The Petitions of the Week column highlights a selection of cert petitions recently filed in the Supreme Court. A list of all petitions we’re watching is available here.
Five years ago, the justices in Bristol-Myers Squibb v. Superior Court of California limited certain personal-injury lawsuits against businesses to residents of a single state. Since that 2017 decision, businesses have convinced state courts to cabin a host of lawsuits brought by out-of-state plaintiffs over out-of-state conduct. This week, we highlight cert petitions that ask the court to consider, among other things, whether Bristol-Myers Squibb also bars a federal court in one state from hearing collective-action claims against FedEx by employees in another state.
Christina Fischer worked as a FedEx “security specialist” in Pennsylvania for 10 years. Employees in Fischer’s role regularly worked more than 40 hours per week, but are classified by the shipping carrier as salaried employees exempt from overtime pay under the Fair Labor Standard Act of 1938. Arguing that she was ineligible for the Act’s overtime exemption, Fischer filed an FLSA collective action in federal district court in Pennsylvania seeking unpaid overtime from FedEx. Two security specialists in other states “opted in” to the collective action.
The district court agreed with FedEx that it only had authority, known as specific personal jurisdiction, to hear Fischer’s claim. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit affirmed. FedEx is...
Supreme Court has directed all States to probe motor vehicle insurance claims after it was found that fraudulent methods are being employed to cheat insurance firms. Make Us Your Preferred Sourc...