After reaching an $84 million settlement with Uber, Massachusetts'  attorney Shannon Liss-Riordan has found herself subject to immense criticism from Uber drivers and attorneys alike that claim the settlement is too low and a sell-out of their interests. At the end of June, U.S. District Judge Edward Chen of the Northern District of California issued an order stating that he still has insufficient information to approve the deal. The terms of the settlement would release a multitude of driver claims against Uber and thereby eliminate more than a dozen other pending cases in the process. Liss-Riordan settled the class action... READ MORE

Today's article covers the relevant federal and state laws regarding the collection and sharing of personal information, as well as the notification requirements when data breaches occur in a public or private workplace. Federal Law The Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (the "Act") requires qualifying financial institutions to explain their information-sharing practices to their customers and to safeguard sensitive data. The FTC Safeguards Rule under the Act requires financial institutions under FTC jurisdiction to have measures in place to keep customer information secure. Disclaiming guaranteed protection of customers’ information is not an acceptable measure, and therefore not a defense.  Qualifying businesses have a... READ MORE

About ten percent, or 1.9 million, of California's 19 million person workforce consists of independent contractors. Non-union workers reportedly earn 20% less than their union counterparts in the current gig economy. Classifying workers as independent contractors has severe consequences for such workers, as non-employees generally have no statutory right to minimum wage, overtime pay, compensation for on-the-job injuries, unemployment insurance for involuntarily leaving employment, or protection against other illegal employer activities like discrimination. In the winter of 2016, a California Assemblywoman, Lorena Gonzalez, introduced AB 1727 aka The California 1099 Self-Organizing Act, an amendment to California's Labor Code. Gonzalez' intention... READ MORE

California employers must be prepared to implement . Effective December 1, 2016, businesses that employ any employee earning an annual salary under $47,476 must re-assess and evaluate these new federal wage requirements affecting employee compensation. The FLSA's two-part compensation and duties test for exemption has not been changed by the new regulations. Instead, the minimum amount of salary required to qualify for the exemption has been revised. The final rule issued by the DOL increases the income threshold for employers to $913 a week, which is $47,476 annually. This new threshold is more than twice the current minimum salary. Under... READ MORE

The Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA), 18 U.S.C. § 1030, was enacted by Congress in 1986 as an amendment to the Counterfeit Access Device and Abuse Act. While the CFAA is primarily a criminal law, an amendment in 1994 allows civil actions to be brought under the statute. While the CFAA has been amended many times in attempts to make it successfully evolve with the needs of computer users, rulings in two recent Ninth Circuit cases leave many other questions unanswered about the proper interpretation of the law, opening the door for more uncertain litigation, and perhaps the prosecution of individuals that... READ MORE