Employment Litigation · Primary-source case analysis

Kim: Settling Individual Labor Code Claims Does Not Eliminate PAGA Standing

By Aneeta Mishra and Timothy Chan

Published September 15, 2026 · Updated October 17, 2026

Decision: Kim v. Reins Int’l Cal., No. S246911 (Cal. Mar. 12, 2020).

Kim v. Reins International California addressed whether a worker lost Private Attorneys General Act standing after accepting an offer to settle and dismiss his individual wage-and-hour causes of action.

PAGA uses a statutory standing definition

Under the statute considered in the 2020 decision, an aggrieved employee was someone employed by the alleged violator who personally suffered one or more alleged Labor Code violations. Kim did not need an unresolved individual damages claim to continue this PAGA action. This explains the historical holding; later amendments must be checked for a current claim.

Settlement did not erase the alleged violation

Resolving the employee’s private claims did not undo his employment or the alleged Labor Code violations. The settlement compensated individual claims but did not transfer the state’s distinct interest in civil-penalty enforcement.

The PAGA claim belongs to a different remedial structure

A PAGA plaintiff seeks civil penalties on the state’s behalf rather than simply collecting the employee’s unpaid wages. Kim’s settlement of his private claims left the PAGA claim unresolved. Paying the individual claims did not itself erase the alleged violations or end that enforcement claim. Kim, slip opinion, pages 6–13.

The dismissal was reversed

The California Supreme Court held that Kim retained standing, reversed the Court of Appeal’s judgment, and directed that the case return to the trial court for further proceedings on the PAGA claim. It did not decide whether the employer committed the alleged violations. Later amendments and arbitration decisions require separate analysis for a current case. Kim, slip opinion, page 21.

Key takeaways

• Separate private Labor Code remedies from PAGA civil penalties.
• Examine the settlement and release language carefully.
• Determine whether the plaintiff satisfies PAGA’s statutory definition.
• Apply current PAGA amendments and arbitration precedent to present procedure.