Authored By: Candace Whitman
According to Daniel Weissner of Reuters, the Supreme Court ruled that California's Private Attorneys General Act is not above the Federal Arbitration Act. In other words, an employee cannot sue their employer in court under the state's name if they have an individual arbitration agreement in place.
Weissner writes, "Justice Samuel Alito wrote for the court that the Federal Arbitration Act, which requires the enforcement of agreements many workers sign to arbitrate legal claims, trumps a rule created by California courts requiring claims brought under the state's Private Attorneys General Act to remain in court."
The Private Attorneys General Act allows employees to sue their employer when they violate state employment laws. If they win the case, the employee will get one-quarter of the damages and the state will get the rest. This decision will allow for less class action claims with workers who signed arbitration agreements.
For more information, click here to read the article by Reuters.