Proposition 22 continues its journey through the California courts. As background, in 2018 the California Supreme Court adopted a new test to determine whether a worker was an employee or
Continue Reading Court of Appeal Puts Rideshare Companies Back in the Driver’s Seat
Employers seeking to challenge California’s stringent independent contractor misclassification laws may have found an opening. On March 17, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals concluded that plaintiffs could proceed in
Continue Reading Ninth Circuit Revives Claim That A.B. 5 Violates Equal Protection Clause
California employers have been grappling with the difficult and fact-intensive issue of classifying their workers as employees or independent contractors ever since the California Supreme Court issued its landmark 2018
Continue Reading Ninth Circuit Holds AB-5 Applies to Motor Carrier Workers in California
Rideshare companies like Uber and Lyft are celebrating the passage of Proposition 22 in a 58% to 42% victory. Through passage of the Proposition, certain gig-economy companies were able to
Continue Reading Voters Approve California Prop. 22: Now What?
On Thursday, October 22, 2020, the California Court of Appeal denied Uber and Lyft’s request to overturn a recent California Superior Court’s preliminary injunction ordering the companies to reclassify their
Continue Reading Driven To The Edge: Saga Of Uber And Lyft Litigation Continues As Court Of Appeal Affirms Order Forcing Driver Reclassification
With remote work for adults and online distance learning for students here to stay, it is natural for parents with already demanding workloads to seek the help of others to
Continue Reading Was Mary Poppins an Employee Under California’s ABC Test?
Timothy Long and Lindsay Hutner of global law firm Greenberg Traurig, LLP will participate in the Independent Contractor, Joint Employment Misclassification Litigation Teleconference program on June 30.
Hosted by Bridgeport
Continue Reading Timothy Long and Lindsay Hutner to Participate at Bridgeport’s Independent Contractor, Joint Employment Misclassification Litigation 2020 Teleconference
On Jan. 15, 2020, the California Supreme Court granted, and then deferred further action on, the appeal of a lower appellate court’s opinion in Gonzales v. San Gabriel Transit, Inc. pending its disposition of Vazquez v. Jan-Pro Franchising Int’l, Inc., which takes up the common issue of whether the Dynamex decision applies retroactively.
Last year, the governor of California signed Assembly Bill 5 (AB 5) into law, which codified and clarified the California Supreme Court case Dynamex Operations West, Inc. v. Superior Court of Los Angeles. The ABC test established in Dynamex dramatically changed the standard for determining whether workers in California should be classified as employees or as independent contractors. Under the ABC test, a hiring entity must prove that a worker is in fact an independent contractor by demonstrating: (A) the worker is free from the control and direction of the hirer in connection with the performance of the work, both under the contract for the performance of such work and in fact; (B) the worker performs work that is outside the usual course of the hiring entity’s business, and (C) the worker is customarily engaged in an independently established trade, occupation, or business of the same nature as the work performed for the hiring entity. San Gabriel Transit, Inc. is one of several AB 5-related cases before state and federal courts in California that have workers, employers, and trade associations hotter than 1.21 gigawatts. While lawsuits filed by “gig economy” drivers, truck drivers (CTA preliminary injunction granted in USDC- Southern District) and freelance journalists (American Society of Journalists and Authors, Inc. and National Press Photographers Association lawsuit filed in USDC- Central District) present an existential threat to AB 5 in the long run, the California Supreme Court will likely decide the retroactivity issue in Jan-Pro Franchising Int’l and San Gabriel Transit, Inc. this year. The impact of the rulings in both cases will extend up and down the Golden State, and employers, especially franchisors (See GT Alert, AB 5 Update, Sept. 24, 2019), and their counsel should be prepared.
Continue Reading AB 5 Update: The California Supreme Court Will Likely Decide if Dynamex Is Retro in 2020