On November 30, 2021, the Court of Appeal, First Appellate District, issued an important opinion in Moniz v. Adecco USA, Inc., __ Cal. App. 5th __ (2021), which will impact employers facing PAGA lawsuits. Moniz clarified several critical issues employers routinely face in PAGA litigation. First, departing from Turrieta v. Lyft, Inc., 69 Cal. App. 5th 955 (2021), Moniz held that a deputized aggrieved employee challenging a PAGA settlement has appellate standing to challenge another PAGA settlement that would wipe out their ability to pursue a PAGA claim. This may affect all employers facing more than one PAGA lawsuit at a time. Second, Moniz held that claims are validly released if they relate to the same primary right as the claims listed in the PAGA letter that the aggrieved employee sends to the California Labor and Workforce Development Agency (the “LWDA”). Finally, Moniz provided guidelines to assess whether a trial court should approve a PAGA settlement.
Because Moniz departs from Turrieta, until there is clarity from the California Supreme Court, there will be a split in authority on this appellate standing issue creating risk for employers settling in the face of multiple PAGA suits.
In September 2021, the California Court of Appeal for the Second Appellate District held in Turrieta that a PAGA representative did not have appellate standing to challenge a PAGA settlement in a similar lawsuit that would effectively wipe out the PAGA...
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