Suit challenging Calif. employment classification law dismissed

A federal judge Friday dismissed a lawsuit brought by the California Trucking Association and the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association challenging California’s employment classification law.

The association challenged Assembly Bill 5 on various grounds, including contending it violated the U.S. Commerce Clause and that it created “irrational or animus-based classifications for employment,” according to the ruling, issued by U.S. District Judge Roger Benitez of the Southern District of California. The case is California Trucking Association et al. and Owner Operator Independent Drivers Association v. Attorney General Rob Bonta et al. and International Brotherhood of Teamsters.

The court had granted a preliminary injunction in 2019 based on an initial determination that the law might violate the Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act, but a federal appeals court ultimately determined there was no conflict.

Judge Benitez ruled for the defendants on all claims, saying AB 5 didn’t violate the FAAA or the Commerce Clause, and that it didn’t violate the Equal Protection Clause of the U.S. and California constitutions.

“Remedying complexities and perceived deficiencies in AB 5 are the kind of work better left to the soap box and the ballot box than to the jury box,” Judge Benitez wrote. “The courts, on the other hand, are not the proper bodies for imposing legislative amendments.”

The plaintiffs had sought a new injunction, but the judge denied the request and dismissed the case entirely.