secondcircuit.jpgBy Gerald L. Maatman, Jr., Jennifer A. Riley, and David B. Ross

On March 21, 2013, the Second Circuit issued its long-awaited decision in Parisi v. Goldman, Sachs & Co., No. 11-5229 (2d Cir. Mar. 21, 2013). In a significant ruling for employers, the Second Circuit held that a plaintiff has no substantive right to pursue a

Continue Reading Second Circuit Holds That Employers Can Use Arbitration Agreements To Avoid Pattern Or Practice Class Actions

supreme-court-seal.pngBy Rebecca Bjork, Dan Blouin, and Gerald L. Maatman, Jr.

This morning the Supreme Court of the United States heard oral argument in American Express Co. v. Italian Colors Restaurant, No. 12-133 (U.S.), on whether an arbitration agreement containing a class action waiver can be void on the ground that a litigant has shown that it would

Continue Reading Supreme Court Argument In American Express Co. v. Italian Colors Restaurant

220px-US-CourtOfAppeals-2ndCircuit-Seal.pngBy Rebecca Bjork and Gerald L. Maatman, Jr.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit heard oral argument this morning in Chen-Oster v. Goldman, Sachs & Co., No. 11-5229 (2d Cir.). The district court in this case had refused to compel arbitration of individual employment discrimination claims, finding that Title VII guaranteed the right to pursue pattern

Continue Reading Stakes Are High In Chen-Oster Oral Argument Before the Second Circuit

220px-US-CourtOfAppeals-2ndCircuit-Seal.pngBy Rebecca Bjork and Gerald L. Maatman, Jr.

On October 19, 2012, the Second Circuit declined to put its stamp of approval on the EEOC’s attempt to impose lengthy and severe reporting and remedial requirements on a grocery store owner where one nefarious employee — who happened to serve in the dual role of store manager and owner’s fiancée —

Continue Reading Second Circuit Rejects The EEOC’s Broad Injunction Requests

circseal2.jpgBy Rebecca Bjork and Chris Palamountain

The Plaintiffs’ class action bar has made much of the retroactivity provisions of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009, which provide that an unlawful employment practice occurs not only when a discriminatory decision is made, but also “each time wages, benefits, or other compensation is paid….”  Pub. L. No. 111-2, § 3

Continue Reading Second Circuit Finds Releases Limit Application of Fair Pay Act’s Retroactivity Provisions

By Daniel Klein and Michael Fleischer

On May 3, 2011, the Second Circuit issued an important opinion in Fleischman, et al. v. Albany Medical Ctr., et al., No. 10-0846 (2d Cir. May 3, 2011), denying a petition for interlocutory appeal of a district court’s denial of a motion to amend a class certification order because the petition was

Continue Reading Second Circuit Holds That Denial Of Motion To Amend Class Certification Order Does Not Constitute An Order For Purposes Of Interlocutory Appeal Of Class Certification Under Rule 23(f)

Co-authored by Alex S. Drummond and Brandon L. Spurlock

While the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling last year in Stolt-Nielsen S.A. v. AnimalFeeds Int’l Corp., 130 S. Ct. 1758 (2010), constituted a “game-changer” in the field of class arbitration, the scope and breadth of this ruling continues to be a hotly debated topic in class action litigation. 

In 2009, the

Continue Reading Second Circuit Holds That Stolt-Nielsen Does Block A Class Action Based On An Arbitration Agreement Waiver