President's Column

Jonathan Block

Dear Chapter Members:

Last week I went through an interesting exercise with our Chapter Administrator, Jessica. We were reviewing our financial statements and decided it would be fun to determine how much the chapter was actually spending on . . . you. After all, we like to think that we are adding value to your professional lives but, as they say, numbers don’t lie.

Of course, what members get from the chapter is only part of the many benefits of ACC. It is worth reminding you that your membership dues of only $225* cover all of the benefits provided by ACC: the Docket magazine; access to all of the resources on ACC’s website (ACC.com) like INFOpaks, the Virtual Library, Member-to-Member database, practice surveys, and listservs; webcasts; discounted purchasing through ACC Alliance; networking opportunities with in-house peers; resources from practice-area committees; the ability to attend ACC’s Annual Meeting; access to the In-house Jobline; and the benefits provided by the chapter. That is a lot!

In 2006, ACCA-SoCal chapter benefits alone were three to four times the investment in ACC dues! You certainly got some of the benefits if you attended our events and programs like our monthly meetings at six (6) different venues, our roundtable programs in Orange County, our DoubleHeaders, our Annual Gala Dinner, our In-House Conference, our ACColades event honoring great women of our community, our wine tasting social events or our Call-to-Action program to promote diversity in the profession. You got some of the benefits if you attended some of the over 100 hours of CLE we offered in 2006, most of which was free to members! You also shared in the benefits if your career was enhanced by attending the career Connections event at Raleigh Studios or you joined us at our golf tournament at the prestigious Trump National Golf Course.

Are you getting your fair share? If not, I hope you make it your professional New Year’s Resolution to do so in 2007. Already there are compelling programs for you to consider. Our first DoubleHeader is on March 28 at the Getty Museum in Malibu (one of the hardest to get tickets in town!). ACC’s Technology Law Committee has planned a stellar program in conjunction with Pepperdine’s School of Law on March 30. And, on May 4, we will hold our Annual Gala Dinner, with Vice President Al Gore as our featured speaker. To find out more about these events, or any other event of the chapter, go to our website at http://socal.acc.com.

Membership has its privileges . . . but it also has its benefits! I hope to see you enjoying them this year.

Jonathan L. Block
President
ACCA-SoCal

* Did you know that large law departments receive a discount on their membership dues? If you think your department may be entitled to take advantage of this discount, please let us know.

**Don't forget to submit your vote for the ePoll in the left-side column.

Recent California Appellate Court Decision Holds Employers Liable for All Accrued, Unused Vacation at Time of Termination

by John Zaimes and Jean F. Kuei

A California Court of Appeal has recently held that employees are entitled to be paid for all accrued, unused vacation as of the date their employment ended, even if that vacation accrued outside the applicable statute of limitations period. Church v. Jamison, 143 Cal.App.4th 1568 (2006). This decision has potentially serious ramifications for California employers, particularly those employers who do not have caps on unused vacation accrual as part of their vacation policies.

Before the Church decision, courts generally used a two step analysis when applying statutes of limitations to failure to pay accrued vacation claims filed in court or before the Labor Commissioner. The applicable statute of limitations1 would first be applied to determine whether an action had been timely commenced. If the action was timely commenced, the statute would be applied a second time to determine how far back the employee could claim unpaid vacation.

For example, if an employee resigned in February 2004 and filed a lawsuit in February 2007 for unpaid vacation based on the governing statute, a court would first have to determine whether the lawsuit was timely filed within the three-year limitations period. If it was, the court would then “look back” three years from the date of resignation to determine how much vacation the employee had accrued. In this example, the employee could only recover for unused vacation that had accrued between February 2001 and the date of resignation, February 2004.

The Church decision eliminates the three year or other limitations period for the “look back” part of the analysis. Now, employers can be held liable for all accrued but unused vacation the employees had at the time of separation of employment, even if such vacation accrued more than three years prior to separation. In reaching its decision, the Court of Appeal expressly invalidated a longstanding California Labor Commissioner opinion that the statute of limitations begins to run when vacation is earned or accrued, and that the “look back” period is limited to the applicable statute of limitations period.

