Last year, we reported on the reforms to the Private Attorney General Act (PAGA) that Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law on July 1, 2024.  The reform legislation was pushed through to avoid a ballot vote on a measure seeking to repeal PAGA entirely in the 2024 election.  The legislation was aimed at providing some relief to employers from the flood of meritless PAGA claims and provide mechanisms for early resolution.  The legislation also gave the Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) the resources and ability to expedite hiring and to fill vacancies in the CA Labor and Workforce Development Agency (LWDA) which is the division responsible for PAGA administration and oversight. While the reforms did not appear deter the “serial filer” firms from filing a record number of cases (9,463 PAGA notices were filed in calendar year 2024 – a jump from 8,100 the prior year), we are extremely pleased to report that the LWDA and its new hires, have begun taking a much more active role in these cases at an early stage and cracking down on the worst abusers of the PAGA statutes.Continue Reading An Update on PAGA Reform from the Trenches – Finally, Some Relief for Employers from Meritless Claims