Salas v. Anheuser-Busch, Inc.

In February 2010, Partner John B. Golper and Senior Counsel Elsa Bañuelos and John J. Manier won another motion to compel arbitration on behalf of Anheuser-Busch, Inc. The court in Salas v. Anheuser-Busch, Inc. (United States District Court, Central District, Case No. CV 09-7739 GHK (AJWx)) ruled that the collective bargaining agreement between the Company and the plaintiff’s Union “clearly and unmistakably” required arbitration of the plaintiff’s claims, including those for disability discrimination and failure to accommodate. This marked the second time in seven months that the Firm has won a motion on behalf of Anheuser-Busch compelling arbitration of statutory employment discrimination claims under two separate union contracts. Only a handful of other cases nationwide have reached the same result since April 2009, when the United States Supreme Court issued its landmark decision in 14 Penn Plaza LLC v. Pyett allowing arbitration of job bias claims under collective bargaining agreements.