Experienced
employment attorney Curt Surls comments on a recent decision from the Ninth
Circuit Court of Appeals, O’Connor v.
Uber Technologies, Inc., which held that Uber drivers are bound by their
agreement to arbitrate and thus reversed the class certification.
In continuing
fall out from the United States Supreme Court’s decision in Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis, the Ninth
Circuit has followed suit in O’Connor
and upheld the arbitration clause between Uber and Uber drivers. The lawsuit arose from claims by certain Uber
drivers that Uber failed to remit the entire tips from customers to drivers as
required by California law and for misclassifying Uber drivers as independent
contractors.
The
plaintiffs obtained class certification by successfully arguing before the
district court that the 2013 arbitration agreement was unconscionable. Uber attempted to send out a new arbitration
agreement to the plaintiffs in various class action lawsuits in December of
2015. Plaintiffs moved for injunctive
relief and “[t]he district court granted the motion in part on December 23,
2015, citing its authority under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23(d) to
control communications by Uber to the class members and putative class members.”
Thus, the district court limited the
effect of Uber’s arbitration agreement and placed limitation on Uber’s ability
to communicate with the new or prospective drivers.
The Ninth Circuit reversed the district court’s
denial of Uber’s motion to compel arbitration in Mohamed v. Uber Technologies, Inc., which covered the same
arbitration agreement at issue in
O’Connor. Thus, the O’Connor plaintiffs sought to avoid
arbitration by raising new arguments as to why the arbitration agreement was
unconscionable. First, O’Connor plaintiffs argued that the lead
plaintiffs “constructively opted out of the arbitration on behalf of the entire
class.” Ninth Circuit noted that such
argument only had a Georgia Supreme Court case as support and that case turned
on matter of state law. Noting that
there was no federal case law that supports the position that the lead
plaintiffs could take such an action behalf of the entire class, the Ninth
Circuit rejected this argument.
O’Connor plaintiffs’ second argument in
favor of unconscionability was a similar refrain of the argument made by the
class plaintiffs in Epic Systems,
that class action waivers violate the National Labor Relations Act. As Epic
Systems settled that issue, Ninth Circuit rejected this argument as
well. Thus, the district court’s denial
of the motion to compel arbitration was reversed and class certification was
reversed as well. The case is O’Connor v. Uber Technologies, Inc.,
Case 14-16078.
*** Curt Surls is an attorney in the areas of Employment
Discrimination, Sexual Harassment, and Wrongful Termination. Located in
Manhattan Beach, California, the Law Office of Curt Surls offers a complete
range of employment law services to those living throughout Southern California,
including all of Los Angeles, Riverside, Orange and San Bernardino counties.
With nearly 30 years of experience focusing almost exclusively on this area of
law, attorney Curt Surls and his law firm provide the personalized assistance
and effective support his clients need. References: Law Firm Website: https://www.curtsurlslaw.com/;
Professional Profile on law firm website: https://www.curtsurlslaw.com/attorney-profile/;
LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/curt-surls-83118b5/;
Blog: https://curtsurlsblog.blogspot.com/
Attorney Profile: https://solomonlawguild.com/curt-surls%2C-esq;
Attorney News: https://attorneygazette.com/curt-surls%2C-esq#5282ef1c-68bd-44ca-a705-13c4c4d19d33
Lawyer Curt Surls specializes in the areas of Employment Discrimination, Sexual Harassment, and Wrongful Termination. Located in Manhattan Beach, California, the Law Office of Curt Surls offers a complete range of employment law services to those living throughout Southern California, including all of Los Angeles, Riverside, Orange and San Bernardino counties. With nearly 30 years of experience focusing almost exclusively on this area of law, attorney Curt Surls and his law firm provide the personalized assistance and effective support his clients need. References: Law Firm Website: www.curtsurlslaw.com; Professional Profile on law firm website: https://www.curtsurlslaw.com/attorney-profile/; LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/curt-surls-83118b5/; Attorney Profile: https://solomonlawguild.com/curt-surls%2C-esq; Attorney News: https://attorneygazette.com/curt-surls%2C-esq#5282ef1c-68bd-44ca-a705-13c4c4d19d33
