Section 4: Business Institute of Bill of Rights Law at the William & Mary Law School
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College of William & Mary Law School William & Mary Law School Scholarship Repository Supreme Court Preview Conferences, Events, and Lectures 2014 Section 4: Business Institute of Bill of Rights Law at the William & Mary Law School Repository Citation Institute of Bill of Rights Law at the William & Mary Law School, "Section 4: Business" (2014). Supreme Court Preview. 244. https://scholarship.law.wm.edu/preview/244 Copyright c 2014 by the authors. This article is brought to you by the William & Mary Law School Scholarship Repository. https://scholarship.law.wm.edu/preview IV. Business In This Section: New Case: 13-433 Integrity Staffing Solutions, Inc. v. Busk p. 256 Synopsis and Questions Presented p. 256 “AMAZON WAREHOUSE WORKER PAY SUIT HEADS TO SUPREME COURT” p. 262 Claire Zillman “SUPREME COURT MAY FINALLY CLARIFY COMPENSABLE TIME” p. 264 Kenneth W. Gage “AMAZON WORKERS WANT PAY FOR TIME SPENT AT SECURITY p. 268 CHECKPOINT” Aaron Kase “FLSA ACTION CAN COEXIST WITH STATE CLASS CLAIMS: 9TH CIRC.” p. 270 Ben James New Case: 13-894 Department of Homeland Security v. MacLean p. 272 p. Synopsis and Questions Presented p. 272 “SUPREME COURT TO DECIDE WHETHER AIR MARSHAL SHOULD BE p. 280 PROTECTED AS WHISTLEBLOWER” Robert Barnes “IS HIKE IN WHISTLEBLOWER CLAIMS A SIGN OF PROGRESS OR GROWING p. 282 MISTRUST?” Jack Moore “FED. CIRC. UPS PROTECTION FOR WHISTLEBLOWERS’ DISCLOSURES” p. 285 Bill Donahue New Case: 13-485 Comptroller v. Wynne p. 287 Synopsis and Questions Presented p. 287 “SUPREME COURT AGREES TO HEAR LANDMARK CASE ON WHETHER p. 303 STATES MAY TAX INCOME EARNED IN OTHER STATES” Kelly Phillips Erb “SUPREME COURT TO HEAR MARYLAND DOUBLE TAXATION CASE” p. 306 Joseph Henchman “THE RESIDENT INCOME TAX CREDIT: DID MARYLAND MISAPPLY THE p. 308 COMMERCE CLAUSE?” Robert J. Firestone New Case: 13-1080 Department of Transportation v. Association of American p. 317 Railroads Synopsis and Questions Presented p. 317 “SUPREME COURT TO REVIEW AMTRAK ROLE IN SETTING RAIL p. 327 REGULATIONS: HIGH COURT TO HEAR CHALLENGE BY FREIGHT RAILROADS” Brent Kendall “SUPREME COURT TO CONSIDER USDOT VS. AAR RE: AMTRAK” p. 328 William C. Vantuono “AMTRAK BARRED FROM REGULATING FREIGHT RAILROADS ON DELAYS” p. 330 Angela Greiling Keane & Tom Schoenberg “A NEW PRIVATE DELEGATION DOCTRINE?” p. 332 Alexander Volokh New Case: 13-1032 Direct Marketing Association v. Brohl p. 338 Synopsis and Questions Presented p. 338 “HIGH COURT TO HEAR APPEAL OVER COLORADO ‘AMAZON TAX’ LAW” p. 351 Drew Singer “SUPREME COURT TO HEAR DMA PRIVACY SUIT, REVIEW COLORADO WEB p. 353 TAX SALES STATUTE” Alexander Ripps “TENTH CIRCUIT: TAX INJUNCTION ACT PRECLUDED FEDERAL p. 355 JURISDICTION IN COLORADO’S E-COMMERCE USE TAX REPORTING REQUIREMENTS CASE” Ellen Buckley New Case: 12-1497 Kellogg Brown & Root Services, Inc. v. United States ex rel. p. 356 Carter Synopsis and Questions Presented p. 356 “US SUPREME COURT AGREES TO ADDRESS TWO IMPORTANT FALSE p. 377 CLAIMS ACT ISSUES” Jonathan G. Cedarbaum & Daniel S. Volchok “SUPREME COURT TO HEAR APPEAL OF KBR OVER FALSE CLAIMS ACT p. 379 LAWSUIT” Eric Young “THE SUPREME COURT WILL REVIEW FOURTH CIRCUIT DECISION THAT p. 381 WEAKENED THE FALSE CLAIMS ACT’S STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS AND FIRST-TO-FILE BAR” Patrick M. Hagan & Brent D. Craft “HALLIBURTON, KBR WHISTLE-BLOWER’S CASE REVIVED ON APPEAL” p. 384 Tom Schoenberg Integrity Staffing Solutions, Inc. v. Busk 13-433 Ruling Below: Busk v. Integrity Staffing Solutions, Inc., 713 F.3d 525 (9th Cir. 2013), cert granted, 134 S.Ct. 1490 (U.S. 2014). Former employees brought putative class action against former employer, alleging violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and Nevada labor laws. The United States District Court for the District of Nevada, Roger L. Hunt, Senior District Judge granted employer's motion to dismiss. Employees appealed. Question Presented: Whether time spent in security screenings is compensable under the Fair Labor Standards Act, as amended by the Portal-to-Portal Act. JESSE BUSK; LAURIE CASTRO, on behalf of themselves and all others similarly situated, Plaintiffs-Appellants, v. INTEGRITY STAFFING SOLUTIONS, INC., Defendant-Appellee. U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit Decided on April 12, 2013 [Excerpt; some footnotes and citations omitted.] THOMAS, Circuit Judge part, reverse in part, and remand for further proceedings. In this appeal, we consider whether the district court erred in dismissing the I plaintiffs' state law claims for unpaid wages because those claims would be certified Plaintiffs Jesse Busk and Laurie Castro are using different class certification procedures former employees of Integrity Staffing than their federal wage and hour claims. We