PERSONAL INJURY/PREMISES LIABILITY/DANGEROUS CONDITION Gregory E. Stone and Angela M. Jones represented Ralphs’ Grocery Company in the case of Eric Guinea v. Ralphs’ where plaintiff claimed Ralphs (dba Food 4 Less) violated its policy by failing to maintain a restroom he allegedly slipped in. After 2 hours of deliberation, the jury returned a verdict for the …
An accused stalker who opted to represent himself at trial after firing three lawyers had his conviction reversed on appeal last year because the judge didn’t warn him on the record about the danger of doing so. Anthony McCrory is seeking a new attorney, arguing that his court-appointed lawyer is Satan. At a Monday hearing, …
Starbucks is being sued by two California residents who claim the coffee chain knowingly under-fills its lattes. Siera Strumlauf and Benjamin Robles have filed a class action lawsuit on behalf of purchasers of Starbucks lattes stating that the beverages are “approximately 25% under-filled” based on the sizes listed on the company’s menu, reports Eater. The …
Too Little, Too Late: Governor Clarifies Some Portions of the Paid Sick Leave Law By Robyn McKibbin, Esq. California employers and employment attorneys have been scrambling to ensure existing PTO and paid sick leave policies were as compliant with the perplexing new paid sick leave law as possible before the July 1, 2015 effective date. …
Who Knew? The U.S. Supreme Court Holds an Employer May Not Make an Applicant’s Religious Practice—Suspected or Confirmed—a Factor in Employment Decisions By Robyn McKibbin, Esq. In the EEOC v. Abercrombie & Fitch, Samantha Elauf interviewed with Abercrombie for a job as a “floor model” (Abercrombie’s term for sales associate). Using the company’s standard system for …
Sweeping Decree by Federal Agency Declares McDonald’s to be a Joint Employer with Its Franchisees By Robyn McKibbin, Esq. The National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”) is a federal agency vested with the power to prevent and remedy violations of the National Labor Relations Act committed by employers and unions. The NLRB investigated allegations that some …
Wait, Who Pays for BYOD to Work? By Robyn McKibbin, Esq. A California Court of Appeal recently ruled that when an employee “must” use their personal cell phones for work-related calls, the employer is responsible for reimbursing the employee a “reasonable percentage” of his/her cell phone bill — regardless of whether the employee or a …
Following the financial and mortgage crisis of 2009, the government has chosen to prosecute corporations, but not their high-level executives. Why is this? U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff of the Northern District of New York might have the answer. Judge Rakoff is known for his low-tolerance of Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) settlements. He made …
Can an Employer be Liable for a Co-worker Poisoning? By Robyn McKibbin, Esq. A medical staffing company hired an employee to work as a medical assistant and then placed that employee to work at a customer’s hospital. The employee had a disagreement with a coworker, which the coworker did not think was serious enough to …
How Much Pregnancy Disability Leave is Enough? The Fair Employment & Housing Act (“FEHA”) prohibits discrimination on a variety of grounds including sex and physical disability. “Sex” is defined to include pregnancy and pregnancy-related conditions. FEHA also requires employers to provide reasonable accommodation for an employee’s known disability unless such accommodation would cause an undue …