Trial-tested employment defense counsel with wage and hour focus

Aaron Buckley has over 25 years of experience representing employers. A member of the Wage & Hour Defense Institute, an invitation-only group consisting of top management-side wage and hour litigators throughout the United States, he focuses on:

• Employment counseling
• Employment litigation, including class and PAGA actions

Aaron is known for providing practical, common-sense advice to clients facing litigation in California’s state and federal courts, focusing on each client’s unique needs and objectives. He also works closely with clients on compliance and litigation avoidance strategies, helping them navigate California’s complex web of often-confusing Labor Code requirements.

Prior to beginning his legal career, Aaron was an infantry officer in the U.S. Army.

Bar Admissions

• California

Education

• Southern Illinois University School of Law (J.D., cum laude, 1996)

• United States Military Academy (B.S., 1986)

• "2016 Ballot Likely to Include Initiative to Establish $15 Statewide Minimum Wage"
• "U.S. Department of Labor Issues New Interpretation on Joint Employment Relationships"
• "Appellate Court Limits Healthcare Workers’ Ability to Waive Meal Breaks"
• "Appellate Court: It’s Okay for Employees to Remain On-Call During Rest Breaks"
• "Bloomingdale’s Urges U.S. Supreme Court to Review the Iskanian Rule on Arbitrability of PAGA Claims"
• "California Assembly Bill Seeks to Raise Salary Threshold for White Collar Exempt Employees"
• "California Court Decisions Expand Employer Liability Under PAGA"
• "California Court Delivers Win to Employer in Time Rounding Case"
• "California Court of Appeal Decision Limits Dynamex ABC Test to Wage Order Claims"
• "California Court of Appeal Orders Administrative Wage Claim to Arbitration"
• "California Court Rules Commissioned Employees Must Be Paid Separately For Rest Breaks"
• "California Employers Must Provide Paid Sick Leave Beginning in July 2015"
• "California Paid Sick Leave Law Amended and Clarified"
• "California Supreme Court Adopts Strict New Worker Classification Test Presuming Workers Are Employees, Not Independent Contractors"
• "California Supreme Court Clarifies Required Method of Calculating Overtime on Non-Discretionary Flat Rate Bonuses"
• "California Supreme Court Clarifies “Day of Rest” Requirements"
• "California Supreme Court Limits Commissioned Employee Exemption"
• "California Supreme Court to Clarify Suitable Seating Requirements"
• "California Supreme Court to Decide Fate of De Minimis Rule"
• "California Supreme Court: Employees Cannot Be Required to Remain On-Call During Rest Breaks"
• "California Supreme Court: On-Call Employees Sleeping on Employer’s Premises Must Be Paid"
• "California to Phase in $15 Minimum Wage"
• "Court Certifies Class Action For Retail Workers Subjected To Off-The-Clock Security Screening"
• "Court Holds California Law Does Not Require Compensation for Avoidable Bag Checks"
• "Court of Appeal: Temporary Staffing Company Not Liable for Client’s Meal Period Violations"
• "DLSE: Employers May Not Require Employees to Remain On Site During Breaks"
• "Employers Must Reimburse Employee’s Cell Phone Expenses"
• "Federal Judge: U.S. Supreme Court’s Bag Check Decision Not Applicable to California Law"
• "FLSA Exemption Changes Could Take Effect in Summer 2016"
• "FLSA Overtime Exemption Changes: What California Employers Need to Know"
• "Future of New FLSA Overtime Rule Uncertain After Federal Court Temporarily Blocks Implementation"
• "Governor Brown Signs Bills to Expand California Fair Pay Act"
• "How to Protect Yourself Against “Time Rounding” Claims"
• "Los Angeles to Raise Minimum Wage to $15 an Hour"
• "Miscalculating the Regular Rate of Pay: A Common and (Very) Expensive Mistake"
• "New California Law Makes Contractors Liable for Subcontractors’ Unpaid Wages"
• "New Cases Continue to Shape PAGA Landscape"
• "New Law Prohibits Contracts Requiring California Employees to Adjudicate Employment Disputes in or Under the Laws of Another State"
• "Nike’s De Minimis Defense Wins Bag Check Case"
• "Ninth Circuit Adopts California Supreme Court’s Iskanian Rule; Holds PAGA Waivers Unenforceable"
• "Ninth Circuit Asks California Supreme Court to Clarify “Day of Rest” Requirements"
• "Ninth Circuit Holds Neutral Time Rounding and De Minimis Rule Consistent with Federal and California Law"
• "Ninth Circuit Joins Circuit Split by Holding Class Action Waivers Violate the NLRA"
• "Northern California Voters Approve Minimum Wage and Paid Sick Leave Measures; San Diego's Ordinance on Hold"
• "Off-the-Clock Claims Involving Mobile Devices: Lessons From Recent Cases"
• "Proposed Change to FLSA White Collar Exemption Could Have Big Impact in California"
• "Recent Decision Shows How Employers Can Defend Against Off-the-Clock Work Claims"
• "Reclassifying Employees from Exempt to Nonexempt: Tips for Employers"
• "Split of Authority in California Court of Appeal on Whether PAGA Claims for Unpaid Wages Can Be Ordered to Arbitration"
• "The Iskanian Decision: Predictions on Long-Term Impact"
• "U.S. Supreme Court (Again) Reverses California Arbitration Agreement Ruling"
• 'Does the Court or the Arbitrator Decide Whether an Arbitration Agreement Permits Class Claims? California Supreme Courts Says “It Depends”'
• "California Supreme Court Allows PAGA Plaintiffs to Seek Employee Contact Information Statewide"
• The Reform of PAGA: What Does it Mean for California Employers? 

Seminar

• 26th Annual Paul Plevin Quarles Employment Law Update
• Business Law Training: What’s Different about California Employment Laws? What You Need to Know If Your Company Has Employees in the Golden State
• Wage & Hour Regulatory Update 2024