Solutions, Inc., which provides warehouse also consider whether the plaintiffs have space and staffing to clients such as alleged plausible claims for unpaid wages Amazon.com. Busk and Castro worked as under federal and Nevada law for hourly employees at warehouses in Las undergoing a security screening meant to Vegas and Fernley, Nevada, respectively, prevent employee theft and for unpaid lunch filling orders placed by Amazon.com periods shortened by five-minute walks to customers. In 2010, Busk and Castro sued the cafeteria. We affirm the district court in Integrity on behalf of a putative class of workers in both warehouses, claiming 256 violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act meal periods did not state a claim under (FLSA) and Nevada labor laws. FLSA because the plaintiffs did not allege that they performed “any duty related to Busk and Castro alleged Integrity violated their job as warehouse workers” during their federal and state labor laws by requiring lunch breaks. them to pass through a security clearance at the end of each shift, for which they were The district court also held that the state law not compensated. Employees waited up to claims “must be dismissed” due to 25 minutes to be searched; removed their “conflicting” class certification mechanisms, wallets, keys, and belts; and passed through namely that while plaintiffs must opt into a metal detectors. The plaintiffs alleged the collective action under FLSA, plaintiffs clearances were “necessary to the must opt out of a class action under Federal employer's task of minimizing ‘shrinkage’ Rule of Civil Procedure 23. Alternatively, or loss of product from warehouse theft.” the court dismissed the state claims on the merits. It held that since the claims were The plaintiffs also sought compensation based entirely on the security clearance and under FLSA and Nevada law for their entire lunch allegations, the “Plaintiffs have failed 30–minute unpaid lunch periods because to allege fact scenarios that would support a they spent up to 10 minutes of the meal valid claim” under Nevada law. period “walking to and from the cafeteria and/or undergoing security clearances.” II They said it took them about five minutes after punching out “to walk to the facility We review de novo the district court's cafeteria and/or pass through security conclusion that a FLSA collective action and clearances” and “approximately five minutes state law class action are inherently to walk from the cafeteria to the time incompatible as a matter of law. We agree keeping system to clock back in.” with all other circuits to consider the issue Additionally, managers would frequently that such actions can peacefully coexist. “remind” workers to “finish their meal Therefore, the district court erred in period quickly so that they would clock back dismissing the state law claims based on a in on time.” perceived conflict. The district court granted Integrity's motion Under FLSA, a potential plaintiff does not to dismiss the amended complaint for failure benefit from (and is not bound by) a to state a claim under Federal Rule of Civil judgment unless he or she “affirmatively Procedure 12(b)(6). The court held that the ‘opts in’ ” to the lawsuit. This rule is in time spent clearing security was not contrast to a typical Rule 23 class action, compensable under FLSA, relying on out- where a potential plaintiff must opt out to be of-circuit cases finding the time employees excluded from the class. Although some spent passing through security screenings district courts have held that a FLSA noncompensable. The court also held that collective action cannot be brought in the the plaintiffs' allegations about shortened same lawsuit as a state-law class action 257 based on the same underlying allegations, all and hour claims brought in federal court. circuit courts to consider the issue have held Even if it did, Congress has expressed a that the different opting mechanisms do not contrary intent in the Class Action Fairness require dismissal of the state claims. Act of 2005, which confers federal jurisdiction over class actions where certain Our sister circuits have correctly reasoned diversity and amount-in-controversy that FLSA's plain text does not suggest that requirements are met. Because the Class a district court must dismiss a state law Action Fairness Act provides that federal claim that would be certified using an opt- courts should exercise jurisdiction over out procedure. Its opt-in requirement certain class actions (including those extends only to “any such action”—that is, a alleging violations of state wage and hour FLSA claim. FLSA also expressly permits laws), and these class actions are certified more protective state labor laws. This pursuant to Rule 23's opt-out procedure, we savings clause provides further evidence that cannot conclude that Congress intended a