Pending Supreme Court Cases: Briefs, transcripts, audio

By Ross Runkel

Nov 28, 2015

Ten employment law cases are pending in the US Supreme Court, and here are summaries of the issues, opinions below, Supreme Court briefs, argument transcripts and argument audio.

Encino Motorcars, LLC v. Navarro-Whether “service advisors” at car dealerships are exempt under 29 U.S.C. §213(b)(10)(A) from the Fair Labor Standards Act's overtime-pay requirements. Argument date to be scheduled.[Opinion below] [Briefs] [Blog] [Casetext]

CRST Van Expedited, Inc. v. EEOC-Whether a dismissal of a Title VII case, based on the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s total failure to satisfy its pre-suit investigation, reasonable cause, and conciliation obligations, can form the basis of a attorney’s fee award to the defendant under 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-5(k).[Opinion below] [Briefs][Blog] [Casetext] Oral argument March28, 2016.

Note:SCOTUSbloghas asked me to writean argument preview a week before the argument, an argument analysis rightafter the argument, and an opinion analysis once the case is decided.

Friedrichs v. California Teachers Association-(1) WhetherAbood v. Detroit Board of Education, 431 U.S. 209 (1977). should be overruled and public-sector “agency shop” arrangements invalidated under the First Amendment; and (2) whether it violates the First Amendment to require that public employees affirmatively object to subsidizing nonchargeable speech by public-sector unions, rather than requiring that employees affirmatively consent to subsidizing such speech.[Opinion below] [Briefs] [Blog][Blog]Oral argumentJanuary 11, 2016. [Transcript] [Audio]

Tyson Foods, Inc. v. Bouaphakeo- Whether class or collective actions can be certifiedwhere liability and damages will be determined with statistical techniques that presume all class members are identical to the average observed in a sample, and the class contains members who were not injured. [Opinion below: Bouaphakeo v. Tyson Foods, Inc., 765 F.3d 791 (8th Cir. 2014). ] [Briefs] Oral argument November 10, 2015. [Transcript] [Audio]

Dollar General Corporation v. Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians-Whether Indian tribal court has jurisdiction over an intern's claim that the manager of a store on tribal land sexually molested him while he was working there. [Opinion below: Dolgencorp, Inc. v. Miss. Band of Choctaw Indians, No. 12-60668 (5th Cir. Mar 14, 2014). ] [Briefs] [Blog]Oral argument December 7,2015.[Transcript] [Audio]

Campbell-Ewald Company v. Gomez- Whether an unaccepted Rule 68 offer that would fully satisfy an individual plaintiff's claim moots that claim, and also moots a class action.[Opinion below: Gomez v. Campbell-Ewald Co., 768 F.3d 871 (9th Cir. 2014). ] [Briefs] [Blog]Oral argument October 14, 2015. [Transcript] [Audio]

Green v. Brennan-Whether, under federal employment discrimination law, the filing period for a constructive discharge claim begins to run when an employee resigns, or at the time of an employer’s last allegedly discriminatory act giving rise to the resignation.[Opinion below: Green v. Donahoe, No. 13-1096 (10th Cir. Jul 28, 2014). ] [Briefs] [Blog] Oral argument November 30, 2015. [Transcript] [Audio]

Montanile v. Board of Trustees of the National Elevator Industry Health Benefit Plan- Does a lawsuit by an ERISA fiduciary against a participant to recover an alleged overpayment by the plan seek "equitable relief" within the meaning of ERISA section 502(a)(3), 29 U.S.C. § 1132(a)(3), if the fiduciary has not identified a particular fund that is in the participant's possession and control at the time the fiduciary asserts its claim? [Opinion below: Bd. of Trs. of the Nat'l Elevator Indus. Health Benefit Plan v. Montanile, No. 14-11678 (11th Cir. Nov 25, 2014). ] [Briefs] [Blog] Oral argument November 9, 2015. [Transcript] [Audio]

Gobeille v. Liberty Mutual Insurance Company-Whether ERISA preempts Vermont's health care database law as applied to the third-party administrator for a self-funded ERISA plan.[Opinion below: Liberty Mut. Ins. Co. v. Donegan, Docket No. 12-4881-cv (2d Cir. Feb 04, 2014). ] [Briefs] Oral argument December 2, 2015.[Transcript] [Audio]

Heffernan v. City of Paterson-Whether the First Amendment bars the government from demoting a public employee based on a supervisor's perception that the employee supports a political candidate.[Opinion below: Heffernan v. City of Paterson, 777 F.3d 147 (3d Cir. 2014). ] [Briefs] Oral argument January 19, 2016. [Transcript] [Audio]

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MHN Government Services, Inc. v. Zaborowski-Whether California's arbitration-only severability rule is preempted by the Federal Arbitration Act.[Opinion below] [Briefs] Oral argument was removed from the Court's schedule because the parties are in the process of settling.