Daniel J. Navigato Law Blog

In Taylor v. UPS (Dec. 9, 2010) 190 Cal.App.4th 1001, a California Court of Appeal ruled that the Plaintiff, who had worked supervisory positions at three separate facilities for UPS, qualified as "exempt" under California's executive and administrative exemptions respectively, and therefore was not entitled to overtime pay or related benefits paid to nonexempt employees.

The court found that Taylor met all of the requirements for the executive exemption in... Read More

Starting your own business can be both exciting and overwhelming. There are many crucial decisions that you must make at the time of formation that will effect the business for years to come. Likely the most important decision that you will make is determining what type of legal structure is most appropriate for your company’s needs. There are several types of entities to chose from. You may wish to form a sole proprietorship, partnership (general or limited), limited liability... Read More

Pursuant to Labor Code section 201(a), employers must pay final wages "immediately" upon terminating an employee. If an employee’s final wages are not paid immediately, the employer is subject to a "waiting time" penalty (of up to 30 days) while the wages remain unpaid. Recently, in Pineda v. Bank America, the California Supreme Court held that these "waiting time" penalties can be collected for up to three... Read More

With the cost of litigation today, the reality is that many claims, no matter how clear cut, may not be worth pursuing after comparing the cost of enforcing the claim to the potential recovery. For example, say Company A desires to file a lawsuit against Company B for an undisputed $10,000 debt arising out of a business agreement. Depending upon how Company B decides to defend the action on the debt, Company A may be forced to spend nearly the full amount it is owed, if not more, in order... Read More

The Department of Industrial Relations, Division of Labor Standards Enforcement ("DLSE") publishes a web site which contains a variety of useful and accurate information for California employers and employees. However, blind faith in the information published on this site may prove imprudent and costly to California employers.

The DLSE is permitted to interpret California law and regulations and they do so frequently. In our experience, the interpretation by the DLSE... Read More

Below is an outline of some of the major meal and rest period laws that must be followed by California employers.  To discuss these laws, or other employment issues, contact experienced California employment law cousel.

An employer may not employ an employee for a work period of more than five hours per day without providing the employee with a meal period of not less than 30 minutes, except that if the... Read More

Most responsible companies maintain Director & Officer insurance policies ("D&O Policies") in order to protect their directors and officers against all types of potential liabilities, including shareholder derivative lawsuits. In fact, a company would be hard pressed to recruit and maintain experienced and skilled officers and directors without adequate D&O insurance coverage.

A typical... Read More

Are you sure your employee payment policies and record keeping are compliant with California's complex labor laws? Are you willing to bet your business on it? Because with the significant potential fines, penalties, and costs the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement ("DLSE") can impose on your business for even the smallest, most innocent payroll mistakes or misunderstandings, that is exactly what you could be doing.

THE DLSE... Read More

Is your company doing enough to protect its confidential information? A recent court ruling made it clear that simply inserting a contractual provision in your employment agreements is not enough to protect a company's valuable information. Companies must do more. In order for information to qualify for protection under California law, it must qualify as a "trade secret."

THE TRG CASE AND LESSONS LEARNED

In a recent case... Read More

Sometimes even the strongest landlord-tenant relationship goes south. For any number of reasons, you may be faced with a tenant who no longer pays rent or a landlord who refuses to compromise its position. If so, the likely result will be an unlawful detainer action.

In the unlawful detainer arena, one false move could cost you thousands of dollars or several weeks dealing with a tenant who is not paying rent. Whichever side of the landlord-tenant... Read More