California Court of Appeal Supports Employers’ Fight Against “Headless” PAGA Actions
In 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court published its decision in Viking River Cruises v. Moriana ( Viking River ), which was hailed as a “Big Win for California Employers.” The decision allowed for partial enforcement of arbitration agreements in actions brought under California’s Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA). The celebration of the “Big Win” was short-lived as the fight over the enforceability of arbitration agreements in PAGA actions continued immediately after Viking River was decided. Recently, PAGA plaintiffs began implementing a new anti-arbitration strategy wherein they attempted to bring a representative PAGA action that purportedly excluded the arbitrable portions of a PAGA action . Specifically, the PAGA plaintiffs assert that their representative PAGA action is solely based on alleged Labor Code violations against other, non-party employees. The PAGA plaintiff asserts that their PAGA action includes no arbitrable individual clai...