New CA Employment Case

New Published California Employment Case

Did the trial court properly find misjoinder and order 440 former Tesla factory workers to file individual complaints?  

The California Court of Appeal Court addressed this issue last month. Below is my one-paragraph case summary from my online publication California Case Summaries™: 

Smith v. The Superior Court of Alameda County (2026) _ Cal.App.5th _ , 2026 WL 1876096: The Court of Appeal reversed the trial court and granted a writ petition vacating the trial court’s order. Plaintiffs, who were former class members in Vaughn, et al. v. Tesla, Inc. (Super. Court Alameda County, 2017, No. RG17882082) (Vaughn), alleged, in five related complaints filed by 440 Tesla factory workers, that defendant Tesla, Inc. (Tesla) maintained a pattern and practice of racial discrimination and harassment at its factory and systematically failed to investigate or address it, in violation of FEHA. The trial court found misjoinder and ordered that, in each of five related complaints filed by 440 former Tesla factory workers, all plaintiffs except the first-named must be dismissed and refiled individually. The Court of Appeal disagreed and held the claims were properly joined under Code of Civil Procedure section 378 because they arose from a common corporate policy or practice, and that section 379.5 did not authorize the trial court to dismiss properly joined plaintiffs based on manageability, judicial economy, or filing-fee concerns. Practitioner Takeaways: Section 378 joinder is construed liberally — a defendant's common policy or practice causing harm to plaintiffs at different times/locations can satisfy the "same transaction or occurrence" test without identical individual facts. Manageability, judicial economy, and filing-fee shortfalls are not grounds for misjoinder under section 378; courts may only address them post-joinder (e.g., severed trials under section 379.5), and broader limits must come from the Legislature. A related case's class-decertification findings don't bind differently-represented individual plaintiffs from establishing proper joinder in follow-on suits. Federal Rule 21 has no California counterpart, so federal mass-joinder dismissals under Rule 21 carry little weight in section 378/379.5 analysis. (C.A. 1st, June 30, 2026.)
 

Mediation, Arbitration & Referee Services

Monty A. McIntyre, Esq. helps attorneys and their clients throughout California as a mediator, arbitrator and referee, handling employment (PAGA, wage and hour, wrongful termination, discrimination, retaliation), tort (elder abuse, legal malpractice, medical malpractice, personal injury, product liability and wrongful death), business, commercial, insurance (bad faith, coverage, UIM), real property and trust and estate/probate cases. Monty has been a California civil trial lawyer since 1980, a member of ABOTA since 1995, has tried over 100 civil cases (jury trials, judge trials, administrative trials and arbitrations), and has represented both plaintiffs and defendants in the areas listed above.

When you want a mediator who's tried lots of civil jury trials, bench trials and arbitrations for plaintiffs and defendants, has mediated lots of cases, and knows the new California civil case law, Monty is happy to help.  

To easily schedule a mediation, pick your date on Monty's calendar: https://montymcintyre.com 

You can also mediate with Monty at ADR Services. To schedule at ADR Services contact Rachael Boughan, rboughan@adrservices.com, (619) 233-1323.

 California Case Summaries™
Know The New Law.  

California attorneys will win more cases and get better results by always knowing the new civil case law in their practice areas. California Case Summaries™ make this easy with unique one-paragraph case summaries, with practitioner takeaways, that are organized by legal topic of every new civil case published by California courts throughout each year. Seven publication options are available for either Law Firm Unlimited subscriptions (the firm can send summaries to every firm attorney) or Individual Attorney subscriptions (only the subscribing attorney can read the summaries).

There are two ways to get California Case Summaries™:

1. Mediate with Monty McIntyre to Get a Free 1-Year Subscription to California Case Summaries™:

Law Firm Lawyers: When law firm lawyers conduct two half-day or two full-day private mediations in one calendar year with Monty McIntyre your law firm will get a free 1-year Law Firm Unlimited subscription (letting the firm send summaries to every firm attorney) to California Case Summaries™.

Sole Practitioners: When you conduct one half-day or full-day private mediation with Monty McIntyre you'll get a free 1-year Individual Attorney subscription (only the subscribing attorney can read the summaries) to California Case Summaries™.
 

Easily schedule a mediation with Monty by picking your date on Monty's calendar: https://montymcintyre.com 

You can also mediate with Monty at ADR Services. To schedule at ADR Services contact Rachael Boughan, rboughan@adrservices.com, (619) 233-1323.


2. Buy One of the CCS Publications:

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To get free one-paragraph summaries of every new civil case published by the California Supreme Court in 2024. Click here.

Do well and be well.  

Best regards,
Monty A. McIntyre, Esq.
Ending Litigation Trauma &
Helping Attorneys Get Excellent Results
-Settling or Deciding Cases or Issues: Mediator, Arbitrator & Referee
Employment, Torts, Business, Real Property, Insurance and Probate Cases
To easily schedule a new matter visit: https://montymcintyre.com 
-Working Up Cases: California Case Summaries™: Know The Law
-Trying Cases: Trial Alchemy™ - Learn from Civil Jury Trial Experts
ABOTA Member Since 1995
Past President San Diego County Bar Assn. (2002), Past President SD ABOTA Chapter (2014)
Phone: (619) 990-4312 | Email: monty@montymcintyre.com