8/6/2010
DETROIT, MI - On August 3, 2010 a former employee of Flagstar Bank filed suit in Michigan federal court under the Fair Labor Standards Act for unpaid overtime wages. The case was brought on behalf of all mortgage underwriters who worked for Flagstar Bank in the last three years. Click here to read the entire press release.
8/5/2010
Nichols Kaster, PLLP is pleased to announce that partners Don Nichols, Jim Kaster, Paul Lukas, and Steven Andrew Smith have been named to the 2010 Minnesota Super Lawyers list. Jim Kaster has also been included in the Top 100 Minnesota Super Lawyers list. Visit www.superlawyers.com/minnesota.
8/5/2010
Don Nichols is featured in this year's Minnesota Super Lawyers magazine. Click here to read the article.
7/16/2010
NKA attorney, David Schlesinger discusses successor liability under Minnesota law in the July issue of Bench & Bar of Minnesota. Click here to read the article.
7/15/2010
SEATTLE, WA - On July 9, 2010, two former employees of Residential Capital, LLC and Ally Financial, Inc. filed suit in the Western District of Washington under the Fair Labor Standards Act and Washington state law for unpaid overtime wages. Individuals may obtain additional information at by contacting us toll free at (877) 448-0492. To read the entire press release, click here.
7/2/2010
MINNEAPOLIS, MN - Nichols Kaster, PLLP and Donati Law Firm, LLP have brought a putative nationwide action on behalf of installers/technicians against Multiband Corporation, a Minnesota company. Plaintiff Edwards performed installation and maintenance services for DirecTV subscribers for Multiband. Multiband treated Edwards as an "independent contractor." Edwards alleges that he and other similarly situated technicians should have been treated as "employees" of Multiband because Multiband exercised substantial control over their work. For additional information on this lawsuit, please contact us at (877) 448-0492. To read the entire press release, click here.
7/2/2010
On July 2, 2010, the Court in Bamgbose v. Delta-T Group denied Defendant's two motions to dismiss and granted Plaintiffs' motion to amend. In its order, the Court allowed an amendment adding opt-in John Harris as a named plaintiff on the complaint.
6/30/2010
CHICAGO, IL - On June 28, 2010, the Honorable Matthew F. Kennelly of the Northern District of Illinois issued an Order denying Defendant's Motion for Decertification of certain claims brought by approximately 487 current and former call center workers. Click here for the entire press release. Click here to view the Judge's Opinion and Order.
6/29/2010
NEW YORK, NY - On June 17, 2010, Plaintiff Lloyd Warren III filed a class action lawsuit against Chase Home Finance, LLC and JPMorgan Chase Bank NA, in the U.S. District Court in the Southern District of New York, alleging that Chase deceptively required him and other similarly situated consumers to purchase and maintain flood insurance coverage in amounts greater than required by law or necessary to cover their loan balance. Click here to read the entire press release.
6/25/2010
On Monday, June 21, 2010 our Motion for Conditional Class Certification was granted! Pending Court approval, Plaintiffs will send judicial notice of the right to join this lawsuit to approximately 22,000 Domino's delivery drivers nationwide.
6/24/2010
Captain Cathy Hamm has reached a settlement with the Department of Natural Resources and Commissioner Mark Holsten in which she and her attorneys will receive a total of $250,000. Click here to read the article published in the Star Tribune.
6/18/2010
On June 10, 2010, Judge Schiltz of the Federal District Court of Minnesota denied a motion for summary judgment brought by the Defendants in Haliye et al. v. Celestica, Corp. and Adecco USA, Inc., 06-CV-4769 (PJS/JJG). To read the entire press release, click here.
6/18/2010
A group of New York, Pennsylvania and New Jersey residents has filed a class-action lawsuit against Suburban Propane, accusing the company of overcharging for propane and related equipment and services, stifling competition and mischaracterizing fees. Read the rest of the article printed in the Times Herald-Record.
6/8/2010
Last week, District Court Judge Echols granted Plaintiffs' Motion for Conditional Class Certification and Court Authorized Notice. The Plaintiffs are cable technicians who worked for Defendants in Georgia and Tennessee.
6/8/2010
On June 1, 2010, Judge J. McKinney of the U.S. Southern District of Indiana ordered conditional certification of a proposed class of current and former sales consultants who work(ed) for Author Solutions, Inc. and its respective subsidiaries during the last three years. The Court issued the order shortly after the parties stipulated to conditional certification and an agreed upon judicial notice.
