Private Attorney General Act

Disagreeing with Wesson v. Staples The Office Superstore, LLC (2021) 68 Cal.App.5th 746, this decision holds that a court may not dismiss PAGA claims on the ground they are unmanageable.  However, it may control the trial by limiting the amount of proof the plaintiff may introduce--thus, potentially reducing the amount of collectible PAGA penalties, but not dismissing the action altogether. Read More

Before filing a PAGA suit, a plaintiff must send a pre-suit notice to the Labor and Workforce Development Agency and the employer describing the facts and theories to support the alleged violation. Lab. Code 2699.3.  This decision holds that at least when the notice reveals a violation that is likely to have affected more workers than the individual prospective plaintiff… Read More

The plaintiff's alleged failure to give adequate pre-suit notice to the Labor and Workforce Development Agency and the employer before filing a PAGA suit is an affirmative defense which the employer waives either by not pleading it in the answer or by, even if so pleaded, not pursuing it as a defense by pretrial motion or at trial. Read More

Labor Code sections 558 and 1197.1, allow the Labor Commissioner to sue for set civil penalties in addition to an amount sufficient to recover underpaid wages if an employer fails to pay overtime wages or minimum wages as required by California law.  This decision holds that in a PAGA suit, the employee plaintiff may recover only the set civil penalty… Read More

Putative class representatives were not entitled to intervene in a parallel class action to object to settlement as they could preserve their rights by opting out or by objecting to the settlement and moving to vacate judgment approving the settlement. Read More

A voluntary association of retirees with about 500 members was entitled to a Private Attorney General Act attorney fee award because the association vindicated important rights of a substantial group of the public and this was just the sort of suit to vindicate rights the recipients couldn't afford to pay for on their own. Read More

A PAGA pre-suit notice of a Labor Code violation need not meet pleading standards or include evidence, but it must include sufficient detail to give the employer adequate notice of the nature of the violation. Read More

An employee who has been affected by one Labor Code violation by the employer may bring a Private Attorney General Act suit against the employer for civil penalties based on all Labor Code violations committed by the employer.  Read More

To collect damages from an employer for failure to provide proper wage statements, an employee must show actual injury, which is not possible if omitted information is easily calculated from information the wage statement properly discloses; but no actual injury need be shown for the employee to recover civil penalties from the employer in a Private Attorney General Act suit… Read More

Plaintiff which had prevailed in reversing six of eight zoning code variances the city council granted Target was a successful party entitled to a Private Attorney General fee award even if the city council later amended the zoning code to permit Target to build its store. Read More

Investors were entitled to a Private Attorney General fee award for their opposition to the State’s settlement with a securities fraudster; the opposition triggered changes in the settlement that benefited the public. Read More

An award of Private Attorney General fees is barred by Joshua S. only when the non-prevailing party pursued only its own private interest, had no institutional interest in the legal principle established in the case, and was not responsible, in whole or in part, for the practice or policy that gave rise to the litigation. Read More