Labor Beat Alerts

Yesterday, Governor Jerry Brown appointed his Senior Advisor for Judicial Appointments, Josh Groban, to fill the vacant seat on the California Supreme Court, bringing the Court up to its full strength of seven justices. Nominee Groban must still be confirmed by a panel made up of the Chief Justice of the California Supreme Court Tani … continue reading

Earlier this year, self-described pension fraud watchdog group, Transparent California, issued a California Public Records Act request seeking a wide array of information on individuals receiving retirement benefits from CalPERS. Although CalPERS released almost all the information requested, it refused to identify the category of individuals’ retirement benefits, either as service retirement or disability retirement. … continue reading

Today, the California Supreme Court set oral argument in CAL FIRE Local 2881 v. California Public Employees’ Retirement System for December 5, 2018.  Argument will take place in Los Angeles.  The case is the first of 5 public employee pension cases currently under review by the Court to be set for oral argument. As well … continue reading

We recently received correspondence from the California Supreme Court indicating that it is looking to set oral argument in CAL FIRE Local 2881 v. California Public Employees’ Retirement System as early as the first week in November, when the Court is scheduled to hear four days of oral argument in Sacramento.  This would be consistent … continue reading

On Thursday, September 27, 2018, the Sacramento County Bar Foundation honored Gary Messing as a Centennial Fellow as part of the Sacramento County Bar Association’s 100-year anniversary centennial celebrations.  Gary was one of only eleven attorneys recognized for this first-time distinction awarded to “attorneys at the pinnacle of achievement who, through distinguished professional accomplishment, substantial … continue reading

Today the California Supreme Court granted review of the case Hipsher v. Los Angeles County Employees’ Retirement Association et al. This is the fifth pension case the Court has accepted jurisdiction over, including two of our cases: MAPE et al. v. MCERA et al. and CAL FIRE Local 2881 et al. v. CalPERS et al.  … continue reading

California Supreme Court Reiterates Deference Due to PERB Decisions in Labor Matters and Rejects Ruse By Former Mayor to Evade Meet-and-Confer Responsibilities Today, in Boling v. PERB the California Supreme Court issued a unanimous decision favoring the challenge by public employee unions to a 2012 pension measure in San Diego. The basic facts are that … continue reading

Today, in its decision in Troester v. Starbucks, the California Supreme Court gave another big win to employees. It reaffirmed that California law is significantly more protective of employees than federal law. The Court held that – contrary to federal law, which makes allowance for de minimis exceptions to its wage and hour laws – … continue reading

This morning the U.S. Supreme Court released its long-awaited decision in Janus v. AFSCME, in which the conservative majority found “fair share fees” unconstitutional. This decision will require action by many of our clients, and will impact all who care about the labor movement. The decision overruled a 41-year old precedent (Abood v. Detroit Board … continue reading

On May 29, 2018, the U.S. Supreme Court handed down a decision limiting police searches of residential driveways. We believe that this could significantly affect police officers’ ability to patrol neighborhoods and investigate crimes related to vehicles. (See May 29, 2018 article in The New York Times.) — Past Supreme Court decisions interpreting the Fourth … continue reading