Green v. Costco Wholesale Corporation

Background

Mary Hunter Green sued Sunrun and Costco, asserting various labor-law claims. The opinion states that Green worked for Sunrun at a kiosk inside a Costco, selling solar panels, and that Sunrun fired her allegedly because of age and disability discrimination.

Sunrun moved to compel arbitration of Green’s claims against it and to dismiss the case. Costco filed an unopposed joinder in Sunrun’s motion, which the court granted.

Arbitration agreement

Sunrun presented evidence of an employment contract that Green electronically signed. The contract included an arbitration agreement. The court found that Green validly authenticated her electronic signature with a secret password and that the signature complied with the California Uniform Electronic Transactions Act. The agreement stated that checking the electronic box counted as a signature.

The court held that the Federal Arbitration Act governed the agreement and required arbitration. It rejected Green’s argument that the contract lacked consideration because her employment had ended, explaining that she had exchanged a promise to work for Sunrun’s promise to pay her. The court also rejected her argument that the contract was unconscionable. Although the court described the contract as potentially adhesive, it found that its terms, including the arbitration terms, were not substantively unconscionable.

Disposition

The court granted the defendants’ motion to compel arbitration. It also granted their motion to dismiss under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6) and other cited rules, rather than staying the action pending arbitration. The court granted Green leave to amend because the complaint was being dismissed for the first time, while stating that amendment appeared futile. The order did not decide the merits of Green’s discrimination or other labor-law claims.