Melendez v. Gabrielli Truck Sales, Ltd.
- Barbara Moses
- 1:22-cv-03399
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Melendez v. Gabrielli Truck Sales, Judge Moses ordered a revised Fair Labor Standards Act settlement submission instead of approving the proposed settlement.
Francisco Melendez, Gabrielli Truck Sales, Ltd., and the other parties to the proposed FLSA settlement, as well as their counsel.
What happened
In Melendez v. Gabrielli Truck Sales, Ltd., the parties told the court they had settled claims under the Fair Labor Standards Act and jointly asked the court to approve their agreement.
Judge Moses required the parties to submit a revised filing by July 11, 2022. The filing had to explain why the settlement was fair, include the signed agreement for the public docket, and provide materials supporting any request for attorney fees and costs.
Judge Moses did not approve the settlement in this order. She also cautioned that the agreement should address confidentiality, non-disparagement, general-release, and attorney-fee provisions consistently with the court’s fairness review.
The detailed version
- Melendez v. Gabrielli Truck Sales, Ltd. · No. 1:22-cv-03399
- Barbara Moses
- June 27, 2022
Background
The parties reported that they had settled their dispute, including claims under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). They jointly moved for approval of the settlement under the procedure required by Cheeks v. Freeport Pancake House, Inc. The parties later consented to Judge Moses’s authority to decide the settlement-approval motion.
Required revised submission
The court ordered that the parties may submit a modified settlement filing by July 11, 2022. The filing must include:
- A joint letter explaining why the settlement is fair and reasonable under the factors identified in Wolinsky v. Scholastic Inc.;
- A written settlement agreement signed by all parties, which will be filed publicly; and
- Any contingency-fee agreement and counsel’s time and expense records needed to support a request for attorney fees and costs.
Court’s cautions
Judge Moses cautioned that confidentiality terms are rarely appropriate in resolving wage-and-hour cases because of the policy concerns underlying the FLSA. She also warned that a non-disparagement clause should not prevent the plaintiff from making truthful statements about his employment, the lawsuit, or the settlement.
The court further cautioned that courts in the district ordinarily refuse to approve FLSA settlements containing one-sided or overly broad general releases. Any proposed award of attorney fees and costs must appear in the written settlement agreement, be supported by properly authenticated fee and expense records, and include a detailed explanation. The court emphasized that the degree of success obtained is the most important factor in evaluating whether a fee award is reasonable.
Disposition
Judge Moses ordered the parties to submit the specified modified settlement materials. This order did not approve the settlement or award attorney fees and costs.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.