August 3, 2021

Plaintiff filed an action against her employer under the Private Attorney General Act on behalf of all allegedly aggrieved employees who signed a noncompetition clause in violation of California law. The superior court sustained defendant’s demurrer without leave to amend on grounds that plaintiff had no standing to bring a representative PAGA action because her own individual claim was time-barred. Plaintiff appealed.

The Court of Appeal reversed. Relying on Kim v. Reins International California, Inc. (2020) 9 Cal.5th 73, the court found that even though plaintiff’s individual claim may be time-barred, she continues to be an “aggrieved employee” with standing to pursue a PAGA claim because she alleged that she is employed by defendant and that she personally suffered at least one Labor Code violation on which the PAGA claim is based. Citing Kim, the court found “the fact that [plaintiff’s] claim is time-barred places her in a similar situation as a plaintiff who settles her individual claims or dismisses her individual claims [and is nonetheless able] to pursue a stand-alone PAGA claim.”