On January 29, 2015, the California Supreme Court issued a decision clarifying the circumstances under which an arbitrator’s award may be corrected. In Richey v. Autonation, Inc., No. BC408319 (Cal. Jan. 29, 2015), the court examined an arbitrator’s award and concluded that, although the arbitrator may have committed error in applying the defendants’ proffered “honest belief” defense (a defense not provisioned under California law) the plaintiff was nevertheless afforded his statutory rights. The court explained that, because the arbitrator determined the plaintiff’s employment was terminated for violating his employer’s policy prohibiting outside employment while on medical leave, the plaintiff was not prejudiced by the arbitrator’s arguably misplaced application of the honest belief defense.
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