Will the De Minimis Doctrine Still Serve as a Defense in California Wage-and-Hour Claims?

Brandon Takahashi and Brian Noh recently published an article in Law360 titled "An unclear path for defending Calif. Wage and hour claims." Takahashi and Noh discuss whether the de minimis doctrine, long-held as a defense against wage-and hour claims brought under the Fair Labor Standards Act, will still be applicable as a defense following the recent California Supreme Court decision in Douglas Troester v. Starbucks Corporation.

Takahashi and Noh describe how Troester represents a "proverbial fork in the road" for California courts: "the state of the de minimis doctrine in California as applied to state wage-and-hour claims will be unclear until either the California Courts of Appeal or the California Supreme Court issue further rulings in other matters, clarifying the parameters of this doctrine."

"An unclear path for defending Calif. Wage and hour claims" (PDF)

Read "An unclear path for defending Calif. Wage and hour claims," on the Law360 website (subscription required)