From the Daily Labor Report: “The U.S. Supreme Court lets stand the California Court of Appeal’s decision that an arbitration agreement between a trash company and a driver that waives class claims and prohibits the employee from seeking civil penalties on behalf of other workers is unconscionable and so tainted with illegality that it is … Continue reading Supreme Court Lets Stand Decision Holding Class Action Ban Unconscionable →

Lawrence E. Dubé of BNA’s Labor Relations Week reported on a post-Pyett discussion at a recent ABA meeting: “The U.S. Supreme Court ruled earlier this year that a collective bargaining agreement “clearly and unmistakably” requiring employees to arbitrate claims under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act is enforceable, but employers and unions still are uncertain … Continue reading ABA Discussion of Impact of Pyett on Union-Management Relations →

The Daily Labor Report states: By a vote of 93-7, the Senate Oct. 6, passed legislation (H.R. 3326) with an amendment that would prevent the Defense Department from using funds appropriated by Congress for any new or existing federal contract if a defense contractor or “subcontractor at any tier” requires a worker to sign a … Continue reading Franken Changes to Job Arbitration Bill Pass Senate →

Another take on the implications of Hall Street. This article discusses the fate of the manifest disregard standard and considers whether parties may have avenues other than the FAA for obtaining review of their arbitration awards: “Hall Street, Judicial Review of Arbitral Awards, and Federal Preemption” NICHOLAS R. WEISKOPF, St. John’s University – School of … Continue reading Hall Street, Judicial Review of Arbitral Awards, and Federal Preemption →

On Friday October 9th our good friends at the University of Missouri have a symposium entitled the Creeping Legalism of Labor Arbitration.  There’s been a lot of discussion recently about whether arbitration is the new litigation, and this program will take that concept a step further.  The line up of speakers is very good, which … Continue reading The Creeping Legalism of Labor Arbitration →

Two recent articles have been published regarding the evolving circuit split as to whether the “manifest disregard of the law” standard of review of arbitration awards survives the Supreme Court’s 2008 decision in Hall Street.  Each article offers a different framework in which to analyze Hall Street and its impact on the manifest disregard standard of vacatur, … Continue reading Resolving the circuit split over manifest disregard →