CA Pub. Decisions

On July 14, 2008, defendant and appellant Shirley Ann Disandro, a letter carrier for the United States Postal Service (USPS), was cited by a Temecula police officer for driving at an unsafe speed (Veh. Code, § 22350)[1] and driving with a load obstructing her control of the vehicle (Veh. Code, § 21700).[2] On January 6, 2009, when defendant was not present, her trial was held in traffic court, and she was found guilty as alleged in the traffic citation.

Appellant/defendant Anthony Wilson, a prisoner at California Correctional Institution, Tehachapi, declared to Correctional Officer Bryan Thornberry that he could find anyone and â€

Appellant/defendant Anthony Wilson, a prisoner at California Correctional Institution, Tehachapi, declared to Correctional Officer Bryan Thornberry that he could find anyone and â€

Appellant/defendant Anthony Wilson, a prisoner at California Correctional Institution, Tehachapi, declared to Correctional Officer Bryan Thornberry that he could find anyone and â€

A modification decision.

In June of 2008, Jason Troy Phillips (appellant) pled guilty to possession of methamphetamine (Health & Saf. Code, § 11377, subd. (a)) under a deferred entry of judgment, pursuant to Penal Code sections 1000 and 859a. In May of 2009, the court found appellant failed to comply with the deferred entry of judgment program and excluded him pursuant to Penal Code section 1000.3. It found appellant guilty based on his previously entered plea under Penal Code section 859a. The court sentenced appellant to a two-year term and imposed various fees and fines, including a $30 assessment under Government Code section 70373 (section 70373).

A modification decision.

Orange County employees receive retirement benefits under a retirement system established pursuant to the County Employees Retirement Law of 1937 (CERL) (Gov. Code, § 31450 et seq.). (All further statutory references are to the Government Code, unless otherwise specified.) The pension amount an employee receives is based in part on the employee's â€

We now have before us Donald R. Roden (Roden) and AmerisourceBergen Corporation (AmerisourceBergen) in the fourth round of their dispute concerning Roden's entitlements arising out of his employment termination. In the third appeal, we addressed a postjudgment order concerning retirement benefits, a severance payment, a stock option award, and loan forgiveness. As concerns the retirement benefits, we reversed the portions of the postjudgment order with respect to the amount of the change in control benefit and the amount of any excise taxes and resultant income taxes owing to Roden under the company's supplemental executive retirement plan (SERP). â€

A modification decision.

Laura and Douglas Montgomery (the Montgomerys) are the plaintiffs in a medical malpractice action against physician Mark Knight. They petition for relief from the order of the trial court removing their only expert witness on the medical standard of care and causation. The trial court found the expert created an irreconcilable conflict of interest for Knight's counsel because he had represented the expert 10 years before. The petitioners contend the prophylactic removal was unnecessary because their expert waived any conflict of interest arising out of the previous representation. Court agree and grant the petition.

Ernest Young and Nicole Savala filed separate class action lawsuits against Nordstrom, Inc., alleging Nordstrom's policy of paying net sales commissions to its commissioned sales employees violated sections 221 and 203 of the Labor Code. (All further statutory references are to the Labor Code, unless otherwise noted.) In 2009, the parties reached a settlement. One member of the class, Kellie Taylor, objected to the settlement. The trial court overruled Taylor's objection, and approved the settlement. Taylor appealed, and we affirm.
The trial court considered all relevant factors in determining the settlement was fair, adequate, and reasonable. On appeal, Taylor argues that the court failed to fully consider the strength of the class's case, and that the settlement undervalues the waiting period penalties to which the class is allegedly entitled, pursuant to section 203. For all the reasons detailed post, we conclude the trial court's analysis of the settlement's terms correctly considered the merits of the class's claims, and Nordstrom's defenses. We therefore hold the trial court did not abuse its discretion in overruling Taylor's objection and approving the settlement.

This is an appeal from an order denying the defendants' motion to compel arbitration. Applying the law to the undisputed facts and exercising our independent judgment, we reverse the trial court's ruling. As we explain below, the plaintiff cannot avoid arbitrating its claims against the signatory defendant, because those claims are within the reach of the arbitration clause. And the plaintiff cannot avoid arbitrating its claims against the nonsignatory defendant, because those claims are inextricably bound up with the obligations arising out of the agreement containing the arbitration clause.

The order is reversed, and the matter is remanded to the trial court with directions to enter a new and different order granting defendants' motion to compel arbitration.