Dozens of new state laws are going into effect across California. From minimum wage to rent control to domestic violence, below are some of the key points of some of these new laws: Consumer Protection AB 539: Predatory Lending On January 1, 2020, significant amendments were made to the California Financing Law. Some such amendments came from AB 539, known as the Fair Access to Credit Act. This law subjects […]
Starting this year, there will be new rules as to how payments must be made in consumer and employment arbitrations. Effective as of January 1, 2020, Cal. Code Civ. Proc. §§ 1281.97, 1281.98, and 1281.99 proscribe hard deadlines for the payment of arbitration fees in consumer and employment arbitrations and provide remedies for consumers and employees in instances where businesses fail to comply with their payment obligations. Given these changes, […]
Employers are more likely to pay large damages awards when they choose to pay employees a salary. Moreover, employees are more likely to miss breaks and the associated health and safety benefits on a salary. Employment law, particularly California employment law, is a field with requirements that change every single year. These requirements can be hard to understand and it can be hard to keep up with the changes to […]
In support of California’s clean-air goals, the California Air Resources Board (“CARBâ€) has announced a new policy that blocks registration of certain vehicles. Dealers must know which vehicles are subject to registration denial in order to avoid adding them to their inventory. As of January 1, 2020, the DMV will deny vehicle registration renewals or transfers for Heavy-Duty diesel powered vehicles that do not meet CARB’s health-based requirements. A vehicle […]
On January 29, 2019, PG&E Corporation (“PG&E”) filed its petition for bankruptcy relief in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of California. As will be discussed in detail below, PG&E’s petition came in the wake of wildfire-related lawsuits that exposed PG&E to billions of dollars in potential liabilities. As of September 30, 2019, PG&E has been in bankruptcy for 8 months and its bankruptcy case is unresolved. […]
The most common civil claims against employers relate to either (1) problems with wages and hours worked, or, (2) termination and harassment claims. Claims in the first category may include overtime issues, missed meal or rest periods, inaccurate paystubs, bonus payments, and similar issues. While the details can be quite complicated, the basic question involved in this first category is relatively straightforward: are the wages being paid appropriate under the […]
