Labor & Employment Law Community Top Cases

Dionne v. Floormasters Enters., 2011 U.S. App. LEXIS 15560 (July 28, 2011)

Labor.Employment@lnstaff.com (LexisNexis Labor & Employment Law Community Staff) — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 17:14:00 -0400

LexisNexis Overview: District court did not abuse its discretion in denying former employee's motion for the award of attorney's fees and costs, under 29 U.S.C.S. § 216(b), because employee was not a prevailing party because, in granting employer's motion to dismiss lawsuit for lack of subject matter jurisdiction, district court did not award a judgment in his favor.

Counsel: For Dionne, Perry R., Appellant: Leach, Carlos V., Morgan and Morgan, ORLANDO, FL.

For Appellant: Celler, Richard B., Morgan & Morgan, PA, DAVIE, FL.

For Floormasters Enterprises, Inc., Molsick, Robert, Appellees: Cluster, Edwin C., Ayres, Cluster, Curry, McCall, Collins & Fuller, P.A., Ocala, FL.

For Appellee

Brown v. Dep't of Pub. Safety, 2011 U.S. App. LEXIS 15790 (July 29, 2011)

dougesten.lnc@gmail.com (LexisNexis Community Staff) — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 16:56:00 -0400

LexisNexis Overview: Employer was entitled to summary judgment on claims of racial discrimination and retaliation in violation of Title VII because, as to one incident, employee failed to show any adverse employment action; employee's attorney failed to exhaust administrative remedies in order to obtain a right to sue letter with respect to 52 additional incidents.

Counsel: For WALLACE R. BROWN, III, Plaintiff - Appellant: Venetia K. Carpenter-Asui, Esquire, Attorney, Law Office of Venetia K. Carpenter-Asui, Ocean View Center, Honolulu, HI.

For DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY, STATE OF HAWAII, Defendant - Appellee: Nelson Y. Nabeta, Esquire, Deputy Attorney General, AGHI - OFFICE OF THE HAWAII ATTORNEY GENERAL, Honolulu, HI.

Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. v. Dukes, 2011 U.S. LEXIS 4567 (June 20, 2011)

Labor.Employment@lnstaff.com (LexisNexis Labor & Employment Law Community Staff) — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 17:08:00 -0400

LexisNexis Overview: Employees' Title VII sex discrimination class action claims against a nationwide employer could not be certified under Fed. R. Civ. P. 23(a)(2) due to lack of commonality; the employees did not offer adequate proof that the employer operated under a general policy of discrimination. Backpay claims were improperly certified under Rule 23(b)(2).

Counsel: Theodore J. Boutrous, Jr. argued the cause for petitioner.

Joseph M. Sellers argued the cause for respondents.

Judges: SCALIA, J., delivered the opinion of the Court, in which ROBERTS, C. J., and KENNEDY, THOMAS, and ALITO, JJ., joined, and in which GINSBURG, BREYER, SOTOMAYOR, and KAGAN, JJ., joined as to Parts I and III. GINSBURG, J., filed an

Carder v. Cont'l Airlines, Inc., 636 F.3d 172 (March 22, 2011)

Labor.Employment@lnstaff.com (LexisNexis Labor & Employment Law Community Staff) — Tue, 19 Apr 2011 14:49:00 -0400

LexisNexis Overview: In affirming the partial dismissal of a putative class claim against an airline, the court concluded, on an issue of first impression, that service members could not bring a freestanding cause of action for hostile work environment against their employers pursuant to the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA).

Counsel: For DEREK CARDER, an Individual, on Behalf of Himself and all Others Similarly Situated, MARK BOLLETER, an Individual, on Behalf of Himself and all Others Similarly Situated, DREW DAUGHTERTY, An Individual, on Behalf of HImself and all Others Similarly Situated, ANDREW KISSINGER, An Individual, oin Behalf of Himself and all Others Similarly Situated, Plaintiffs - Appellants: Brian J. Lawler, Esq., Alexandra Gail Taylor, Pilot Law, P.C., San Diego, CA; Gene Joseph Stonebarger, Esq., Stonebarger Law, A.P.C., Folsom, CA; Charles Michael Billy, Lake Forest, CA; Andrew Struben de Klerk, Esq

Kasten v. Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics Corp., 2011 U.S. LEXIS 2417 (Mar. 22, 2011)

Labor.Employment@lnstaff.com (LexisNexis Labor & Employment Law Community Staff) — Tue, 19 Apr 2011 12:42:00 -0400

LexisNexis Overview: Limiting 29 U.S.C.S. § 215(a)(3)'s anti-retaliation provision to written complaints would undermine the FLSA's basic objectives, and the phrase "any complaint" suggested a broad interpretation that would include an oral complaint, thus, Seventh Circuit's holding that § 215(a)(3)'s "filed any complaint" did not include oral complaints was vacated.

Counsel: James H. Kaster argued the cause for petitioner.

Jeffrey B. Wall argued the cause for the United States, as amicus curiae, by special leave of court.

Carter G. Phillips argued the cause for respondent.

Judges: BREYER, J., delivered the opinion of the Court, in which ROBERTS, C. J., and KENNEDY, GINSBURG, ALITO, and SOTOMAYOR, JJ., joined. SCALIA, J., filed a dissenting opinion, in which THOMAS, J., joined as to all but n. 6. KAGAN, J., took no part in the consideration or decision of the case.

