An employee sued his former employer, a landscape company, for wrongful termination after he was injured on the job. He alleged that his termination was in retaliation for his job injury and his employer alleged that he failed to return to work because of federal immigration authorities had questioned his eligibility to work in the United States. During litigation, the employer served discovery requests asking about the employee’s immigration status. The employee refused and the employer successfully moved to compel the information. On a writ proceeding, the court of appeal granted review of the order compelling the employee to provide the information regarding his immigration status. The court of appeal reversed the trial court order, finding that California Labor Code § 1171.5 precludes discovery of a person’s immigration status unless the person seeking to make such an inquiry has shown by clear and convincing evidence that the inquiry is necessary to comply with federal immigration law. The employer did not meet its burden under this standard.
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