Co-authored by Noah A. Finkel, David S. Baffa, and Andrew L. Scroggins

Seyfarth Synopsis: Following oral argument, employers should be cautiously optimistic that the Supreme Court will allow mandatory arbitration programs containing waivers of the ability to bring collective and class actions.

In yesterday’s oral argument, in one of the most significant employment law cases we have seen
Continue Reading Class Waivers at the Divided Supreme Court: Employers Cautiously Optimistic

Co-authored by John Giovannone, Noah Finkel, and Kyle Petersen

Seyfarth Synopsis: As previously discussed in this space, the Ninth Circuit recently chose to side with the Second Circuit, and not the Sixth Circuit, and ruled that mortgage underwriters fail to meet the FLSA’s administrative exemption from overtime test. In doing so, the Court artificially promoted and expanded a
Continue Reading A Glimmer Of Hope: The Supreme Court Now Has A Chance To Resolve A Circuit Split And Pronounce That Mortgage Underwriters Qualify For The Administrative Exemption

Co-authored by Noah Finkel and David Baffa

Seyfarth Synopsis: In the first argument of the first day of its new term, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral argument in three cases presenting the issue of whether an employer may require employees to enter into arbitration agreements containing a waiver of the ability to join a class or collective action.
Continue Reading Will the Supreme Court Finally Remove Doubt That an Employer Can Mandate That Employees Enter Into Arbitration Agreements with Class Waivers?

Co-authored by Robert S. Whitman and Howard M. Wexler

Seyfarth Synopsis: A New York intermediate appellate court with jurisdiction over Manhattan weighed in on the enforceability of arbitration agreements with class and collective action waivers.  Its decision, issued on July 18, 2017, holds that waivers are unenforceable as they interfere with employees’ rights under the National Labor Relations Act
Continue Reading New York Appellate Court Strikes Down Class Action Waivers

Authored by Robert J. Carty, Jr.

As our regular readers already know, the Supreme Court is poised to decide one of the most contentious issues facing the wage-and-hour world—namely, whether class- and collective-action waivers render workplace arbitration agreements unenforceable.

Well, it seemed poised until today.  Now we need to sit tight until at least October.

First, a quick recap.  A
Continue Reading Supreme Court to Hear Class-Action Waiver Arguments in its October 2017 Term

Authored by Gerald Maatman, Jr. 

Seyfarth Synopsis: Workplace class action filings were flat overall and even decreased as compared to levels in 2015. However, that is apt to change in 2017. In the 4th in a series of blog postings on workplace class action trends, we examine what employers are likely to see in 2017.

Introduction

Overall complex employment-related litigation
Continue Reading What 2016 Workplace Class Actions Filings Suggest Employers Are Apt To Face In 2017

Co-authored by David S. Baffa, Candice T. Zee, and Alexius Cruz O’Malley

Seyfarth Synopsis: The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to decide whether workplace arbitration agreements containing class and collective action waivers are enforceable under the FAA, notwithstanding the provisions of the NLRA.

Earlier today, the United States Supreme Court granted and consolidated three petitions for certiorari,
Continue Reading Supreme Court Agrees to Rule on Legality of Class Action Waivers

Authored by Robert S. Whitman and Howard M. Wexler

Amid the uncertainty concerning the DOL’s enjoined overtime exemption rules and similar state-led efforts to increase the salary threshold, such as in New York, the Second Circuit recently gave employers an early holiday present when it resolved a long-standing split among New York federal courts and held that “New York’s
Continue Reading No “Double Dipping”! Second Circuit Rejects Combination of Liquidated Damages Under FLSA and NY Labor Law

SDFLAuthored by Christopher Kelleher and Noah Finkel

Seyfarth Synopsis: Federal court denies motion for conditional certification for a proposed class of employees working at separate Subway franchises.

Earlier this year, the DOL’s Wage-Hour Division issued a much-publicized Administrator Interpretation on what employers constitute joint employers, including an explanation of how two or more employers under common ownership can constitute
Continue Reading A Fresh Take on the Horizontal Joint Employment Theory: Conditional Certification for Subway Employees Denied

Capitol HillAuthored by Alex Passantino

As the nation waited for the final states to be called in the early morning hours on Wednesday, we here at the Wage & Hour Litigation Blog focused on our one thing:  what impact would the result have on the DOL’s overtime exemption regulations scheduled to go into effect on December 1, 2016?  How does the
Continue Reading Electoral Impact: How Does Tuesday’s Result Affect the Overtime Exemption Regulations?