Lowry v. Queens Ball LLC

Background

William Shane Lowry brought this wage-and-hour case against Queens Ball LLC and Mariano Otero. He alleged, among other things, violations of the overtime provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and several violations of New York Labor Law. The parties consented to Magistrate Judge James L. Cott’s jurisdiction to review their proposed settlement.

Settlement review

The parties submitted a joint letter and a proposed settlement agreement for approval under the Second Circuit’s requirements for reviewing FLSA settlements. The court stated that FLSA settlements generally receive a strong presumption of fairness, but courts review them because the parties may be better positioned to assess the settlement’s reasonableness.

After reviewing the parties’ submissions, the court found that all settlement terms, including the allocation of attorney’s fees and costs, appeared fair and reasonable under the circumstances. The court noted that the agreement appeared to result from arm’s-length bargaining between experienced counsel. It also approved the mutual general releases because Lowry was a former employee with no ongoing relationship with the defendants and the releases applied to both sides.

Ruling

Judge Cott approved the settlement. The court clarified that approving the allocation of attorney’s fees did not approve the hourly rate of Lowry’s counsel, and that approving the settlement did not approve the parties’ agreed tax allocations. The parties were directed to submit their stipulation of dismissal by July 21, 2028.

Disposition

The settlement was approved. The opinion does not state that the court entered a dismissal; it directs the parties to submit a stipulation of dismissal by the stated date.