Francis "Tripper" Ortman Quoted in Law360
"Mutual Contractors Can't Bring Labor Claims: Calif."

Seyfarth San Francisco office partner Francis "Tripper" Ortman was quoted in Law360 on January 4. The article discussed a California appeals court decision in which a putative employment class action brought by insurance agents employed by Mutual of Omaha Insurance Co. was thrown out. The judge reasoned that the agents were unable under state labor laws to bring claims, affirming a lower court's previous ruling.

The company contended that the state's labor code provision in California fell under the common law test of employment, instead of the statutory definition of "employee," and the plaintiff was classified as an independent contractor, ineligible to receive reimbursement for business supplies and expenses or wages earned when she left the company.

"The opinion provides a recipe for deposition preparation and should prove useful as a road map for both plaintiff and defense practitioners involved in independent contractor cases," Tripper, who represented Mutual of Omaha, noted.