In a recent decision, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit clarified a key question that is becoming more frequent in single plaintiff and class action litigation: whether a Rule 68 offer of judgment that is not accepted moots a plaintiff’s individual claims to continue their case. A Rule 68 Offer of Judgment is a procedural tool that allows defendants to offer a plaintiff a specific amount of money (usually the maximum recovery allowed under a statute) ...
Continue Reading →14 MAY
On May 13, 2015, Fitapelli & Schaffer, LLP filed a class action lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York against Gaucho, LLC; Samba Brands Management; 7th & Barrow LLC; Avenue Spoon Inc.; Shimon Bokova; Danielle Billera; and Matthew Johnson (collectively, “Defendants”) who collectively own and operate the Sushi Samba restaurants in New York City, Miami Beach, Coral Gables, and Las Vegas. The lawsuit is filed on behalf of all servers, bussers, runners, bartenders, ...
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Governor Cuomo, frustrated from facing resistance and delays from the legislature in his attempts to raise the minimum wage rate once more, is resolute on making an increase a reality. This Thursday, the Governor will use his authority to direct the labor commissioner to convene a Wage Board and examine the current minimum wage in the fast-food industry. The board is expected to give its recommendations as to what it believes the minimum wage rate in this industry should be ...
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The countless nail salons in New York City and surrounding areas, as documented by a recent NY Times article, have recently been placed under the microscope in regards to wage and hour violations and hazardous working conditions. Several violations have become apparent such as these salons paying its workers way below the minimum hourly wage rate, no overtime pay, not being paid for all hours worked, and often not being paid at all. Last year, the Department of Labor ...
Continue Reading →13 APR
The Office of the New York Attorney General has recently announced an investigation into certain employment policies utilized by 13 major retailers, including Gap, Abercrombie & Fitch, Target, J. Crew, Sears, and TJX, that allow them to keep employees on unpredictable “on call” schedules. “On call shifts” require employees to call in to work a few hours prior to the start of their shift, or sometimes the night before, in order to find out whether or not they need to ...
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We are currently investigating several popular weight-loss and workout supplements labelled to contain the active ingredient acacia rigidula, a shrub native to parts of Mexico and southern Texas. A recent study analyzing multiple brands of acacia rigidula supplements found that a large percentage of the supposedly “natural” products actually contain the dangerous, lab-made stimulant BMPEA (beta-methylphenylethylamine). BMPEA is a chemical almost identical to amphetamine, an addictive stimulant that has been linked to many serious health conditions, including high ...
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On March 27, 2015, in the case of Scott v. Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc., Magistrate Judge Sarah Netburn of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York granted and denied in part Plaintiffs’ motion to compel production of particular documents in Defendant’s revised privilege log. The motion was filed on February 24, 2015 by Fitapelli & Schaffer LLP and Outten Golden, LLP on behalf of Plaintiffs, in response to Defendant’s privilege log, provided in discovery, which ...
Continue Reading →27 MAR
On March 27, 2015, in the case of Flood v. Carlson Restaurants Inc., Judge Analisa Torres of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York denied Defendants motion to transfer the action to the Northern District of Texas and to partially dismiss Plaintiffs’ FLSA minimum wage claim. Plaintiffs originally commenced this action on April 17, 2014, on behalf of themselves and all similarly situated current and former tipped workers – including servers, bussers, runners, bartenders, barbacks, ...
Continue Reading →26 MAR
On March 26, 2015, Fitapelli & Schaffer, LLP filed a class action lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York against Dinosaur Restaurants, LLC, JLN-Store, Inc. f/k/a Dino-Store, Inc., Soros Strategic Partners LP, and John Stage, who collectively own and operated the Dinosaur Bar-B-Que franchise. This lawsuit is specifically filed on behalf of all servers, bussers, runners, bartenders, and other “Tipped Workers” who work or have worked at the following Dinosaur Bar-B-Que restaurants: the ...
Continue Reading →26 MAR
In a recent 6-3 decision, in the case of Young v. United Parcel Service, Inc., the Supreme Court has overturned a Fourth Circuit decision which granted summary judgment in favor of the Defendants, in regards to their failure to grant Plaintiff reasonable accommodations under the Pregnancy Discrimination Act. Specifically, Plaintiff was a pregnant postal service worker who was told by her Doctor that she should not attempt to lift more than 20 pounds while pregnant. However, since the postal service ...
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