Weathersby v. Genco Importing Inc.
- Ronnie Abrams
- 1:19-cv-11742
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Weathersby v. Genco Importing Inc., Judge Ronnie Abrams ordered the parties to choose how to proceed after reporting a wage-law settlement.
Vicki Weathersby, Genco Importing Inc. doing business as Manitoba’s, and Richard Manitoba, the parties to the FLSA case.
What happened
In Weathersby v. Genco Importing Inc., the parties reported that they had reached a settlement in a case under the Fair Labor Standards Act, a federal wage law.
Judge Abrams gave the parties until March 20, 2020, to submit materials asking the court to approve the settlement, file a voluntary dismissal without prejudice, or consent to having future proceedings handled by Magistrate Judge Fox.
The order did not approve the settlement or dismiss the case. It explained that settlement materials used by the court could be placed on the public docket and that the parties could not dismiss the case with prejudice based only on their agreement without court approval.
The detailed version
- Weathersby v. Genco Importing Inc. · No. 1:19-cv-11742
- Ronnie Abrams
- Feb. 19, 2020
Background
The opinion states that Vicki Weathersby brought this Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) case against Genco Importing Inc., doing business as Manitoba’s, and Richard Manitoba, individually. The parties reported to the court that they had reached a settlement.
Options Given to the Parties
Judge Ronnie Abrams ordered the parties, by March 20, 2020, to take one of three actions:
- Submit a joint letter explaining why the settlement was fair and reasonable, together with supporting materials, so the court could consider approving it.
- Submit a stipulation or notice of voluntary dismissal without prejudice under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure
- A dismissal without prejudice generally does not bar refiling, but the order used that term expressly. The court also stated that the parties could not stipulate to dismissal with prejudice without court approval of the settlement.
- Consent to conducting all further proceedings before Magistrate Judge Fox by completing the required consent form. The order stated that choosing not to proceed before Judge Fox would not have adverse substantive consequences.
Public Access to Settlement Materials
The court advised that materials on which it relied in deciding whether the settlement was fair could be filed on the public docket because judicial documents are generally subject to a presumption of public access.
Disposition
The court did not approve or reject the settlement, enter judgment, or dismiss the case. It issued directions for the parties’ next steps. Judge Ronnie Abrams signed the order on February 19, 2020.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.