Fifth Circuit

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By: Alex Simon and Kyle Petersen

Seyfarth Synopsis: In a welcome turn of events, the Seventh Circuit has taken up the question of what is the appropriate standard for court-authorized notice in collective actions.

When this Blog wrote two weeks ago, “Swales, Clark, and Laverenz pave the way for additional district and appellate courts to depart from…

Continue Reading The Seventh Circuit Has Entered the Chat. Joining the Fifth and Sixth Circuits before it, the Seventh Circuit Agrees to Review the Standard for Sending Court-Authorized Notice to Potential Plaintiffs in Collective Actions.

Tips from Seyfarth is a blog series for employers, and their in-house lawyers and HR, payroll, and compensation professionals, in the food, beverage, and hospitality sector. We curate wage and hour compliance “tips” to keep this busy industry informed.

By: Ariel Cudkowicz and Michael Steinberg

Seyfarth Synopsis: After a remand from the Fifth Circuit, a trial court has upheld the…

Continue Reading Tips from Seyfarth: Challenge to DOL’s 80/20 Rule Likely to Head Back to the Fifth Circuit

By Ryan McCoy, Alex Simon, and Cary Burke

Seyfarth Synopsis: Recently, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit ruled that a crane mechanic who performed some work on a truck chassis came within the purview of the Motor Carrier Act exemption to the Fair Labor Standards Act, irrespective of the percentage of time he spent performing…

Continue Reading An Uplifting Motor Carrier Act Exemption Victory At The Fifth Circuit

Authored by Alex Passantino

Seyfarth Synopsis: On July 26, 2017, the U.S. Department of Labor will publish its anticipated Request for Information on the White-Collar Overtime Exemption in the Federal Register. The RFI will give the regulated community 60 days to provide its comments in response.

The RFI seeks input on a wide variety of topics, many of which involve…
Continue Reading DOL Seeks Comment on Overtime Rule

Authored by Holger G. Besch 

Perhaps signaling the importance of the issue for American businesses and jurisprudence, the U.S. Supreme Court‎ chose the first day of its term beginning in October as the date to set oral arguments in three petitions for certiorari asking whether employees can be required to waive their rights via arbitration agreements to file class and…
Continue Reading SCOTUS Puts the Class Action Waiver Issue at the Top of Its Agenda

Co-authored by Robert J. Carty, Jr., John Phillips, and Alex Passantino

Seyfarth Synopsis: On June 30, the Department of Labor filed its reply brief to support its appeal from a preliminary injunction that enjoined the DOL from implementing its 2016 revisions to the salary-level tests for determining applicability of the FLSA’s executive, administrative, and professional exemptions. …
Continue Reading Finally Briefed: Appellate Experts’ Perspective on the Fully Briefed 5th Circuit EAP Exemption Appeal

Authored by Sheryl Skibbe

On Wednesday, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals granted the Justice Department’s additional unopposed request for a 60-day extension to figure out its position on the new FLSA overtime exemption rules.

The stated reason for the government’s unopposed request was to “allow incoming leadership personnel adequate time to consider the issues.” Nevada v. DOL, No.
Continue Reading Time and Time Again

Authored by Kevin Young

Will the Department of Labor’s new overtime rule go into effect? When will a new Secretary of Labor be confirmed? We don’t have the answers just yet, but a lot has happened over the last few weeks to inch us closer. As things heat up, we wanted to update our readers on all the latest.

Where …
Continue Reading New Rules, New Secretary? As Spring Inches Closer, We’re Getting Warmer.

Co-authored by Steve Shardonofsky and Tiffany Tran

Resolving a split in the lower courts and deciding an issue of first impression for the Court, the Fifth Circuit earlier this week held that prevailing plaintiffs in FLSA retaliation cases may recover emotional distress damages. While perhaps not unexpected, since the result joins with the majority rule in other Circuits, the outcome…
Continue Reading Fifth Circuit Approves Emotional Distress Damages and Invites FLSA Retaliation Plaintiffs to Sit on Freudian Couch

Authored by Seyfarth’s Wage & Hour Litigation Practice Group

Late Tuesday afternoon, Judge Amos Mazzant of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas issued an order enjoining the U.S. Department of Labor’s implementation and enforcement of the new overtime exemption rules that were set to go into effect on December 1, 2016. The court granted a…
Continue Reading Texas Judge Preliminarily Enjoins New Overtime Exemption Rules Nationwide: What Steps Should Follow?