Upward view of a gray stone courthouse facade with ornate architectural details, columns, and decorative pediment against a clear blue sky.

9th Circ. Won't Unblock Calif. Captive Meeting Law

The Ninth Circuit on Thursday upheld a lower court order blocking California from implementing its law banning so-called captive audience meetings, saying the employer groups that challenged the law showed the law likely infringed on their First Amendment rights.

Warehouse aisle with cardboard boxes stacked on tall shelving units

9th Circ. Probes Warehouse Workers' Arbitration Exemption

A Ninth Circuit panel on Thursday appeared somewhat skeptical of an argument that a transportation worker exemption to federal arbitration requirements doesn't apply to a proposed class of warehouse workers, after the appellate court found warehouse workers fit the carveout in a separate case.

Pregnant woman, shown from neck down, seated with hands on midsection next to a work table

EEOC Asks 11th Circ. To Delineate PWFA, Disability Bias Law

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission said a lower court conflated different statutes when it tossed a Pregnant Workers Fairness Act suit from a worker who was fired after seeking remote work, urging the Eleventh Circuit to clarify how the PWFA differs from disability bias law.

Expert Analysis

West Point Prof's Suit Tests Public Employee Speech Limits

Morgan McDonald-Ramos and John Litchfield

A recent complaint in New York federal court alleging that West Point unlawfully terminated a professor who challe... (more story)

Accenture's FCA Deal Shows DEI Risks For Gov't Contractors

Richard Arnholt, Tim Garrett and Todd Overman

The U.S. Department of Justice recently settled allegations that Accenture falsely certified compliance with antid... (more story)

2nd Circ. EFAA Ruling Shifts Employer Litigation Strategy

Lisa Haldar and Allegra Lawrence-Hardy

In Diaz-Roa v. Hermes Law, the Second Circuit recently held that, under the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual As... (more story)

Labor More

Nuclear Cleanup Co.'s Firings Unlawful, NLRB Judge Says

A company that cleans a U.S. Department of Energy nuclear research site in Tennessee violated federal labor law by firing two workers who engaged in union activity, a National Labor Relations Board judge has r... (more story)

Calif. Forecast: High Court Weighs 'Headless' PAGA Claims

In the week ahead, attorneys should watch for California Supreme Court oral arguments on whether employees can bring claims under the state's Private Attorneys General Act on behalf of only other workers and n... (more story)

The bronze, square sign for the National Labor Relations Board is displayed on the building that houses its headquarters in Washington, D.C.
NLRB Urges 7th Circ. To Ponder Injunction Harm Burden

The National Labor Relations Board urged the full Seventh Circuit to rethink a ruling that raised the bar for the agency to win injunctions, saying the panel's merits conclusions and its take on what constitut... (more story)

NY Forecast: Judge Weighs Tossing VA Sex Bias Suit

In the week ahead, a New York federal judge will consider the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs' bid to dismiss a former employee's suit claiming she was discriminated against on the basis of her sex, denied... (more story)

WTA Appeals Ruling Keeping Tennis Antitrust Suit Alive

The corporate and commercial entity that operates the Women's Tennis Association said Wednesday it will file an interlocutory appeal challenging a New York federal judge's ruling last month denying its bid to ... (more story)

Union Sues IRS Over Termination Of Workers' Contract

The Internal Revenue Service violated federal law by terminating its collective bargaining agreement with a union representing the agency's employees in light of a 2025 executive order from President Donald Tr... (more story)

NLRB Backs Tesla In Workplace Tech Rule Row

Tesla did not unlawfully maintain a workplace rule restricting the use of its technology at a New York manufacturing plant where employees were organizing, the National Labor Relations Board has found, applyin... (more story)

Discrimination More

DOJ Says Immigration Judge Isn't Shielded From Removal

The U.S. Department of Justice told a Massachusetts federal judge that an ex-immigration judge who claims he was fired for his political ideology and advocacy work was an at-will employee who cannot show his f... (more story)

Pot Use Firing Suit Can Be Arbitrated Despite Flawed Clause

A California state judge has granted Aarris Healthcare Staffing LLC's bid to compel arbitration against a former employee alleging she was wrongly fired for off-duty cannabis use, despite finding portions of t... (more story)

Cola bottles in a production line at a bottling plant
Co. Says EEOC Suit Over Women-Only Retreat Was Premature

A Coca-Cola bottling company said the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission shirked its presuit obligations before filing a lawsuit over a women-only corporate retreat, telling a federal court that the ... (more story)

Google Cut Worker's Duties After Military Leave, Feds Say

Google failed to reinstate a former employee to a similar role after he returned from a yearlong stint in the U.S. Army's Cyber Command unit and eventually laid him off, according to a lawsuit the U.S. Departm... (more story)

Groups Drop Suit Over Trump's DEI Mandate For Contractors

A coalition of organizations ended their challenge of an executive order from President Donald Trump that requires government contractors to disavow "racially discriminatory DEI activities," stating that while... (more story)

9th Circ. Judge Calls Out Whole Foods For Standing Flip-Flop

A Ninth Circuit judge confronted Whole Foods on Wednesday for reversing its position in a proposed class action alleging failure to include wage information in job listings, pressing its counsel on why an appe... (more story)

Cruise Co. Settles Fla. Doc's Whistleblower Suit Over Billing

A Florida doctor said he reached a quick settlement with Norwegian Cruise Lines Holdings Ltd. one month after filing his lawsuit alleging he was fired for opposing the company's practice of overbilling passeng... (more story)

Wage & Hour More

Home Care Cos. Win Partial Block Of DOL Overtime Rule

The U.S. Department of Labor exceeded its authority by barring third-party employers of live-in domestic workers from claiming a federal overtime exemption, a Pennsylvania federal judge ruled, but he kept in p... (more story)

6th Circ. Says Phone System Designer Exempt From OT

The Sixth Circuit ruled that a telecommunications company did not owe overtime to a worker who designed its automated customer phone system, finding he fell under a federal exemption for computer workers even ... (more story)

Rear view of figure, from neck down, dressed in military fatigues, wearing a backpack and rolling a suitcase on a railway platform
NJ Panel Says State Shields Military Leave Past Federal Cap

A New Jersey state appeals court on Thursday upheld a decision giving an Atlantic City police officer his job back after the city fired him for staying on military leave for more than five years, saying a fede... (more story)

Tech Prices, Driver Networks Hang Over DoorDash Tie-Up

Antitrust observers told Law360 Thursday they expect significant scrutiny of DoorDash's plan to acquire Instacart for an equity value of approximately $17 billion, pointing to the overlap between their restaur... (more story)

9th Circ. Drops Speech Holding In Seattle Gig Worker Ruling

The Ninth Circuit on Thursday withdrew its earlier finding that Seattle's protections for app-based delivery workers don't regulate speech, replacing it with a narrower ruling that assumes the law involves spe... (more story)

Judge Rejects $100K Deal To End Home Healthcare Wage Suit

A $100,000 settlement to a wage and hour lawsuit against a home healthcare company is reasonable on its face, but the settlement agreement contains a confidentiality provision and an attorney fee request that ... (more story)

Meat Plant Workers Say DOJ's Wrong On Wage-Fixing Deals

Beef and pork plant workers seeking final approval for $200 million in wage-fixing settlements reached with major meat processors told a Colorado federal court the U.S. Department of Justice is raising concern... (more story)