In the wake of Church, employers face significant risks of having to pay longer term employees for all accrued, unused vacation at the time of separation. These risks also point up the importance of setting a reasonable cap on vacation accrual as part of an employer’s vacation leave policy. The California Labor Commissioner has traditionally viewed a reasonable cap as one that is not less than 160% of, or 1.6 times, an employee’s annual vacation eligibility. Thus, if an employee earns eighty hours of vacation per year, the employer can “cap” the amount of vacation the employee is allowed to carry over and accumulate at one-hundred twenty-eight hours of vacation (80 hrs. x 1.6 times = 128 hrs.). Once that cap is reached, some of the employee’s accumulated vacation would have to be used before further vacation could accrue. A vacation cap therefore prevents employees from accumulating large amounts of vacation wages over long periods of time that must be paid out at the time of separation. Such caps are absolutely essential in the wake of the Church decision.

_____________________
Mr. Zaimes is a partner in the Los Angeles Office of Reed Smith and has extensive litigation and counseling experience in labor and employment issues. Mr. Zaimes can be contacted at (213) 457-8029. Ms. Kuei is an associate in the Los Angeles Office of Reed Smith and represents employers in all aspects of labor and employment law.  Ms. Kuei can be contacted at (213) 457-8058.
 
1 The statute of limitations period generally depends on whether the obligation to pay vacation is based on an unwritten contract (three years to file suit), written contract (four years) or statute (three years).

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Can't-Miss DoubleHeader™ at the Getty Villa on March 28th

Continuing the tradition of combining top notch MCLE programs with exclusive locations and entertainment venues, ACCA-SoCal is pleased to announce that its upcoming DoubleHeader™ event on March 28th will be at the J.Paul Getty Museum "Villa" in Malibu.  Recently re-opened after an eight-year closure, the Getty Villa is a one-of-a-kind museum featuring Greek, Roman, and Etruscan antiquities, arranged by themes including Gods and Goddesses, Dionysos and the Theater, and Stories of the Trojan War. 

The museum rarely ever opens for non-museum events, so this DoubleHeader™ is a must-attend! 

The delightful afternoon will commence with an MCLE presentation by sponsors Duff & Phelps and Guidance Software entitled "The Best Friends of the In-House Counsel: Computer Forensics and eDiscovery Tools."  The presentation will be followed by a networking reception with food and drinks in the very fancy Villa atrium.  Finally, guided tours will escort attendees around the antiquities of the museum.  Three MCLE units, networking, culture and good food and drink --- all for the amazing "member's only" price of $20.

Because this event will likely sell-out soon, you should register now by clicking here.

To view the event flier, please click here.
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Third Annual Southern California In-House Counsel Conference Was a Record Success

On Thursday, January 11, 2007, at the Marriott Downtown Los Angeles Hotel, ACCA-SoCal hosted its third annual, full-day conference for in-house counsel in Southern California, with a record attendance of close to 200.
 
The Conference provided 8 hours of MCLE programs (2 of which were self-study audio cds) on a number of topics, including in-house counsel ethical issues, software license drafting techniques, employment law update, contract boilerplate and SOX issues.
 
During lunch, attendees were entertained by a rousing, yet instructive General Counsel Roundtable discussion on corporate emergency planning basics.
 
Many attendees conveyed very positive feedback about the conference:
 
“The event was superb.  The topics were correctly selected, and the content was actually informative (which is, as we know, not always true!).  The student volunteers were helpful.  Ironically, even the facilities were better than before!”
 
“The event was terrific...I went to all the programs and they were very well presented and designed.”
 
“I thought the hotel was fantastic, the food was very good, and the meeting a success.”
 
ACCA-SoCal would like to thank to following Sponsors who helped produce the programs and made the Conference possible – and affordable – for in-house counsel:  Foley & Lardner; K&L Gates; Baker Hostetler; Greenberg Traurig; LexisNexis; and Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker.  Thanks also go out to our law student volunteers from Western State Law School: James Pham, Rondine Macadaeg, Jesse Zirillo, and Kathleen O’Hara.