6/4/2010
On June 1, 2010 the New York Senate passed the Domestic Workers Bill of Rights which would require overtime pay and one day off a week for household workers such as nannies and housekeepers. If the bill is signed into law by the Governor, New York will be the first state to establish these rights for domestic workers.
5/18/2010
On May 17, 2010, the law firm of Nichols Kaster, PLLP filed a nationwide consumer class action against Suburban Propane Partners, L.P. and its operating subsidiary, Suburban Propane, L.P. The lawsuit alleges that Suburban Propane unfairly charges its customers excessive prices for propane, without disclosing its per gallon price in advance of delivery. In addition, the lawsuit alleges that Suburban Propane unlawfully charges its customers a variety of fees that are not properly disclosed, including tank pump out and pick up fees that are designed to prevent customers from rejecting deliveries and choosing a competitor. For more information about this suit, click here.
5/14/2010
SANTA ANA, CA--(Marketwire - May 13, 2010) - On May 12, 2010 a former employee of Americash filed suit in the Central District of California, seeking payment under the Fair Labor Standards Act for unpaid overtime wages and failure to pay minimum wage. The case is filed on behalf of all loan officers in the United States who have worked for Americash in the last three years. To read the entire press release, click here.
5/12/2010
SAN FRANCISCO, CA--(Marketwire - May 12, 2010) - On May 10, 2010 a former employee of American Merchandising Specialists, Inc. filed suit in the Eastern District of California, seeking payment under the Fair Labor Standards Act for unpaid overtime wages. The case is filed on behalf of all merchandisers in the United States who have worked for American Merchandising Specialists in the last three years. To view the entire press release, click here.
5/4/2010
CHICAGO, IL--(Marketwire - May 4, 2010) - On April 27, 2010, Magistrate Judge Morton Denlow of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois conditionally certified a class of Outside Plant Engineers that worked for Illinois Bell between April 27, 2007 and May 16, 2009. Click here to read the entire press release.
4/20/2010
DETROIT, MI--(Marketwire - April 20, 2010) - On April 16, 2010, Judge Nancy G. Edmunds of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan conditionally certified a class of Outside Plant Engineers that worked for Michigan Bell between April 16, 2007 and May 16, 2009. Please click here for the entire press release.
3/29/2010
On March 25, 2010, Nichols Kaster, PLLP filed a putative collective and class action lawsuit for unpaid overtime wages on behalf of cable installation technicians that worked for Wave Comm, GR, LLC. The lawsuit was filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of New York. Click here to read the press release.
3/29/2010
NEW YORK, NY--(Marketwire - March 29, 2010) - Nichols Kaster, PLLP filed a putative nationwide class action lawsuit on behalf of loan officers that worked for Guardian First Funding Group, LLC. Click here to read this press release.
3/24/2010
The United States Supreme Court granted certiorari on March 22, 2010 to determine whether oral complaints constitute protected activity under the anti-retaliation provision of the Fair Labor Standards Act ("FLSA"). Click here to read the entire press release.
3/24/2010
Recently, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) issued the first ever "Administrator's Interpretation," finding that loan officers are not exempt from overtime pay under the administrative exemption to the Fair Labor Standards Act. What this means is if you were working as a loan officer making sales from primarily inside the office, you are likely entitled to overtime pay.
Nichols Kaster, PLLP has recovered over $100 million for loan officers over the past decade. Our fight for loan officers contributed significantly to this important decision. We have previously represented loan officers against dozens of mortgage companies and banks.
If you worked as a loan officer within the last three years and were not paid for overtime hours worked, contact us for a free consultation at (877) 448-0492 or dnelson@nka.com.
3/17/2010
On March 12, 2010, Nichols Kaster, PLLP filed a putative nationwide collective action lawsuit for unpaid overtime wages on behalf of cable installers and technicians that worked for telecommunications company Communications Unlimited, Inc. Click here to read more.
3/8/2010
On March 4, 2010, three inside sales consultants brought a collective action against Author Solutions, Inc., and its subsidiaries, AuthorHouse, Inc., iUniverse, Inc., Xlibris, Corp. Trafford Publishing, Inc., and Wordclay, Inc., in the Southern District Court of Indiana, alleging that Defendants denied them of overtime compensation under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Read more
2/19/2010
The lawsuit, filed in Ramsy County District Court alleges marital status discrimination, sex discrimination, defamation and violation of the Minnesota Data Practices Act. Read more about this in the Star Tribune.
2/10/2010
Find out why Florida was ranked as the busiest state for new wage-and-hour litigation.
2/8/2010
Read more in the Wisconsin State Journal.
