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A California appellate court held that a court order enforcing a mediated settlement agreement could not be appealed when the plaintiff had a seven-day period to revoke the agreement.
In Rodriguez v. Hewlett Packard, No. H029055, 2007 WL 708799 (Cal. Ct. App. Mar. 9, 2007), Rodriguez entered into a lengthy dispute with her former employer, Hewlett Packard, regarding discrimination and wrongful termination claims.
A settlement agreement was drafted after the parties participated in mediation. This agreement gave Rodriguez a period of seven days to revoke her acceptance after signing the agreement. The trial court granted Hewlett Packard's motion to enforce the settlement agreement, and Rodriguez appealed.
The Court held that the court order at issue was an "interim" order and therefore not appealable. Rodriguez's seven-day revocation period presented an unresolved issue, which resulted in a legal dispute that was not final. If Rodriguez elected to revoke the settlement agreement, then the action would be again "at large" and set for trial.
At this juncture, Hewlett Packard's only available course of action was to apply ex parte for an order directing the clerk to sign the agreement on the plaintiff's behalf, thus tolling the seven-day revocation period.
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