Bueno v. Buzinover

Background

The plaintiffs—Rafael Bueno, David Rivera, Vieri Molina, Destiny Dominguez, Amada Reynoso, Vanesa Williams, Yasmin Nunez, Nancy Santos, Evelyn Jaco, Jane Doe I-X, and John Doe I-X—sought damages under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), the federal wage law, and the New York Labor Law. They alleged that Alla B. Buzinover, M.D., Allcity Medical, P.C., Hispanic Medical Health, P.C., K. Zark Medical, P.C., Konstantinos Zarkadas, M.D., and Yan Feldman failed to pay required minimum and overtime wages, provide accurate wage statements and wage notices, and pay wages on time and at the required frequency.

Buzinover and Feldman moved under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6), which permits dismissal when a complaint does not adequately state a legal claim. The motion was referred to Magistrate Judge Katharine H. Parker, who recommended dismissing most claims without prejudice and allowing a third amended complaint. The moving defendants objected only to allowing another amendment.

Standing and Employer Allegations

The court rejected the recommendation that the plaintiffs lacked standing—a sufficient personal injury to invoke federal jurisdiction—for their New York wage-notice, wage-statement, and untimely-pay claims. The court held that alleged failure to provide required notices and statements could interfere with employees’ concrete interest in receiving proper pay and advocating for it. It also held that delayed payment causes a concrete injury through the lost time value of money.

The court nevertheless found that the complaint did not adequately allege that Buzinover was an employer under the FLSA and New York law, or that Feldman was an employer of plaintiffs other than Bueno and Rivera. The court also found that the allegations did not sufficiently identify which entity employed plaintiffs other than Bueno and Rivera or show that the entity defendants operated as a single employer.

The court found no error in allowing Bueno and Rivera’s minimum-wage claims against Feldman, Allcity, Hispanic Medical Health, and K. Zark to proceed. The complaint alleged that Bueno and Rivera were not paid at all for their final pay period. The court also noted that a claim for unpaid work below 40 hours in a week may be available under New York law but not under the FLSA.

Disposition

The court accepted and adopted Judge Parker’s Report and Recommendation in part and granted in part and denied in part the motion to dismiss. It dismissed with prejudice all claims against Buzinover. It dismissed with prejudice all claims against Feldman except Bueno and Rivera’s claims. It dismissed without prejudice all claims against Allcity, Hispanic Medical Health, and K. Zark except Bueno and Rivera’s claims, and set March 20, 2023, as the deadline to amend claims against those entities.

The court refused to allow another amendment of the claims against Buzinover and Feldman because the plaintiffs had already amended twice, had been warned that another amendment would require good cause, and had not identified concrete facts that would cure the employer-status deficiencies. It allowed amendment of claims against the nonmoving entities because those entities had not given advance notice of a motion to dismiss and had not objected to the recommendation that dismissal be without prejudice.

The opinion’s discussion also says that claims against nonmoving defendants, including Zarkadas, were dismissed if they failed to state a claim, but the conclusion specifically lists only Allcity, Hispanic Medical Health, and K. Zark. The precise disposition of any separate claims against Zarkadas is therefore unclear from the opinion’s final language.