Harris & Kaufman Victories ::
Circuit City & Red Lobster Restaurant

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California Court of Appeal declares Circuit City's Arbitration Agreement Unenforceable

A good example of an unfair arbitration agreement is discussed in the decision of Gonlugar v. Circuit City Stores, Inc. Harris & Kaufman represents the plaintiff against Circuit City in an overtime pay class action. In September 2004, a court of appeal said that Circuit City's arbitration agreement could not be enforced. The court of appeal found that the terms of Circuit City's arbitration agreement were so one-side that it "shocked the conscience". Among the things, Circuit City's arbitration agreement bound only the employee to arbitration, required the employee to pay fees to Circuit City just for initiating the arbitration (Circuit City pays no such fees), imposes a shortened statute of limitation on the employee (and not on Circuit City), and prohibits class actions. The court concluded that the "central purpose of the agreement" was "tainted with illegality". Click Here to read the entire text.

Red Lobster Restaurant Arbitration Victory

On June 10, 2005, an arbitrator employed by the American Arbitration Association ruled in favor of Harris & Kaufman's client, Jogesh Sidhu. To read the decision, click here.  Mr. Sidhu brought a lawsuit against GMRI, Inc., and Darden Restaurants, Inc., the owners and operators of the Red Lobster Restaurant chain.  The defendant's successfully enforced the company's arbitration agreement and then argued that the arbitration agreement precluded class arbitration.  The matter then went before the arbitrator who ruled in favor of Mr. Sidhu.  This case was one of the first of kind and one of the first to go through the American Arbitration Association's "Clause Construction" procedures put in effect after the United States Supreme Court's decision of Green Tree Financial Corp. v. Bazzle.  This decision does not represent the ultimate victory in the case, but it is a substantial step forward.

California Labor Lawyers Harris & Kaufman Can Help

Harris & Kaufman is a California law firm that's dedicated to representing employees in disputes against their employers to do with arbitration in California. Our California labor lawyers also represent employees and workers in wage disputes, overtime pay, vacation pay, unlawful termination, rest and meal period cases, sexual harassment, workplace discrimination, and cases regarding tips and tip pooling. Our lawyers can assist you if you believe that your employer has broken the California Labor Laws.

Our employment attorneys are experienced and have had numerous trials, arbitrations, and appeals and have litigated on behalf of thousands of employees.

Harris & Kaufman has represented workers in state and federal court and in administrative proceedings before the California Labor Commissioner. Determined and aggressive, our cases include individual disputes and class action lawsuits.

We can assist you with a wide variety of workplace disputes to do with the California pay laws. We are aggressive and experienced lawyers and can help enforce your rights under California state law or state regulations. Based in Sherman Oaks, California we serve greater Los Angeles, Orange County, Ventura County and have cases statewide.


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