March 17, 2022

LaFace v. Ralphs Grocery Company (Feb. 18, 2022, B305494)

Plaintiff sued defendant under the Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA). A bench trial determined that defendant did not violate the applicable labor law. On appeal, plaintiff contended she was entitled to a jury trial.

The appellate court held that plaintiffs do not have the right to a jury trial for PAGA claims because (1) PAGA is essentially a hybrid administrative enforcement action and to provide a right to a jury trial for private parties would give them a right that is unavailable to administrative agencies and employers and (2) Labor Code violations, which give rise to PAGA claims, are based on rights that were not in existence when the California Constitution was adopted in 1850 and, thus, are ineligible for the presumption of entitlement to a trial by jury.