The California Supreme Court recently issued its latest opinion in a line of decisions dealing with mediation, squarely holding that if a party desires to have a binding mediation settlement, the matter must be properly...

Although generally supportive of alternative dispute resolution, and arbitration in particular (see, e.g., Moncharsh v. Heily & Blase, 3 Cal.4th 1 (1992)), California courts have also closely scrutinized agreements...

On June 19, 2008, the United States Supreme Court ruled that a California “labor neutrality” statute was preempted by federal labor law, overturning a 2006 decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit....

On June 10, 2008, the New York Court Appeals ruled that an executive is an “employee” protected by the State Labor Law provision which strictly limits the deductions that may lawfully be taken from wages. The Court also...

On May 21, 2008, President Bush signed the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) which had been passed nearly unanimously by both the House and Senate.  GINA prohibits discrimination by both health insurers and...

In a landmark decision, the California Supreme Court recently granted same-sex couples the right to marry, In re Marriage Cases, No. S147999 ( Cal. May 5, 2008).  In addition to the right to marry, the Court’s decision...

On May 27, 2008 the United States Supreme Court issued two decisions in favor of workers who faced retaliation after complaining of employer discrimination based on their race and age.  Neither of the two federal statutes at...

In Luke v. Collotype Labels USA, Inc., 159 Cal. App. 4th 1463 (2008), the California Court of Appeal found that a terminated employee’s claim for wrongful termination in violation of public policy was properly dismissed...

New York, like most states, has long adhered to the rule of “employment at will.” Absent employment for a specified term, or an unlawful purpose for termination, an employee may be terminated at any time and for any...

In a 5-2 decision, the California Supreme Court has ruled that employers can refuse to hire applicants and can terminate employees who use illegal drugs, including those who use marijuana for medical purposes. Ross v....