John Ellis

John Ellis is an associate in the Labor and Employment Practice Group and Appellate Practice Group in the firm’s San Francisco office.

Areas of Practice

John’s practice focuses on litigating wage and hour class actions and representative actions under the California Private Attorneys General Act of 2004 in state and federal court. He is also a member of the firm’s Appellate Practice Group and has drafted numerous winning appellate briefs and amicus briefs for proceedings in the appellate courts. John is experienced and knowledgeable with all aspects of federal and California wage and hour law and appellate procedure. John has particular expertise in wage and hour matters affecting the trucking and logistics industry.

Experience

Defeated certification of a class of employee truck drivers in Burnell v. Swift Transportation Co of Arizona, LLC, No. EDCV10809VAPSPX, 2016 WL 2621616, (C.D. Cal. 2016) and Mares v. Swift Transportation Co. of Arizona, LLC, No. CV 15-7920-VAP (KKX), 2017 WL 10592147, at *1 (C.D. Cal. 2017)

Obtained summary judgment on all claims in Mares v. Swift Transportation Co. of Arizona, LLC, No. 215CV07920VAPKKX, 2018 WL 6928455, at *1 (C.D. Cal. 2018)

Established the amount in controversy for purposes of federal diversity jurisdiction includes recoverable attorneys’ fees anticipated to be incurred over the course of the litigation in Fritsch v. Swift Transportation Co. of Arizona, LLC, 899 F.3d 785 (9th Cir. 2018).

Established that employees earning piece rate compensation need not be paid separate hourly compensation for particular work under Washington law in Sampson v. Knight Transportation, Inc., 193 Wash. 2d 878 (WA Supreme Court 2019)

Drafted amicus brief for Employers Group and California Employment Law Council in Canela v. Costco Wholesale Corp., 971 F.3d 845 (9th Cir. 2020)

Assisted in preparation of amicus brief for Employers Group and California Employment Law Council in Frlekin v. Apple Inc., 8 Cal. 5th 1038, 457 P.3d 526 (CA Supreme Court 2020)

Honors

Ones to Watch — Labor and Employment, Best Lawyers, 2022-2025

Articles

Labor and Employment Law Blog Posts

• "California Supreme Court Clarifies PAGA Standing When “Individual PAGA Claims” Have Been Compelled to Arbitration," July 24, 2023
• "California Court of Appeal Holds That a PAGA Plaintiff Maintains Standing to Assert Representative Claims Even When Individual Claims Are Compelled to Arbitration," March 22, 2023
• "Supreme Court Holds That PAGA Representative Waivers Are Enforceable In Certain Significant Respects," June 16, 2022
• "Peace for Piece-Rate Employers in Washington," September 17, 2019

• "U.S. Supreme Court Rejects ‘Wholly Groundless’ Exception to Delegation Clauses in Arbitration Agreements," January 10, 2019

• "California Supreme Court Issues Narrow Holding In De Minimis Case, Leaving Many Issues Unresolved," July 30, 2018 
• "Federal Court Strikes Down Department of Labor’s Overtime Rule," September 8, 2017 

Media Mentions

Events