Soukup v. Law Offices of Herbert Hafif, 39 Cal. 4th 260 (2006)
Peggy Soukup, a former employee of the Law Offices of Herbert Hafif, sued Ronald C. Stock for abuse of process and malicious prosecution based upon Stock’s prosecution of an earlier lawsuit against Soukup on behalf of the Hafifs and their law firm. The underlying lawsuit, which involved Soukup’s alleged disclosure to a
Butler v. The Vons Companies, Inc., 140 Cal. App. 4th 943 (2006)
While working as a stock clerk for Vons, Sheldon Butler signed a “Compromise and Release Settlement Agreement” arising from an altercation that Butler had with a co-employee. Approximately two years later, Butler filed unrelated claims alleging employment discrimination and violation of Business & Professions Code § 17200, and Vons sought to rely
Kearney v. Salomon Smith Barney, Inc., 39 Cal. 4th 95 (2006)
In this proceeding, several California clients of SSB filed a putative class action seeking damages and injunctive relief against SSB’s Atlanta-based branch’s practice of recording telephone conversations with California residents without their knowledge or consent. The lower court affirmed dismissal of the lawsuit after applying the law of the State of Georgia. The
Singleton v. United States Gypsum Co., 140 Cal. App. 4th 1547 (2006)
John Singleton, a maintenance mechanic employed by USG, was, according to the employer, terminated for having said words to the effect of “if we [have to] work on Christmas, I am going to come in here with a gun and shoot everybody except Sandy.” Singleton denied making the statement though he admitted
Smith v. Superior Court (L’Oréal USA, Inc.), 39 Cal. 4th 77 (2006)
Aspiring actress and model, Amanza Smith, worked as a “hair model” for L’Oréal at Christophe hair salon for which she was paid $500 for one day’s work. L’Oréal considered Smith to be an independent contractor and took more than two months to pay her the compensation it owed to her. Smith filed
Dark v. Curry County, 451 F.3d 1078 (9th Cir. 2006)
Robert Dark, an epileptic since the age of 16, worked as a maintenance and construction worker for Curry County, Oregon for approximately 16 years. Among other things, Dark operated heavy equipment such as construction vehicles for the County. On the morning of January 15, 2002, Dark experienced an “aura” (a “nervous jerk”) that signaled
Gonzalez v. Kalu, 140 Cal. App. 4th 21 (2006)
Gabriela Gonzalez, who worked as a cleaner for a building maintenance company, hired an attorney to represent her in a matter involving a possible sexual harassment claim against her employer. The attorney sent a letter to Gonzalez’s employer asserting the employer’s liability, threatening to file a lawsuit and demanding a settlement. The letter also warned
Moran v. Selig, 447 F.3d 748 (9th Cir. 2006)
Seeking to make partial amends for its exclusion of African-American baseball players prior to 1947 (when Jackie Robinson “broke the color barrier”), MLB voluntarily decided to provide certain benefits, including medical coverage and a supplemental income plan, to qualifying African-Americans players who had been in the “Negro Leagues” prior to 1948. In this lawsuit, certain
Olinick v. BMG Entertainment, 138 Cal. App. 4th 1286 (2006)
Martin Olinick, a lawyer who is admitted to practice both in New York and California, began working for BMG’s predecessor, RCA Records in New York in 1971. In the last of a series of 3-year employment agreements between the parties, Olinick and BMG executed an 8-page employment agreement covering the period from July 1,
Jespersen v. Harrah’s Operating Co., 444 F.3d 1104 (9th Cir. 2006) (en banc)
Darlene Jespersen, a former bartender in the sports bar at Harrah’s Casino in Reno, filed this Title VII action, alleging the casino had discriminated against her on the basis of her sex when she was fired for refusing to comply with the casino’s appearance standards policy requiring all female beverage servers