Pavon Hernandez v. Gemini Diner Inc.
- Paul Engelmayer
- 1:20-cv-04741
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 3
Pavon Hernandez v. Gemini Diner: Judge Engelmayer approved the wage-settlement agreement but reduced counsel’s payment to $9,791.
Jorge Pavon Hernandez, Alejandro Pavon, Alexis Bravo, plaintiffs’ counsel CSM Legal, P.C., and the defendants to the settlement, including Gemini Diner.
What happened
In Pavon Hernandez v. Gemini Diner, the parties asked the court to approve a settlement resolving claims under the Fair Labor Standards Act, New York Labor Law, and a hospitality wage rule. The proposed agreement provided payments to the plaintiffs and their lawyer.
The agreement called for $10,000 for plaintiffs’ lawyer, CSM Legal, P.C.; $10,000 for Jorge Pavon Hernandez; and $5,000 each for Alejandro Pavon and Alexis Bravo. The parties also reported that the lawyer had incurred $627 in costs.
Judge Paul A. Engelmayer approved the settlement but reduced the lawyer’s award to $9,791 and distributed the remaining $209 among the plaintiffs. He found the agreement fair and reasonable and directed the Clerk to close the case.
The detailed version
- Pavon Hernandez v. Gemini Diner Inc. · No. 1:20-cv-04741
- Paul Engelmayer
- Apr. 25, 2022
Background
The plaintiffs brought claims under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), New York Labor Law, and the Hospitality Industry Wage Order. On April 6, 2022, the parties submitted a proposed settlement agreement signed by all parties, a damages chart, and an invoice showing the time spent by plaintiffs’ law firm litigating the case. After the court requested additional information about litigation fees, the parties submitted that information on April 22, 2022.
Settlement-approval standard
The court explained that parties generally cannot privately settle FLSA claims with prejudice without approval from the district court or the Department of Labor. The court therefore had to determine whether the agreement was fair and reasonable. It also separately reviewed whether the proposed attorneys’ fees were reasonable.
Proposed payments and modification
The agreement required defendants to pay $10,000 to plaintiffs’ counsel, CSM Legal, P.C. Jorge Pavon Hernandez was to receive $10,000, while Alejandro Pavon and Alexis Bravo were each to receive $5,000. Plaintiffs’ counsel described its proposed payment as one-third of the recovery.
The court reduced the counsel payment because it was more than one-third of the settlement amount after deducting the $627 in reported costs. The court calculated one-third of the net settlement as $9,791. The parties had not provided facts showing why a fee above that presumptively reasonable amount was justified. The court therefore awarded plaintiffs’ counsel $9,791. It directed that the remaining $209 be divided proportionally among the plaintiffs, resulting in $10,104.50 for Jorge Pavon Hernandez and $5,052.25 each for Alejandro Pavon and Alexis Bravo.
Ruling
Judge Paul A. Engelmayer approved the settlement agreement with the modification to attorneys’ fees and the resulting distribution to the plaintiffs. He found that the agreement had been reached through procedurally fair means and was fair and reasonable. The Clerk of Court was directed to close the case.
Read the full 3-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.