Appellate Court Reaffirms Importance of Getting Jury Waiver Language Right

Employers received another reminder that, although employee jury waivers and arbitration agreements are permitted, if they are not drafted properly they will not be enforced by the courts. In Noren v. Heartland Payment Sys., a trial court ruled that the plaintiff/employee had signed an enforceable jury waiver agreement and, after a full non-jury trial before the judge, a verdict was rendered in favor of the defendant/employer. However, the New Jersey Appellate Court reversed the trial court and found that the signed agreement was not specific enough to constitute a valid waiver of a plaintiff’s right to a jury trial on his whistleblower claim. As a result, the verdict in favor of the defendant/employer was overturned and the employer will now have to defend the whistleblower claim a second time before a jury.