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ACCA-SoCal's Gala Dinner with Academy-Award-Winning Vice President Al Gore on May 4th

The subject of Climate Change has evolved far beyond a mere matter of general interest. Many law firms with specializations in environmental law are rapidly developing Climate Change practices. Federal and state legislatures are increasingly focusing on controlling greenhouse gas emissions, compelling energy conservation, promoting alternative energy sources and otherwise beginning to sort through how we as a society address and control our impact on the global climate. Climate change is affecting your business, your clients and your life, whether you know it yet or not.

ACCA-SoCal's November 16th DoubleHeader™ Featured Hot Issues for In-House Counsel and Icy LA Kings Game

On Thursday, November 16, 2006, ACCA-SoCal members enjoyed a successful DoubleHeader™ at STAPLES Center co-sponsored by LexisNexis and Dorsey & Whitney. 

The MCLE portion of the DoubleHeader™ was entitled “Hot Issues for Inside Counsel - How to Keep Your Company Out of the Headlines,” and it included discussions about S.E.C. investigations, the newly amended Federal Rules of Civil Procedure relating to electronic discovery, and best practices for billing within in-house legal departments.  The panelists for the program were (1) Michael Piazza of Dorsey & Whitney, who was  Regional Trial Counsel for the Los Angeles Office of the S.E.C.; (2) Michael Pontrelli, Corporate Discovery Specialist for LexisNexis Applied Discovery, and (3) Mary Clark, Vice President and Associate General Counsel of LexisNexis.

After the informative MCLE program, dinner was served in a luxury suite, where everyone was treated to a close hockey game between the L.A. Kings and the visiting Philadelphia Flyers.  In a stunner, the Flyers scored consecutive goals in the final minutes of the game to upset the Kings 4-3.

ACCA-SoCal thanks LexisNexis and Dorsey & Whitney for generously sponsoring the DoubleHeader™.  Everyone will agree that it was an educational and enjoyable DoubleHeader™.
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Upcoming "Getting Sideways" Event Back By Popular Demand

Get Sideways with ACCA-SoCal – Redux!   Come join your ACCA-SoCal colleagues for an exceptional social event!  Wine tasting at the Wine House (2311 Cotner Avenue, Los Angeles, CA  90064) on April 24, 2007, from 5:30 pm to 7:30 pm.  Red wines and sparkling wines will be showcased and hors d'oeuvres served.  There will be no charge for ACCA-SoCal members, so please don't miss this event!  To sign up or to get further details, please see the ACCA-SoCal website.
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Welcome New Members!

The following in-house attorneys joined the ACCA-SoCal Chapter between October 31st and February 21st:

