A current or former employee filed a wage claim with the California Labor Commissioner, and now you have a notice with a conference date. The amount on the claim may look small. The penalties that get added to it often are not.
Karin Backstrom represents San Diego employers at every stage of a DLSE claim, from the first conference through a Berman hearing and any appeal in court.
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The Division of Labor Standards Enforcement (DLSE) is the formal name of the California Labor Commissioner’s Office. It decides individual wage claims for unpaid wages, overtime, meal and rest break premiums, final pay, and unpaid expenses. San Diego County claims are handled at the Labor Commissioner’s office at 7575 Metropolitan Drive in Mission Valley.
The process feels informal, but the result can become a court judgment. For most wage claims, an employee can reach back three years, so one claim can cover hundreds of pay periods.
Labor Commissioner work is a core part of Backstrom Labor Law’s agency defense practice for employers. Many DLSE claims also point to larger pay practice issues, which is where a wage and hour defense attorney in San Diego looks beyond the single claim to protect the rest of your workforce.
Find your stage below. Each one has its own deadline and its own risks.
The employee files a claim, and a deputy labor commissioner decides within 30 days whether to schedule a conference, send the case to a hearing, or dismiss it. You then receive a notice with the date. Use this time to pull payroll and time records and to learn the facts.
The conference is an informal meeting with a deputy. Nobody testifies under oath. The goal is settlement, and the deputy may share a view on the claim. If you do not attend, the claim usually moves to a hearing.
A Berman hearing is a formal hearing in front of a hearing officer. Witnesses testify under oath, and the hearing is recorded. If you do not appear, the hearing officer decides the case based on the employee's evidence alone.
The hearing officer issues a written decision, called an ODA, within 15 days after the hearing. It can include wages, penalties, and interest. If no one appeals in time, the ODA becomes final and can be entered as a court judgment.
Either side can appeal to San Diego Superior Court, where a judge hears the case from scratch. The deadline is short. Labor Code 98.2 gives 10 days after service, which the Labor Commissioner explains as 15 days when the decision is mailed.
An employer who appeals must post a bond or cash deposit for the full award. If the employer appeals and the employee recovers any amount above zero, the employer pays the employee's attorney's fees and costs.
The appeal decision is often the most expensive choice in a DLSE case. Make it with a clear view of the bond, the fee risk, and the odds.
Share the notice or award. Karin will confirm your deadline, explain your options at this stage, and tell you what the claim may really cost.
The unpaid wages are only the starting number. California law adds penalties that can multiply the total.
One claim can also reveal a practice that affects every hourly worker. That is when the risk shifts from a single claim to PAGA representative claim exposure, where penalties are counted per employee and per pay period.
Settlement makes sense for some claims and costs too much for others. Weigh these points before the conference.
For a closer look at each early step, read what to do after a DLSE claim arrives.
Karin reviews your payroll records and the penalty math, then gives you a candid recommendation on settling or going to hearing.
Most DLSE cases turn on paperwork. When records are missing, the hearing officer may accept the employee’s estimate of hours worked.
Gather these records early:
Meal and rest period claims come up often, and these California meal break rules for employers explain what the records need to show. Some claims also turn on whether the worker was properly classified as exempt or as an independent contractor. When that question arises, an employee misclassification attorney in San Diego can assess the broader risk.
Filing a wage claim is protected activity. Labor Code 98.6 bars any adverse action against an employee for filing one, with a civil penalty of up to $10,000 per employee for each violation.
Since 2024, the law also presumes retaliation when an employer takes adverse action within 90 days of a wage complaint. You can rebut that presumption, but only with solid, documented reasons. A current employee who believes you retaliated generally has one year to file a retaliation complaint with the Labor Commissioner.
If the employee still works for you, talk to counsel before any change to schedule, pay, or duties. Early advice costs far less than defending a retaliation claim on top of the wage claim.
Karin stays with your claim from the first notice to the final resolution.
She reads the notice, confirms the dates, and gives you a straight assessment. Consultations are typically available within 48 hours.
She reviews payroll and time data and calculates realistic exposure, including penalties.
She prepares your position and negotiates with the deputy and the employee.
She prepares your witnesses and documents and presents your defense at the Berman hearing.
She weighs the bond, fee risk, and odds with you, then handles any trial in San Diego Superior Court as part of her wage and hour litigation defense.
She helps you fix the pay practice behind the claim so the next one does not follow.
You want someone who has been in these hearing rooms before and will tell you when a fight is worth it.
Karin handles the conference, the hearing, and any appeal herself. Your file never changes hands.
Karin began her career at Littler Mendelson and Sheppard Mullin, representing employers before the DLSE and other agencies. Read more about attorney Karin Backstrom.
The firm represents employers only. Every strategy is built around your business, not a fee from the other side.
Karin weighs defense cost against the claim's real value. Her wage claim defense team in Old Town San Diego serves employers across San Diego County and California.
A DLSE claim is a wage claim an employee files with the California Labor Commissioner's Office. It can cover unpaid wages, overtime, missed break premiums, final pay, and penalties. The office holds a conference and, if needed, a Berman hearing, then issues a decision that can become a court judgment.
You should. If you skip it, the claim usually goes straight to a hearing, and you lose an early chance to resolve it. The conference also shows you how the deputy views the claim.
The hearing officer decides the case using only the employee's evidence. That usually leads to an award against the employer, which can become a court judgment. You can read the Labor Commissioner's hearing guidance for details.
Labor Code 98.2 allows 10 days after service of the decision, which the Labor Commissioner explains as 15 days when the decision is mailed. An employer must post a bond for the full award before filing. Calendar this deadline the day the decision arrives.
For most wage claims, three years. Claims based on a written contract can reach back four years. One-year limits apply to certain penalties.
You can, but be careful. The Labor Commissioner enforces only settlements signed on its own forms, and anything you say can come up at a hearing. Let counsel handle settlement talks.
Yes. An appeal goes to superior court, and a claim can draw attention to pay practices that affect other employees. That can lead to a class action or a PAGA claim, so address the underlying practice early.
Karin will review your notice, your records, and your deadline, then lay out a practical plan to resolve the claim.
