Mariano Guerrero v. Jerome Meat & Produce Corporation

Background

Jesus Mariano Guerrero brought claims against Jerome Meat & Produce Corporation, Jerome Meat & Produce Corporation I, Jerome Meat & Produce Corporation II, H&B Fresh Produce Corp., and Abbas Safa a/k/a Abbas Saffa or Eddie Safa under the Fair Labor Standards Act and the New York Labor Law. He alleged that the defendants failed to pay minimum wages and overtime.

The parties previously sought approval of a settlement, but the Court denied that request without prejudice to renewal. The Court later denied the parties’ joint motion for reconsideration. The parties then amended their settlement and again requested approval.

Settlement Terms and Fairness Analysis

The revised Settlement provides Guerrero with a total recovery of $40,000, including attorney’s fees and costs. Guerrero will ultimately receive $26,248.45, paid in 32 consecutive monthly installments. Guerrero stated that his unpaid wages and overtime totaled $118,864 and that his maximum possible recovery, including liquidated damages, was $290,964.

The Court recognized that Guerrero’s net recovery was lower than amounts typically approved in the district, but found that it was not dramatically lower. The defendants maintained that they had paid all wages due. Guerrero acknowledged that there was little documentation of the hours he worked, creating a substantial risk that a factfinder would determine that he worked fewer hours and was entitled to less money.

The Court also considered collectability concerns. The market where Guerrero worked had closed, and the Court stated that Abbas Safa’s assets appeared limited and that he had at least $60,000 in debt obligations. The parties represented that they reached the Settlement through mediated, arm’s-length bargaining with both sides represented by counsel and without fraud or collusion.

The Settlement’s release was narrower than the release in the earlier agreement. It releases the defendants from liability for Guerrero’s wage-and-hour claims that were raised in the complaint, through the date the Settlement was executed. The Court found that the Settlement satisfied the applicable fairness factors and was fair and reasonable.

Attorney’s Fees and Costs

Guerrero requested $13,751.55 in attorney’s fees and costs, slightly more than one-third of the total settlement. His attorney, Colin Mulholland, submitted contemporaneous billing records showing 11 hours of work at $375 per hour. The Court calculated a lodestar—reasonable hours multiplied by a reasonable hourly rate—of $4,125 in fees, plus $647 in costs.

The requested award represented a multiplier of approximately 2.88 over the lodestar. Although the Court described that multiplier as high, it accepted the award because it equaled one-third of the total settlement and was consistent with Guerrero’s retainer agreement. The Court found the requested attorney’s fees and costs fair and reasonable.

Disposition

Judge Analisa Torres granted the parties’ motion for settlement approval and ordered the Settlement. The Clerk of Court was directed to terminate pending motions, vacate conferences, and close the case. The Court retained jurisdiction to enforce the Settlement for one year from the date of the order.