Ortiz Valencia v. Empire Structural Group, LLC
- Paul Engelmayer
- 1:18-cv-08848
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 1
In Ortiz Valencia v. Empire Structural Group, Judge Moses vacated deadlines after settlement and required filings for possible approval of the FLSA settlement.
The parties and their counsel were affected: the parties had to submit settlement materials by December 20, 2019, and counsel had to provide time and expense records if fees and costs were requested.
What happened
In Ortiz Valencia v. Empire Structural Group, LLC, the parties told the court they had settled their dispute, including claims under the Fair Labor Standards Act. The opinion does not state the settlement’s terms or say that the court had approved it.
Judge Barbara Moses vacated all previously set deadlines. She ordered the parties to submit a signed settlement agreement, a joint explanation of why the agreement is fair and reasonable, and, if they seek attorney’s fees and costs, counsel’s records of time and expenses.
The submissions were due by December 20, 2019, had to comply with the assigned district judge’s practices, and had to address the requirements for reviewing Fair Labor Standards Act settlements. The order also said the parties could consent to proceed before the assigned magistrate judge.
The detailed version
- Ortiz Valencia v. Empire Structural Group, LLC · No. 1:18-cv-08848
- Paul Engelmayer
- Dec. 6, 2019
Background
The parties had settled their dispute, including claims under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The opinion does not provide the settlement amount, the settlement’s other terms, or the underlying allegations.
Order
The court vacated all deadlines previously set in the case. It ordered the parties to submit by December 20, 2019:
- A fully executed written settlement agreement, which would be filed publicly.
- A joint letter explaining why the settlement was fair and reasonable under the factors identified in Wolinsky v. Scholastic Inc.
- Counsel’s time and expense records if the parties requested an award of attorney’s fees and costs.
The parties’ submissions had to follow the individual practices of the assigned district judge, including the requirement that parties settling FLSA claims address Cheeks v. Freeport Pancake House, Inc. and Wolinsky. The order stated that the parties could instead consent to the jurisdiction of the assigned magistrate judge and advised them to review Judge Moses’s prior decisions concerning FLSA settlements if they did so.
Disposition and effect
Judge Moses ordered the deadlines vacated and required the settlement-related submissions. The opinion does not state that the court approved or rejected the settlement. It also does not state what happened after the December 20 submission deadline.
Read the full 1-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.