The El Paso Court of Appeals held this week that a Texas employer can use mandamus petition to challenge a trial court’s jurisdiction where the plaintiff-employee failed to file his charge of discrimination timely. A link to the opinion is here.
Supreme Court of Texas Directs Trial Court to Vacate Order and Send Case to Arbitration
Texas courts routinely enforce arbitration agreements between employers and their employees. In most parts of the state, lawyers representing employees agree to go to arbitration upon being presented with a copy of an arbitration agreement signed by the plaintiff-employee. On occasion, however, there are disputes over the enforceability of an arbitration agreement. The Supreme Court
Supreme Court of Texas Grants Review in Stock-Options Noncompete Case
Last summer, I detailed the Dallas Court of Appeals’ decision in Marsh USA, Inc. v. Cook where the court held a noncompetition agreement supported only by stock-options as consideration was unenforceable. You can read that post here. Today, the Supreme Court of Texas announced that it would hear the appeal from the Dallas Court of Appeals. You can
Last Rites for Neutral Absence Control and Maximum Duration of Leave Policies?
For more than 15 years Texas employers have used the application of uniformly enforced neutral absence control policies setting a maximum duration an employee can be away from work as a defense to workers’ compensation retaliation claims. The defense was first solidified by the Supreme Court of Texas in in its 1996 Continental Coffee Prod. v. Casarez case. See
Fifth Circuit Affirms Donning and Doffing Judgment for Employer
There has been a significant amount of litigation against employers over the compensability of work time for putting on and taking off safety-related clothing and equipment prior to the start of a shift but necessary for the work to be performed. For example, Pilgrim’s Pride Corporation recently agreed to pay $1 million in back wages to settle a
Court Holds Notice of Termination, Not Termination Date, Commences Statute of Limitations on Breach of Contract Claim
The Fourteenth Court of Appeals in Houston recently held that it is the date the employee is provided notice of termination, and not the termination date itself, that commences the statute of limitations in a breach of contract case. You can read the Memorandum Opinion in Malallah v. Noble Logistic Services, Inc. here.
San Antonio Court of Appeals Holds Doctrine of Unclean Hands Doesn’t Invalidate Noncompetition Agreement
In an unpublished opinion, the San Antonio Court of Appeals held that a former employee cannot avoid the effects of a noncompetition agreement under the doctrine of unclean hands, as a matter of law, when the inequitable conduct the employee complains of is separate from the issue in dispute. (Opinion available here).
Fifth Circuit Reverses Judgment for Company that Classified Employees As Independent Contractors
Recently I wrote about the risks posed by misclassifying employees as independent contractors. In an unpublished opinion, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit (the federal appellate court that hears appeals from Texas) reversed a summary judgment awarded in favor of a company that had classified two cable splicers who performed post-Katrina telecommunications
Supreme Court of Texas Compels Arbitration of Discrimination and Retaliation Claims
Texas courts strongly favor the resolution of disputes through arbitration. When parties to a dispute have signed an agreement to arbitrate covered disputes, Texas courts will rarely disregard that agreement. A recent per curiam opinion of the Supreme Court of Texas continues that trend by conditionally granting mandamus relief in a case alleging national origin discrimination