Juarez v. Wash Depot Holdings

Filed 7/3/18 CERTIFIED FOR PUBLICATION

IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA

SECOND APPELLATE DISTRICT

DIVISION SIX

CARLOS JUAREZ, 2d Civil No. B282667 (Super. Ct. No. 56-2016-00476787- Plaintiff and Respondent, CU-OE-VTA) (Ventura County) v.

WASH DEPOT HOLDINGS, INC., et al.,

Defendants and Appellants.

A company provides its employees with a handbook setting forth its employment policies. The handbook is written in English and Spanish. The handbook requires arbitration of employment disputes and denies an employee's right to bring an action under the California Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA). The English version states that the denial of the right to bring a PAGA action is severable if such denial is found by a court to be unenforceable. The Spanish version provides that the PAGA denial is not severable. In many cases the disparity between the treatment of PAGA claims may have no consequences. But under the facts

here, there are consequences. The arbitration agreement is unenforceable. Wash Depot Holdings, Inc. and Sparkling Image Corp. (collectively Wash Depot) appeal an order of the trial court denying a petition to compel arbitration of plaintiff's wage-and- hour-violations lawsuit. We affirm. Arbitration has long been accepted as an efficient and cost- effective alternative to litigation. (Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis (2018) _ U.S. _, _ [138 S.Ct. 1612, 1621]; Pinnacle Museum Tower Assn. v. Pinnacle Market Development (US), LLC (2012) 55 Cal.4th 223, 235, fn. 4; Brookwood v. Bank of America (1996) 45 Cal.App.4th 1667, 1671 [California has a strong public policy in favor of arbitration as a speedy and relatively inexpensive method of dispute resolution].) Thus, an employer and employee may voluntarily agree to arbitrate their employment-related disputes, but courts will not enforce arbitration agreements that are unconscionable or in violation of public policy. (Code Civ. Proc., § 1281 ["A written agreement to submit to arbitration an existing controversy or a controversy thereafter arising is valid, enforceable and irrevocable, save upon such grounds as exist for the revocation of any contract"]; Armendariz v. Foundation Health Psychcare Services, Inc. (2000) 24 Cal.4th 83, 97 ["California law, like federal law, favors enforcement of valid arbitration agreements"], overruled on other grounds by AT&T Mobility LLC v. Concepcion (2011) 563 U.S. 333, 344-346.) Carlos Juarez is an hourly employee at Wash Depot's hand- car wash in Ventura. During his employment, Wash Depot adopted a policy set forth in its employee handbook requiring arbitration of legal claims arising from the employment relationship. After Juarez filed a wage-and-hour-violations