Co-authored by David Kadue and Abad Lopez
For janitors cleaning Wal-Mart stores after business hours, the differences among members of the proposed class doomed their FLSA collective action. Although the janitors worked for Wal-Mart’s cleaning contractors, the janitors claimed that they were also employees of Wal-Mart and sued for unpaid wages. Zavala v. Wal Mart Stores, Inc. The Third Circuit’s
Co-authored by Jon Meer and Brandon McKelvey
On Tuesday, a California trial court judge in Los Angeles issued a tentative ruling denying class certification in a proposed meal and rest period class action relying on the Supreme Court’s recent decision in Brinker. This appears to be the first court in California to deny class certification in a proposed wage-hour
Authored by Robert Whitman
Charles Seward is “an IBM’er.” And in his wage-hour lawsuit against the company, no other IBM’ers will be joining him.
That’s the upshot of the March 9, 2012 ruling of Judge Vincent Briccetti of the Southern District of New York in Seward v. IBM. Judge Briccetti affirmed a decision to decertify a class of
Continue Reading IBM Lawsuit Must Proceed Individually, Not Collectively
Authored by: Noah Finkel, Brett Bartlett, Andrew Paley and Richard Alfred
Members of Seyfarth Shaw’s Wage and Hour Litigation Practice Group have authored Wage & Hour Collective and Class Litigation, the first-of-its kind treatise on wage and hour litigation. Published by American Lawyer Media’s Law Journal Press, the 912-page volume is the most comprehensive guide published to
Continue Reading Seyfarth Shaw “Writes the Book” on Wage-Hour Litigation
Authored by Loren Gesinsky
On January 20, 2012, Magistrate Judge Paul E. Davison of the Southern District of New York recommended decertifying the off-the-clock FLSA claims of 40 current and former IBM call-center representatives in Seward v. IBM. While noting “the scarcity of cases within the Second Circuit” addressing this type of motion, he relied heavily on Zivali v.
Continue Reading Certification of Call Center Class Given the Boot
Authored by Brandon McKelvey
Relying on the Supreme Court’s recent decision in Dukes v. Wal-Mart, a federal judge in California decertified a class of Dollar Tree store managers claiming they were misclassified as managers under California law. The Supreme Court’s decision in Dukes, as well as recent Ninth Circuit decisions in employment class action cases, persuaded the court
Co-authored by Noah Finkel and Rachel Urquhart
Despite rejecting all prior opposition to collective and class action certification of a class of 2,300 cable installation technicians, on the eve of a June 6, 2011 trial, U.S. District Judge Barbara Crabb of the Western District of Wisconsin decertified both the collective and class action because the plaintiffs’ proposed trial plan revealed
Continue Reading If At First You Don’t Decertify, Try, Try Again
Authored by Dana Fleming
The Ninth Circuit recently affirmed a district court decision to decertify a class of full-time supervisors employed by United Parcel Service, Inc. (“UPS”) where the only basis for class-wide treatment was UPS’s uniform policy treating all of its supervisors as exempt from overtime pay and meal- and rest-break requirements. A common strategy of plaintiffs’ counsel is
Continue Reading What Can Brown Do For You? A Lot in Breaking Up a Class Action