Traditional Legal Services

The recent Ninth Circuit decision in Chabolla v. ClassPass, Inc. highlights the challenges of enforcing arbitration agreements in online Terms of Use. Katherine Chabolla sued ClassPass, alleging violations of California’s Automatic Renewal Law, Unfair Competition Law, and Consumers Legal Remedies Act after her subscription auto-renewed following a pandemic-related pause. ClassPass argued that Chabolla had agreed to arbitration through a “sign-in wrap” agreement, which linked the Terms of Use without requiring explicit user consent. Unlike traditional “clickwrap” agreements that demand clear acknowledgment, sign-in wrap agreements rely on user actions like signing up as implicit consent.

The State of California Civil Rights Department (“CA CRD”) is currently conducting its fifth annual pay data filing, with a due date of May 14, 2025. This requirement, established in 2021, emerged after the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) stopped collecting pay data as part of the EEO-1 report. To bridge this gap, California passed Senate Bill 973 in 2020, mandating private employers with at least 100 employees nationwide and at least one employee in California to submit annual pay data reports, which include W-2 wages

On March 10, 2025, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal from a former California fire chief who claimed he was fired because of his Christian faith. The case, brought by Ronald Hittle, had the potential to reshape how courts handle employment discrimination claims but failed to gain enough support among the justices.

Recently Governor Gavin Newsom signed an executive order that will affect the many thousands of state workers in California, and potentially indirectly, many private workers as well. The order also includes good news for former federal employees who have been let go in the recent mass firings by the U.S. Federal Government. MNK Law is here to advise any employers contemplating re-implementing similar in-office requirements, regarding how to best navigate and implement such policies.

President Trump recently issued several Executive Orders aimed at Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility (“DEI” or “DEIA”) initiatives.  On January 20, 2025, the President signed an order entitled “Ending Radical and Wasteful Government DEI Programs and Preferencing” and on January 21, 2025, he signed an order entitled, “Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity”.

California’s Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) remains a hot topic, with recent court decisions making it even more complicated for both workers and employers. In Leeper v. Shipt, the court ruled that every PAGA lawsuit must include an individual claim, meaning many cases would have to go through arbitration. This decision favored employers, as arbitration can be a quicker and more controlled way to resolve disputes.

The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) has announced an extension of the deadline for filing Beneficial Ownership Information (BOI) reports under the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA). While the implementation of these requirements back in effect may be a stressful matter for some, FinCEN is offering businesses a bit of good news. Any businesses needing further guidance in compliance with these requirements should contact MNK Law at 562.362.6437, or info@mnklawyers.com.

The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) is a federal law that grants eligible employees the right to take unpaid, job-protected leave for specified family and medical reasons. Filing FMLA lawsuits might have become more difficult now. In the past, employees only had to show that taking FMLA leave was one factor in an employer’s decision to discipline or terminate them. However, a recent decision, Lapham v. Walgreen Co., now requires employees to prove that retaliation was the sole reason for the adverse action, making it much harder to win these cases for the employees. Employers have often struggled with situations where last-minute absences disrupt operations. For example, if an employee with approved intermittent FMLA leave calls out at the start of a shift, the employer cannot require them to find a replacement. Instead, the employer must either scramble to cover the shift or require the remaining staff—including the manager—to take on extra work. This often leads to frustration and resentment, which employees have cited in retaliation claims. Before Lapham, those claims were easier to prove.

Derek Mobley filed a lawsuit against Workday, an AI-based hiring tool provider, claiming its system unfairly rejected his job applications due to his age. Mobley, who initially sought relief for his individual case, is now pushing to expand the lawsuit into a national class action. The expanded claim aims to include millions of applicants over 40 who have been similarly rejected by Workday’s AI system since 2020, arguing they all suffered from the same discriminatory screening practices.