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• Jury Waiver Agreements Revisited ( March 2005 )
  Ryan  Griffitts of Thompson, Coe, Cousins & Irons, LLP

  Last January, we discussed the emergence of jury waiver agreements. (See Steering Clear of the Runaway Jury, Thompson Coe Labor & Employment News, Vol. 5, Issue 1). Jury waiver agreements are contractual agreements in which the parties agree that if a dispute arises and suit is filed, the parties waive their right to a trial by jury. The case is still filed in court, but if the matter proceeds to trial, the trial judge hears the testimony and decides the case.

• For The California Supreme Court, Predispute Contractual Waiver of Right to Jury Trial Are Not Enforceable in Civil Actions Under California Law ( August 2005 )
  Robert S. Blumberg and Ariel D. Weindling of Littler Mendelson, P.C.

  On August 4, 2005, the California Supreme Court issued a long-awaited decision in Grafton Partners L.P. v. The Superior Court of Alameda County (PriceWaterhouseCoopers L.L.P.), Case No. S123344, and held unequivocally that a predispute contractual waiver of the right to a jury trial is not enforceable in a civil action in California.

• Steering Clear of the Runaway Jury ( March 2004 )
  Ryan  Griffitts of Thompson, Coe, Cousins & Irons, LLP

  Over the last few years, courts have made it clear that they will allow employment-related disputes to be submitted to arbitration where the employer and employee have agreed to do so. However, arbitration does have its downsides. One alternative to arbitration agreements is a "jury waiver agreement."

• Predispute Waiver of Jury Trial Found UnenforceableUnder California Law ( February 2004 )
  Nixon Peabody LLP

  On February 6, 2004, a California Court of Appeals, in <i>Grafton Partners LP v. PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP,</i> ruled that under the California Constitution contractual <i>predispute</i> jury waivers are unenforceable. In doing so, the Court indicated that a 1991 Second District Appellate Court decision, <i>Trizec Properties Inc. v. Superior Court,</i> was wrongly decided.

• Atlanta Employment Law Seminar. Seminar Summaries of Speakers L. Traywick Duffie and Bob Quackenboss of Hunton & Williams ( January 2004 )
  Hunton & Williams LLP

  L. Traywick Duffie addressed the issue of the rising number of collective actions under Section 216 of the Fair Labor Standards Act. Robert Quackenboss discussed a variety of issues affecting the conduct of jury trials in employment litigation.