John Aceves                             Univision Communications Inc.
Emily Alexander                         Oaktree Capital Management, LLC
Drew Alexis                               IndyMac Bank
Leonard A. Alkov                        Raytheon Company
Michael A. Backstrom                Southern California Edison Company
Anne Banducci                           Countrywide Financial
Samanthe Beck                         Digital Insight Corporation
Linda J. Berberian                     PFF Bank & Trust
Gary A. Berzner                          Advanced Video Communications, Inc.
Carla M. Blanc                            Southern California Edison Company
Vernon C.       Bogy                    J.K. Properties
Tamara S. Brandt                      Toyota Motor Sales, USA, Inc.
John E. Breen                             Whitmont
Lisa V. Castleton                       Edwards Lifesciences Corporation
Anthony Castrilli                         Tri-Tech Internet Services, Inc.
Bernadette M. Chala                  American Sporting Goods Corporation
Karen A. Chiella                         Raytheon Company  "Bldg
Esther Chu                                 HELIO
Jason N. Chung                          Yahoo! Inc.
Paul Clendening                         Countrywide Financial Corporation
Joshua E. Clorfeine                   DTS, Inc.
Michael N. Cohen                      Cardservice International, Inc.
Andrew Cowan                       Kroll Inc.
Darlene David                           Macerich Company 
Steven D. Farkas                      Paramount Petroleum Corporation
Barbara Fortson                        International Medical Corps
Rebecca A. Furman                   Southern California Edison Company
Joseph M. Gabriel                     Digital Domain, Inc.
Gavin G. Galimi                          March Vision Care, Inc.
Joni L. Gaudes                           Furturedontics, Inc.
Latrice A. George                      Southern California Edison Company
Wendy E. Gerard                       Big Dog Holdings, Inc.
Todd Gladis                                National Recreational Properties, Inc.
Arnold Grant                               Beckman Coulter, Inc.
Mary E. Grant                             Yahoo! Inc.
Michael W. Griffith                      21st Century Insurance Company
Daniel Halloran                           ICANN
Michael A. Hand                         DTS, Inc.
Glenn A. Harris                           InterMetro Communications, Inc.
Jennifer R. Hasbrouck                Southern California Edison Company
Wilfredo Hernandez                   Hyundai Motor America
Michael-Bryant Hicks                 Beckman Coulter, Inc."
Peter M. Huie                             Spot Runner, Inc.
Andrew M. Jacobson                 j2 Global Communications, Inc.
John O. Jeffrey                           ICANN
 William E. Josey                       TOKYOPOP, Inc
Allen E. Kelinsky                        Southern California Edison Company
Douglas Kranwinkle                   Univision Communications Inc.
Peter Kruse                                CaseCentral, Inc.
Lee T. Kuo                                  Yahoo! Inc.
Rebecca Kwok                           United Online, Inc.
Jane Lee                                    Southern California Edison Company
Kenneth H. Levin                        Edmunds Inc.
Tiffani Magri                               Mattel, Inc.
Aneeta D. Maheshwari              Medical Center, Corona
Edward R. McGah                      Verizon Wireless
G. Allen McNamee                     In-N-Out Burgers
Todd E. Molz                              Oaktree Capital Management, LLC
Erin K. Moore                             Southern California Edison Company
Dana M. Newman                       Moviola
Thomas P. O'Toole                    Technicolor
Susan Park                                Gateway Companies, Inc.
Arnold A. Pinkston                     Beckman Coulter, Inc.
Joan Marie Procopio                  Raytheon Company 
Mary Claire                                 Wall St. Funding, Inc.
Carlo Razo                                  PriceGrabber.com
James D. Roberts                     Polymer Global Holdings, Inc.
Olivia M. Samad                        Southern California Edison Company
Michael Schack                          National Recreational Properties, Inc.
John P. Schaefer                       The Trizetto Group, Inc.
Yvonne Schroeder de Orr          PASSCO Companies, LLC
Daniel Seeck                             RE/MAX of California and Hawaii, Inc.
Rohit U. Shendrikar                   Yahoo! Inc.
Sandra W. Sherman                Americal Management Co., Inc.
Christine T. Smith                      Newegg, Inc.
Jack E. Sorokin                          Beckman Coulter, Inc.
Thomas S. Squillaro                    AIG, Inc
Amy A. Stathos                          ICANN
Sara L. Stimac                           International Creative Management
Juliet Stone                                Nara Bank
Joanne Terrell                            Starbucks Coffee Company
Tara L. Troge                           Verizon Wireless
Heather Truong                          Lantronix, Inc.
Caesar Villanueva                     The Olson Company
Cindy M. Walker                         Countrywide Financial Corporation
Michael P. Wallock                    Automobile Club of Southern California
William Walsh                             Southern California Edison Company
Stephanie D. Weaver                 Computer Sciences Corporation
Angela Whatley                          Southern California Edison Company
Paige White                                Southern California Edison Company
Jason  White                              Toshiba America Business Solutions, Inc.
Deana M. White                         Southern California Edison Company
James Wong                               Intex Corp
Christopher G. Wood                 Univision Communications Inc.
Todd R. Wulffson                       Palace Entertainment

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