On August 26, 2013, California Governor Jerry Brown signed Senate Bill No. 462, which amends Section 218.5 of the Labor Code to make the award of attorneys' fees and costs in compensation-related litigation where the prevailing party is not an employee contingent on the court finding the employee brought the action in bad faith. Under previous law, courts were required to award reasonable attorneys' fees and costs to the prevailing party in actions for the nonpayment of wages, fringe benefits or health and welfare or pension fund contributions if any party to the action requested attorneys' fees and costs when the case began.

For more information on California's compensation laws, see State Q&A, Wage and Hour Laws: California.