Bernier v. Gard Recycling, Inc.
- Vernon Broderick
- 1:23-cv-00761
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Bernier v. Gard Recycling, Inc., Judge Broderick ordered the parties to submit their FLSA settlement for fairness review.
The named plaintiffs, defendants, and their attorneys, who must provide the settlement materials and any attorney-fee documentation required by the order.
What happened
In Bernier v. Gard Recycling, Inc., the parties told the court that they had reached a settlement in a Fair Labor Standards Act case. The settlement terms were not included in the opinion.
The court explained that an FLSA settlement must be approved by the district court or the Department of Labor before the parties can privately settle covered claims with prejudice. The court must determine whether the agreement is fair and reasonable, including by considering the possible recovery, avoided litigation costs, litigation risks, bargaining process, and possible fraud or collusion.
Judge Vernon S. Broderick ordered the parties, within 30 days, to submit the settlement terms and a joint letter of no more than five pages explaining why the agreement is fair and reasonable. If the agreement includes attorney’s fees, they must also provide evidence supporting those fees, including billing records. The order did not approve or reject the settlement.
The detailed version
- Bernier v. Gard Recycling, Inc. · No. 1:23-cv-00761
- Vernon Broderick
- May 10, 2024
Background
The court was advised that the parties had reached a settlement in this Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) case. The opinion does not state the settlement amount or provide the agreement’s terms.
Legal standard
The court explained that parties may not privately settle FLSA claims with prejudice without approval from either the district court or the Department of Labor. The court therefore must determine whether the proposed settlement is fair and reasonable. It must consider the total circumstances, including the plaintiffs’ possible recovery, the burdens and expenses the settlement would avoid, the litigation risks, whether experienced counsel negotiated the agreement at arm’s length, and the possibility of fraud or collusion.
When a settlement includes attorney’s fees, the court must separately assess whether those fees are reasonable. Counsel must provide a factual basis for the requested award, including contemporaneous billing records showing, for each attorney, the date, hours worked, and nature of the work.
Order
The court ordered the parties to provide the settlement terms within 30 days so the court could determine whether they comply with the FLSA and reflect a reasonable compromise of disputed issues. The parties also must submit a joint letter of no more than five pages addressing why the settlement is fair and reasonable, including information about the five listed factors. If the agreement provides for attorney’s fees, the parties must submit supporting evidence for the fee award. The opinion does not state that the court approved or rejected the settlement.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.