises, Inc. v. Moriana, No. 20-1573 (June 15, 2022).

The Court’s decision overrules the California’s Supreme Court decision in Iskanian

Individuals employed as ramp workers who frequently handle cargo for an airline are “transportation workers” exempt from the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA), the U.S. Supreme Court has held. Southwest Airlines Co. v. Saxon, No. 21-309 (June 6, 2022). Therefore, the employees are not required to arbitrate their wage-hour claims under the FAA, but may

Consistent with the terms of the arbitration agreement at issue, an hourly fuel tech and driver is entitled to arbitrate collective claims alleging that his employer violated the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), the federal appeals court in New Orleans has ruled.  Sun Coast Resources Inc. v. Roy Conrad, No. 19-20058 (5th Cir.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit has denied en banc review of a ruling that created a new framework for when employees who have entered into arbitration agreements receive collective action notices.

Earlier this year, in a case of first impression, the Seventh Circuit developed a required framework for a district court

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, in a case of first impression, has developed a required framework for a district court to evaluate a plaintiff’s request that the court authorize notice to putative class members who have entered into arbitration agreements with their employer.

The Seventh Circuit held on January 24, 2020,

Our quarterly report discusses new developments in class action litigation and offers strategic guidance and tactical tips on how to defend such claims. This issue covers the following topics:

  • Who gets notice of a collective action – and why it matters
  • Arbitration agreements
  • Considerations regarding whether to adopt or continue an arbitration program
  • Recent court

Extending the Supreme Court’s recent decision in  Epic Systems Corporation v. Lewis, 138 S. Ct. 1612 (2018), the Sixth Circuit has held that, just as with the NLRA, the FLSA does not preclude the use of class or collective action waivers in employment-related arbitration agreements.  Gaffers v. Kelly Services, 2018 U.S. App. LEXIS

Class action waivers in employment arbitration agreements are enforceable under the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA), the U.S. Supreme Court has held in a much-anticipated decision in three critical cases. Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis, No. 16-285; Ernst & Young LLP et al. v. Morris et al., No. 16-300; National Labor Relations Board v. Murphy