Mary Siceloff, Author at Weintraub Tobin

Tech Companies Reach New Settlement in Anti-Poaching Cases

Published: January 16, 2015

This blog has previously reported on the anti-poaching cases involving various tech companies in Silicon Valley. The cases arise out of alleged agreements between various tech companies not to recruit each other’s employees. The U.S. Department of Justice brought antitrust actions as a result of these alleged agreements which resulted in the companies entering into settlements with the government. In addition to the government’s actions, a class action was filed on behalf of tech employees claiming these “anti-poaching” agreements harmed their earning ability and mobility.

Last year, various tech companies entered into a settlement of these claims for approximately $325 million. That settlement was rejected by U.S. District Court Judge Lucy H. Koh as not being “within the range of reasonableness.” Earlier this week, the parties to this class action announced that they had entered into a new settlement with Apple, Google, Intel and Adobe proposing to pay $415 million to settle the class action. The settlement will be submitted to Judge Koh for approval. If the settlement is not approved, the case is currently set to go to trial this spring.

More details concerning the proposed settlement can be found at the following New York Times Article, “Bigger Settlement Said to Be Reached in Silicon Valley Antitrust Case,” dated January 14, 2015.

Weintraub Tobin Welcomes Leading California IP Attorney with Broad Range of Technological and Litigation Expertise

Published: January 15, 2015

Jo Dale Carothers Joins as Shareholder, Strengthening Firm’s IP Capabilities and Extending Reach into San Diego

SAN DIEGO (January 14, 2015) – Weintraub Tobin, one of California’s leading full service law firms, announced that Jo Dale Carothers has joined the firm as a shareholder and will head the firm’s Intellectual Property group. She will also become a member of the firm’s Litigation group. Prior to joining Weintraub Tobin, Carothers was a partner with Covington & Burling LLP.

Carothers is active in various areas of intellectual property law and has significant patent litigation and trial experience. Her practice emphasizes patent and trade secret litigation and IP licensing in electrical and computer engineering, including electronics, embedded systems and high-performance computing, microprocessors/microcontrollers, memory devices, wireless communications devices and protocols, smartphones and smart TVs (along with applications), in-home networking for computing and entertainment, consumer electronics, semiconductor process and fabrication technology, packaging, power conversion, and software for numerous applications. Carothers has represented companies in litigation in federal district and state courts across the country, the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, and in Section 337 investigations in the United States International Trade Commission (ITC).

“The addition of Jo Dale will significantly enhance and strengthen Weintraub Tobin’s established IP practice,” stated Michael Kvarme, managing partner of Weintraub Tobin. “Her impressive and widely acknowledged expertise in IP counseling and litigation will provide significant value to our clients and complement our existing robust and sophisticated team.”

Weintraub Tobin’s IP team of attorneys represents a diverse roster of clients in all areas of intellectual property law. The firm’s IP practice encompasses industries ranging from biochemistry, pharmaceuticals and medical devices to electronics, communications and software to fashion and entertainment. The firm’s IP team assists their clients with identifying and protecting their intellectual property rights and defends them anywhere a client does business. With the addition of Carothers, Weintraub Tobin expands its total number of IP litigators and practitioners and extends its reach further south into San Diego, where a large biotech and high tech presence exists.

“I am delighted to join Weintraub Tobin’s well-developed IP practice and hope to add to its deep bench of talented IP attorneys,” stated Carothers. “I was impressed with the firm’s commitment to expanding the IP practice, as well as its continued growth.”

Among her numerous professional accolades, Carothers was named a “San Diego Super Lawyer” in 2014. She earned her B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. in electrical engineering from the University of Texas at Austin and graduated, summa cum laude, from the University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law. Carothers is currently the president of the San Diego Intellectual Property Law Association (SDIPLA).

New Release: 2015 Labor & Employment Seminars & Training Schedule

When: Jan 1, 2015

Click here for 2015 Labor & Employment Seminars & Training Schedule.

For more information on our Labor & Employment Seminars and Training, please contact Ramona Carrillo at rcarrillo@weintraub.com

Employment Law Update – 2014 A Year in Review | 2015 An Interesting Year Ahead (Newport Beach)

When: Jan 22, 2015
Where: Irvine Company Office Properties

Summary of Program

Join the attorneys from Weintraub Tobin’s Labor and Employment Group as they discuss important legal developments from 2014 and review the complexities of a number of new laws facing employers in 2015.

