Ninth Circuit Partially Reinvigorates California Law Limiting Arbitration

The Ninth Circuit created a judicial "tremor" on Wednesday, September 15, 2021, when it issued a ruling partially tossing out a District Judge's Order blocking enforcement of a California law barring employers from requiring workers to sign agreements mandating arbitration of certain employment disputes as a condition of employment. In the closely watched matter of U.S. Chamber of Commerce v. Bonta, Ninth Circuit Case No. 20-15291, the Ninth Circuit partially reinvigorated California's controversial AB 51, which not only imposed the prohibition noted above, but also imposed criminal and civil penalties on employers who attempted to require such agreements of employees.

While affirming the injunction relative to the imposition of criminal and civil penalties against employers embodied within AB 51, the Ninth Circuit reversed the injunction relative to the anti-arbitration prohibitions found in AB 51 (which is now codified in California Labor Code § 432.6), thus