Mandatory arbitration agreements have become very common in a wide variety of jobs. Typically, the newly hired employee signs a raft of documents, one of which may include an arbitration agreement. Often, the employee has no recollection that s/he signed an arbitration agreement. One plaintiff attorney, recognizing that the employee may not know whether he
Fourth Court of Appeals
Arbitration Cannot Be Appealed
Arbitration is becoming more and more a significant feature of the legal landscape. Arbitration is a creature of contract. Whatever the parties agree to becomes the arbitration. What if the parties agree to arbitration, but then allow some form of appeal? In a recent decision, the Fourth Court of Appeals wrestled with that question. In…
Trump Undermines his Own Case
Pres. Trump seriously undercuts his own case when he states publicly that the travel ban currently on appeal is a “watered down” version of the first travel ban. See CNN news report. That is a problem because the first travel ban made specific references to establishing a religion. The second ban removed that language.…
Bexar County Jury Awards $127,000 in Attorney Fees
Faith Gonzales worked at a Bill Miller barbecue restaurant. As any San Antonian would know, Bill Miller’s is a fast-food version of barbecue and is a local institution. She complained about discriminatory conduct and was fired in 2008. She filed her charge with the EEOC. The matter did not go to trial until January, 2013.…
Fourth Court Recognizes Same Sex Harassment
The Fourth Court of Appeals recently addressed a growing issue, at what point does same sex harassment constitute sexual harassment based on gender? Since the decision in Oncale v. Sundowner Offshore Services, Inc., 523 U.S. 75 (1998), we know there is such a thing as sexual harassment by persons of the same gender. In…
Bexar County Jury Awards $1.6 Million
A Bexar County jury awarded a former employee of San Antonio Water Systems $1.6 million in state district court. The former SAWS employee alleged she had been fired after she reprimanded the Vice-President for Communications because he asked a female employee to lunch. See San Antonio Express News report. Debra Nicholas had been special…