Program Highlights

New Federal and State Legislation and Regulatory Requirements—Compliance is Harder Than Ever!
Updates in the World of Harassment, Discrimination and Retaliation Law.
Privacy: Social Media and Beyond.
The Ongoing Headache of Keeping Up with the Complex Laws Relating to Leaves of Absence and Reasonable Accommodations.
Developments and Trends in Wage and Hour Litigation.
The NLRB’s Continued Attack on the Non-Union Workplace.

Seminar Program

8:30 am Registration and Breakfast

9:00 am – 12:00 pm Seminar

Approved for 3 hours MCLE credit. This program will be submitted to the HR Certification Institute for review.

There is no charge for this seminar.

Location

Irvine Company Office Properties
610 Newport Center Drive
Newport Beach, CA

RSVP

Ramona Carrillo
400 Capitol Mall, 11th Fl.
Sacramento, CA 95814
916.558.6046 | rcarrillo@weintraub.com

Employment Law Update – 2014 A Year in Review | 2015 An Interesting Year Ahead (San Francisco)

When: Jan 15, 2015
Where: The Bar Association of San Francisco

Summary of Program

Program Highlights

New Federal and State Legislation and Regulatory Requirements—Compliance is Harder Than Ever!
Updates in the World of Harassment, Discrimination and Retaliation Law.
Privacy: Social Media and Beyond.
The Ongoing Headache of Keeping Up with the Complex Laws Relating to Leaves of Absence and Reasonable Accommodations.
Developments and Trends in Wage and Hour Litigation.
The NLRB’s Continued Attack on the Non-Union Workplace.

Seminar Program

8:30 am Registration and Breakfast

9:00 am – 12:00 pm Seminar

Approved for 3 hours MCLE credit. This program will be submitted to the HR Certification Institute for review.

There is no charge for this seminar

Location

The Bar Association of San Francisco
301 Battery Street
San Francisco, CA

RSVP

Ramona Carrillo
400 Capitol Mall, 11th Fl.
Sacramento, CA 95814
916.558.6046 | rcarrillo@weintraub.com

Weintraub Tobin Achieves LEED® Certification from U.S. Green Building Council

Published: January 12, 2015

SACRAMENTO, CA (January 12, 2015) – Weintraub Tobin announced today that its Sacramento office now holds certification from the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program. The LEED green building certification program measures and rates the environmental performance of buildings and interior spaces in six categories: sustainable sites, water efficiency, energy and atmosphere, materials and resources, indoor environmental quality and innovation in design process.

In 2013, Weintraub Tobin set on a path to make their offices, located at 400 Capitol Mall in downtown Sacramento, sustainable and more energy efficient. Under the guidance of Hines, the building’s property management company, Weintraub Tobin undertook several key renovations to two floors of the building. Because the updates occurred in an existing building, the changes did not involve the destruction of habitat or natural resources. Weintraub Tobin also recycled 90 percent of its construction waste rather than sending it to landfills.

At nearly 45,000 gross square feet, Weintraub’s Sacramento office utilizes the California sunshine and makes optimum use of natural lighting. By using glass walls in its conference rooms, kitchens and several interior meeting rooms, the firm minimizes its dependence on artificial lighting. Sensors automatically switch off overhead lights in offices when they are unoccupied and other design strategies employed the use of recycled materials throughout the space. Low VOC materials such as carpet, paints and adhesives were used in an effort to improve occupant health, productivity and well-being. With the use of efficient kitchen and bathroom fixtures, the firm also reduced their water consumption by 20 percent.

“Collaborating with Weintraub Tobin and other tenants to achieve real progress in sustainable building operations is a core part of Hines’ culture and services,” said Kirk Khasigian, Hines’ commercial real estate manager. “We have adopted and will continue to take on innovative practices that improve and embrace sustainability in our buildings.”

There are plans for Weintraub Tobin to extend its sustainability efforts to its other offices in San Francisco, Beverly Hills, Newport Beach and San Diego.

