Attorneys representing the state of California and labor union members faced criticism from a federal judge about their litigation strategy in a case about whether motor carrier companies must reclassify their independent contractors as employees.

In a remote hearing Tuesday before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, U.S. District Judge Douglas Woodlock, sitting by designation from the District of Massachusetts, said a California law used to determine employee classification is written in a way that makes it difficult for judges to do their jobs.