Salto v. Serendipity 3, Inc.
- Ronnie Abrams
- 1:18-cv-03378
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 3
In Salto v. Serendipity 3, Judge Abrams approved a $650,000 wage settlement and dismissed the complaint with prejudice.
The plaintiffs, Serendipity 3, Inc., and Stephen Bruce were affected. The plaintiffs received the approved settlement, and the defendants agreed to pay it; the complaint was dismissed with prejudice.
What happened
In Salto v. Serendipity 3, Inc., 27 employees accused Serendipity 3, Inc. and Stephen Bruce of violating the federal Fair Labor Standards Act and New York labor law. The parties asked the court to approve their settlement.
The court found the settlement fair and reasonable. Defendants agreed to pay $650,000, including $213,708 in attorneys’ fees and $3,000 in costs. The court also approved the fees and a release limited to claims involving unpaid compensation.
Judge Ronnie Abrams approved the settlement agreement, dismissed the complaint with prejudice as required by the agreement, and directed the Clerk of Court to close the case.
The detailed version
- Salto v. Serendipity 3, Inc. · No. 1:18-cv-03378
- Ronnie Abrams
- Dec. 2, 2019
Background
Bolivar Salto and the other listed plaintiffs sued Serendipity 3, Inc., doing business as Serendipity 3, and Stephen Bruce. They alleged violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act, a federal wage-and-hour law, and the New York Labor Law. The parties asked the court to approve a settlement agreement.
Settlement Amount
The defendants agreed to pay the plaintiffs a total of $650,000. That amount included $213,708 in attorneys’ fees and $3,000 in costs. The plaintiffs estimated that their unpaid wages, without additional damages, totaled approximately $578,535. They estimated that the amount would increase to approximately $1,157,070 if liquidated damages were included. The court noted that the settlement equaled 112% of the estimated unpaid wages without liquidated damages and 52% of the estimate including liquidated damages.
The court acknowledged that the settlement was less than the maximum amount the plaintiffs said they might recover at trial. It nevertheless found the settlement fair and reasonable in light of the legal and evidentiary challenges. Plaintiffs’ counsel reported that the defendants strongly disputed the damages calculations and argued that their total possible exposure was no more than $24,000. Based on the circumstances as a whole, the court accepted the settlement amount.
Attorneys’ Fees and Release
The court independently reviewed the attorneys’ fee request, as required in Fair Labor Standards Act cases. The $213,708 fee was approximately 33% of the $641,000 settlement fund after costs. The court found that percentage reasonable.
The court also reviewed the settlement’s release provision. It found the release acceptable because it released only claims concerning allegations of unpaid compensation, rather than broadly releasing unrelated or unknown claims.
Ruling
Judge Ronnie Abrams approved the parties’ settlement agreement. The court dismissed the complaint with prejudice in accordance with the settlement agreement and directed the Clerk of Court to close the case.
Read the full 3-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.