About Hines
Hines is a privately owned real estate firm involved in real estate investment, development and property management worldwide. The firm’s historical and current portfolio of projects that are underway, completed, acquired and managed for third parties includes 1,317 properties representing more than 541 million square feet of office, residential, mixed-use, industrial, hotel, medical and sports facilities, as well as large, master-planned communities and land developments. Currently, Hines manages 391 properties totaling 161 million square feet, which includes 89.1 million square feet for third parties. With offices in 115 cities in 18 countries, and controlled assets valued at approximately $28.2 billion, Hines is one of the largest real estate organizations in the world. Hines is also a world leader in sustainable real estate strategies, with extensive experience in LEED®, ENERGY STAR®, BREEAM, Haute Qualité Environnementale and DGNB green building rating systems. Visit www.hines.com for more information.

About Weintraub | Tobin
With offices in Sacramento, San Francisco, Beverly Hills, Newport Beach, and San Diego, the Weintraub Tobin Law Corporation combines its shared vision and pledges to be an innovative provider of sophisticated legal services to dynamic businesses and business owners, as well as non-profits and individuals with litigation and business needs. The firm continues its long-time and strong support of the communities in which its attorneys live and work. Visit weintraub.com for more information.

The New PAGA-Waiver Trap Door

Published: January 9, 2015

by Brendan J. Begley

Many employers have arbitration agreements wherein employees agree to waive the right to file a lawsuit against the employer under various laws, including the California’s Private Attorney General Act (“PAGA”). Employers were disappointed when the California Supreme Court ruled last June that such waivers of PAGA lawsuits are invalid, at least in state court. See Iskanian v. CLS Transportation Los Angeles, LLC, 59 Cal.4th 348 (2014).However, a number of federal trial judges in the Golden State subsequently disagreed and ruled that PAGA waivers are enforceable in their courts. See, e.g., Ortiz v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc., E.D. Cal. Case No. 2:13-cv-01619 (Sept. 30, 2014). Because a PAGA waiver still may be enforceable against an employee in federal court, many employers have either kept or inserted such waivers in their arbitration agreements.

This week it became apparent that including a PAGA waiver may destroy an employer’s ability to require arbitration in any type of lawsuit, be it under PAGA or some other theory (e.g., alleged discrimination, harassment, retaliation, or wage-and-hour or meal-and-rest-period violations). Specifically, the California Court of Appeal ruled that a PAGA waiver will invalidate an entire arbitration agreement in state court if that agreement also includes a non-severability clause. See Montano v. The Wet Seal Retail, Inc., Cal. Ct. App. Case No. B244107 (Jan. 7, 2015).

Non-severability clauses basically state that the entire agreement will be unenforceable if any provision of it is found to be invalid. By contrast, severability clauses allow a court or an arbitrator to strike any invalid provision in the agreement while still enforcing the remainder of it.

The non-severability clause in the Montano case recited that the PAGA waiver was “a material or important term of this arbitration agreement.” That clause also mandated that, if “the wavier is found to be unenforceable for any reason by a court or arbitrator, then this entire arbitration agreement is void and unenforceable by the parties.”

There are advantages and disadvantages to both having or refraining from arbitration agreements, as well as including or deleting severability clauses and non-severability clauses. Employers should weigh those risks and benefits carefully before deciding which path to follow. Employers who wish to enhance the likelihood of enforcing their arbitration agreements should review them in light of this new Montano decision and consult legal counsel to determine if amendments are advisable.

Employment Law Update – 2014 A Year in Review | 2015 An Interesting Year Ahead (Sacramento)

Published: January 8, 2015

Summary of Program

Program Highlights

New Federal and State Legislation and Regulatory Requirements—Compliance is Harder Than Ever!
Updates in the World of Harassment, Discrimination and Retaliation Law.
Privacy: Social Media and Beyond.
The Ongoing Headache of Keeping Up with the Complex Laws Relating to Leaves of Absence and Reasonable Accommodations.
Developments and Trends in Wage and Hour Litigation.
The NLRB’s Continued Attack on the Non-Union Workplace.

Seminar Program

8:30 am Registration and Breakfast

9:00 am – 12:00 pm Seminar

Approved for 3 hours MCLE credit. This program will be submitted to the HR Certification Institute for review.

There is no charge for this seminar

Location

Weintraub Tobin
400 Capitol Mall, 11th Floor
Sacramento, CA 95814

RSVP

Ramona Carrillo
400 Capitol Mall, 11th Fl.
Sacramento, CA 95814
916.558.6046 | rcarrillo@weintraub.com

View flyer here.

The Dish on Paid Time Off: How Will a New Requirement to Offer PTO Impact Local Employers?

