Wage-and-Hour Class Action Against National Retail Chain Resolved Efficiently

Payne & Fears LLP represented a national retail chain in a “second wave” class action lawsuit where the plaintiff alleged misclassification of the stores’ California‐based assistant store managers and purported wage-and-hour violations. Our attorneys were able to negotiate a very favorable settlement prior to the hearing on class certification, engaging in aggressive fact discovery (obtaining declarations from employees regarding allegations concerning the elements of the exemption analysis) and convincing the plaintiff to attend an early mediation prior to taking any depositions. This defense strategy resulted in a settlement amount nearly one-tenth of the amount in the first wave lawsuit, which had been defended by another law firm. At the same time, legal fees and costs were a mere fraction of those incurred in the first wave lawsuit.