Judge Rules Against Fired Salesforce Exec's Bid to Avoid Arbitration

A New York federal judge has ruled that Tricia Lane, a former Salesforce regional vice president, cannot avoid arbitration for her claims of gender discrimination and age and disability bias. Lane was fired from her position in 2025 after she complained about the treatment she received while working at the company.

Lane had signed an arbitration agreement with Salesforce but sought to avoid it under the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act, a federal law passed in response to the #MeToo movement. However, the judge ruled that Lane did not plausibly allege sexual harassment and therefore did not trigger the law's ban on forced arbitration in such cases.

The ruling means that Lane will have to go through the arbitration process to resolve her claims against Salesforce.