De Jesus v. Carnegie Valet Cleaning Corp.
- Paul Engelmayer
- 1:23-cv-04783
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 4
In De Jesus v. Gotham Cleaners, Judge Engelmayer awarded Jorge De Jesus $8,121.36 plus interest, fees, and costs after defendants defaulted.
Jorge De Jesus received the awarded wages, liquidated damages, interest, attorney’s fees, and costs. Gotham Cleaners, Inc. and Cory Perlson were held jointly and severally liable for those amounts.
What happened
In De Jesus v. Gotham Cleaners, Jorge De Jesus sued Gotham Cleaners, Inc. and Cory Perlson under federal and New York wage laws. The defendants did not appear or respond, and the court entered default judgment for De Jesus in October 2023. Claims against Carnegie Valet Cleaning Corporation and Carnegie Linen Services, Inc. had previously been voluntarily dismissed.
The court adopted Magistrate Judge Sarah L. Cave’s recommendation after neither party objected. It awarded De Jesus $4,060.68 in unpaid wages, $4,060.68 in liquidated damages, pre-judgment interest, post-judgment interest, $1,960 in attorney’s fees, and $542 in costs.
Judge Paul A. Engelmayer found no clear error in the recommendation, adopted it in full, directed the Clerk of Court to close the case, and stated that the parties’ failure to object waived appellate review.
The detailed version
- De Jesus v. Carnegie Valet Cleaning Corp. · No. 1:23-cv-04783
- Paul Engelmayer
- Nov. 26, 2024
Background
Jorge De Jesus brought claims under the Fair Labor Standards Act and the New York Labor Law against Gotham Cleaners, Inc. and Cory Perlson. The defendants did not appear, respond to the complaint, or otherwise participate. On October 31, 2023, the court entered default judgment for De Jesus and referred the case to Magistrate Judge Sarah L. Cave to determine damages, attorney’s fees, and costs.
De Jesus submitted proposed findings, an affidavit, an invoice for legal services, and documentation of costs. Gotham did not respond. Judge Cave issued a Report and Recommendation on August 1, 2024, recommending that the defendants be held jointly and severally liable for $8,121.36 in damages, plus interest, $1,960 in attorney’s fees, and $542 in costs. The Report gave the parties 14 days to object, but neither party filed objections.
Court’s Analysis
Because there were no objections, the district court reviewed the Report and Recommendation for clear error, meaning an obvious mistake on the record. Judge Engelmayer found no such error and adopted the Report in its entirety. The court also stated that both parties’ failure to object waived appellate review.
Disposition
The court awarded De Jesus:
- $4,060.68 in compensatory damages, consisting of $2,642.64 in unpaid straight-time wages and $1,418.04 in unpaid overtime wages; - $4,060.68 in liquidated damages; - Pre-judgment interest on the compensatory damages, calculated from October 8, 2020, through entry of judgment; - Post-judgment interest under 28 U.S.C. § 1961; - $1,960 in attorney’s fees; and - $542 in costs.
The court directed the Clerk of Court to terminate all pending motions and close the case.
Read the full 4-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.