Poletti v. Pepsi-Cola Bottling Company Of New York, Inc.

Background

This Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) case concerns a stipulation under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 41(a)(1)(A)(ii). The stipulation stated that Plaintiffs Terence Poletti, Leonard Costa, Arthur Combs, Matthew Dundie, William Good, Jeffrey Good, Nick Purcell, Angel Lopez, and Gerard Amitrano—the “Stipulating Plaintiffs”—voluntarily dismissed their claims against all named Defendants.

Settlement Review

The court explained that FLSA claims cannot be privately settled without approval from the district court or the Department of Labor. If the parties reached a settlement, the court must review whether it is fair and reasonable. The review considers the plaintiffs’ possible recovery, the burdens and expenses the settlement would avoid, the litigation risks, whether experienced counsel negotiated at arm’s length, and the possibility of fraud or collusion. The court must separately assess the reasonableness of any attorney’s-fee award.

Order

The court ordered the parties to notify it within 30 days whether the Stipulating Plaintiffs and Defendants had reached a settlement agreement. If they had, the parties had to submit the settlement terms and a joint letter of no more than five pages explaining why the agreement was a fair and reasonable compromise, including information about the five review factors. If the agreement included attorney’s fees, the parties also had to provide evidence supporting the award, including contemporaneous billing records identifying each attorney, the date, hours worked, and work performed.

The order did not approve a settlement or otherwise state that the requested dismissal had been entered. It required the parties to provide information before further action on the dismissal. Judge Vernon S. Broderick signed the order on August 21, 2025.