Published: January 5, 2015

By Lucia Ruiz, Comstock’s Magazine

New legislation mandates California businesses to provide paid sick days to employees who do not already have access to paid time off. The Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act (Assembly Bill 1522) was signed by Gov. Brown in September, making California the second state to implement statewide paid sick leave, following Connecticut.

The law, effective July 1 of this year, will entitle employees who have worked in California for 30 days or more paid sick leave for themselves or for a family member within a year from the start of employment. Employees are entitled to one hour for every 30 hours worked, but the employer may limit the use of sick days to 24 hours. Employees can accrue paid sick days to the next year, and accrued days can be reinstated if the employee is separated from the employer and rehired within one year. AB 1522 does not provide exemptions for small businesses or government employers.

Proponents of the Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act include California Work and Family Coalition, Health Officers Association of California and California Labor Federation, AFL-CIO (a co-sponsor of the bill). They highlight the positive impact and long-term wellness benefits for employees who have access to PTO, saying it will benefit the 40 percent of Californians who do not already have the benefit.

Lizbeth West, shareholder at Weintraub Tobin, says this bill will also benefit employees who already receive PTO by allowing them to take “paid sick days for reasons that employers may not otherwise have designated.”

But the food-service industry has particular concerns about the bill. Chris Jarosz, a Sacramento restaurateur and president of the California Restaurant Association’s Sacramento chapter, says restaurants, unlike other types of employers, are being forced to “double the cost of an employee’s day off, because we have to pay a replacement to cover the shift. For a restaurant, it creates a huge extra expense.

“All of us in the hospitality industry value our employees and want to take care of our people,” he says, “but in this case it makes it very hard on us.”
Other opponents of the bill include the California Chamber of Commerce and California Employment Law Council. These groups maintain an alternative to mandatory PTO should be implemented, saying the law should incentivize PTO and reduce costs for employers in other areas in order to make paid sick leave more affordable for businesses.

The bill does not cover union workers, employees in the construction industry, providers of in-home supportive services and individuals employed by an air carrier, such as a flight deck or crew member.

Click here to view the article online.

U.S. Government Agencies: Santa or Grinch?

Published: December 19, 2014

by Brendan J. Begley

Just in time for the holidays, the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”) and the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) have delivered additional workplace protections for workers and prospective unions this month. Whether those government agencies are viewed as Santa or the Grinch coming down workplace chimneys depends upon one’s perspective.

Specifically, the NLRB gave a sugary treat to unions and employees who want union representation by ruling in early December that, under most circumstances, workers must be permitted to use their employers’ email systems for purposes of union-organizing activities. Then, in mid-December, the NLRB stuffed the stockings of unions and employees who desire union representation by issuing a final rule shortening the time to hold an election to determine whether a majority of workers want to be unionized.

Many employers worry that this speedy-election change, which becomes effective on April 14, 2015, will diminish management’s ability to stage an anti-union campaign prior to voting. As such, employers who are concerned about unionization likely will focus on year-round anti-union avoidance programs, instead of anti-union campaigns that commence only upon the filing of a representation petition.

Next, as though flying from one significant decision to another behind a team of reindeer, the NLRB issued complaints alleging that McDonald’s USA LLC, a franchisor, and a number of its franchisees committed labor law violations. In particular, the NLRB accused these “joint employers” of violating the rights of employees who engaged in protected conduct to improve working conditions by participating in nationwide protests. According to the franchisor, the NLRB’s complaints “improperly and dramatically strike at the heart of the franchise system,” and amount to overreaching by the agency.

Between those developments, the DOL issued final regulations barring discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender employees and applicants by federal contractors and subcontractors. Those regulations have been highly anticipated to implement a Presidential Executive Order issued in July prohibiting such discrimination.

While those regulations were long expected and welcomed by many, their issuance this month was greeted by some with some bah-humbug grumbles because the DOL delivered them without providing an opportunity for public comment. In a related development, the U.S. Department of Justice released a memo on December 18 indicating that the U.S. government can now file claims against employers on behalf of workers who allege that they were discriminated against because of their transgender status.

The takeaway from these developments is that employers will face a sleigh-full of significant and unfamiliar challenges in the New Year. To promote the chances for prosperity and happiness in 2015, employers should consider seeking advice from legal counsel to ensure that their policies and practices do not run afoul of these new legal guidelines.

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