Staub v. Proctor Hosp., 2011 U.S. LEXIS 1900, (March 1, 2011)

Labor.Employment@lnstaff.com (LexisNexis Labor & Employment Law Community Staff) — Tue, 22 Mar 2011 13:39:00 -0400

LexisNexis Overview: Where a vice president fired an employee who was a member of the United States Army Reserve, the employer was not entitled to judgment as a matter of law regarding the "cat's paw" discrimination claim under USERRA, because, inter alia, there was evidence that supervisors were motivated by antimilitary animus and their actions were causal factors.

Counsel: Eric Schnapper argued the cause for petitioner.

Roy G. Davis argued the cause for respondent.

Judges: SCALIA, J., delivered the opinion of the Court, in which ROBERTS, C. J., and KENNEDY, GINSBURG, BREYER, and SOTOMAYOR, JJ., joined. ALITO, J., filed an opinion concurring in the judgment, in which THOMAS, J., joined. KAGAN, J., took no part in the consideration or decision of the case.

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U.S. High Court Hears Arguments in Appeal Over FLSA, Verbal Complaints (Kasten v. Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics Corp.)

bajeerah.lacava@lexisnexis.com (Bajeerah LaCava) — Wed, 13 Oct 2010 16:10:00 -0400

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Both written and verbal complaints are allowed under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), the attorney representing a former plastics company employee argued before the U.S. Supreme Court on October 13 (Kevin Kasten v. Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics Corporation, No. 09-834, U.S. Sup.; See September 2010, Page 27).

"When Kevin Kasten told his employer that the location of the time clocks was illegal and that if they were taken to the court they would lose, he filed any complaint within the meaning of the 215(a)(3) under the Fair Labor Standards Act, because filing includes an oral communication, because 'any' means any, which includes formal or informal, written or unwritten communications," argued James H. Kaster of Nichols Kaster in Minneapolis.

Assistant to the Solicitor General Jeffrey B. Wall of the U.S. Department of Justice also presented oral arguments on behalf of

City of Ontario v. Quon, 2010 U.S. LEXIS 4972 (June 17, 2010)

Labor.Employment@lnstaff.com (LexisNexis Labor & Employment Law Community Staff) — Tue, 12 Oct 2010 15:40:00 -0400

LexisNexis Overview: Petitioners did not violate employee's Fourth Amendment rights by obtaining and reviewing transcript of text messages sent to him on pager provided by city because search was justified because there were reasonable grounds for suspecting that search was necessary for noninvestigatory work-related purpose, and search was permissible in its scope.

Judges: Kent L. Richland argued the cause for petitioners.

Neal K. Katyal argued the cause for the United States, as amicus curiae, by special leave of court.

Dieter Dammeier argued the cause for respondents.

OPINION BY: KENNEDY, J., delivered the opinion of the Court, in which ROBERTS, C. J., and STEVENS, THOMAS, GINSBURG, BREYER, ALITO, and SOTOMAYOR, JJ., joined, and in which SCALIA, J., joined except for Part III-A. STEVENS, J., filed a concurring opinion. SCALIA, J., filed an opinion concurring in part and concurring in the judgment

Rent-A-Center, W., Inc. v. Jackson, 2010 U.S. LEXIS 4981 (June 21, 2010)

Labor.Employment@lnstaff.com (LexisNexis Labor & Employment Law Community Staff) — Tue, 12 Oct 2010 15:35:00 -0400

LexisNexisOverview: Former employee's claim that an arbitration agreement was unconscionable did not specifically challenge a provision that delegated to the arbitrator the authority to decide whether the agreement was enforceable; the delegation provision therefore was treated as valid under 9 U.S.C.S. § 2, and the agreement's validity was left for the arbitrator.

Counsel: Robert F. Friedman argued the cause for petitioner.

Ian E. Silverberg argued the cause for respondent.

Judges: SCALIA, J., delivered the opinion of the Court, in which ROBERTS, C. J., and KENNEDY, THOMAS, and ALITO, JJ., joined. STEVENS, J., filed a dissenting opinion, in which GINSBURG, BREYER, and SOTOMAYOR, JJ., joined.

OPINION BY: SCALIA

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New Process Steel, L.P. v. NLRB, 2010 U.S. LEXIS 4973 (June 17, 2010)

Labor.Employment@lnstaff.com (LexisNexis Labor & Employment Law Community Staff) — Tue, 12 Oct 2010 15:00:00 -0400

LexisNexis Overview: Where the NLRB delegated all of its powers to a three-member group before the NLRB was left with only two members due to expired appointments, remand was warranted because the delegation clause of 29 U.S.C.S. § 153(b) required that a delegee group maintain a membership of three in order to exercise the delegated authority of the NLRB.

Counsel: Sheldon E. Richie argued the cause for petitioner.

Neal K. Katyal argued the cause for respondent.

Judges: Stevens, J., delivered the opinion of the Court, in which Roberts, C. J., and Scalia, Thomas, and Alito, JJ., joined. Kennedy, J., filed a dissenting opinion, in which Ginsburg, Breyer, and Sotomayor, JJ., joined.

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