2/5/2010
On February 2, 2010 Judge Barbara B. Crabb of the United States District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin conditionally certified a class of Outside Plant Engineers that worked for Wisconsin Bell between February 2, 2007 and May 16, 2009. The Court further ordered the plaintiffs to mail judicial notice to all Outside Plant Engineers that have not yet joined the lawsuit. More.
2/3/2010
Read about this in the Star Tribune.
1/14/2010
Tim Selander, an associate at Nichols Kaster, PLLP, has been selected to be on Employment Law 360's editorial advisory board for 2010. As a member of this board, Mr. Selander will be providing guidance to Law 360 on employment law issues. Click here to view Tim Selander's bio. To read the article published by Law360, click here.
1/7/2010
Nichols Kaster, PLLP and seven other firms were named to Law360's top Plaintiffs Employment Firms of 2009. According to the article, Nichols Kaster, PLLP was chosen in part for it's notable work on three overtime lawsuits against Washington Mutual Bank. Nichols Kaster also received recognition for settlements on behalf of employees totaling more than $68 million in 2009. According to founder Don Nichols, the secret to the firm's success is twofold: "employing a large support staff with a focus on technology, and treating each client as an individual." To read the article published by Law360, click here.
12/23/2009
On December 16, 2009, the District Court of Minnesota certified several classes of hundreds of employees working in Qwest Communications' Small Business and Consumer Call Centers who are alleging that Qwest failed to pay them for time working "off-the-clock." Click here to view entire press release.
12/16/2009
On December 14, 2009, Judge Robert L. Echols of the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee entered a preliminary injunction barring New Vision Telecommunications Inc. and its management from retaliating against the named Plaintiffs in this lawsuit.
11/24/2009
Nichols Kaster, PLLP and Donati Law Firm, LLP have brought another lawsuit on behalf employees working in the cable industry for failure to pay overtime as required under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act. Click here to view press release.
10/29/2009
Click here to read article in the Star Tribune.
10/23/2009
On October 22, 2009, a federal judge in the Eastern District of Michigan granted conditional certification to Michigan Bell Telephone Company call center employees who allege that Michigan Bell regularly denied them pay for working off-the-clock without compensation. Cick here to view entire press release.
10/21/2009
On September 30, 2009, Judge Patrick Schiltz of the Federal Court for the District of Minnesota declared that Starbucks Coffee Company's tip distribution policy violates Minnesota law.
9/25/2009
The court has granted our motion for conditional certification. By October 5th Veracity Research Co. will provide us with a list of current and former investigators who worked for Veracity within the last three years. We will then send out judicial notice to those investigators, giving them the opportunity to join this lawsuit.
8/11/2009
Lead Plaintiff Charlene Folck claims that she and other telephonic case managers were improperly classified as exempt from overtime pay under federal and state overtime laws. She seeks unpaid overtime compensation under the Fair Labor Standards Act on behalf of herself and all other current and former telephonic case managers.
7/24/2009
Effective today, the federal minimum wage increases to $7.25 per hour. For more information on minimum wage laws, click here.
7/21/2009
On July 17, 2009 we mailed Court-authorized notice of the lawsuit to more than 2,500 current and former Coach over-the-road drivers. These drivers worked for CUSA ES, LLC or CUSA CSS, LLC. Those who received notice will have until September 15, 2009 to return their signed consent form so that we may file it with the Court. If you are eligible for this case, please fill out your consent form or contact us toll-free at (877) 448-0492.
6/16/2009
Nichols Kaster, PLLP, mailed notice of this lawsuit to over 1500 installers who worked for C-COR and/or Source on June 1, 2009. Since then, the case has grown significantly with dozens of people joining weekly.
6/15/2009
On June 11, 2009 the District Court of Minnesota conditionally certified a class of drivers who allege that CUSA ES, LLC and CUSA, LLC ("Coach America") failed to pay them overtime as required by the Fair Labor Standards Act.
6/3/2009
5/20/2009
On May 18, 2009 we filed a Complaint in the United States District Court, Eastern District of Michigan against Michigan Bell Telephone Company on behalf of Outside Plant Engineers (aka Manager, Outside Plant Planning Engineering and Design). These Outside Plant Engineers seek overtime compensation under the Federal Fair Labor Standards Act and Michigan state law. For more information about the case, click here.
5/6/2009
On May 5, 2009, the District Court for the Northern District of Georgia ruled that employees working for an apartment locator company, Promove, LLC, were misclassified as exempt and should have been paid overtime. NKA is currently awaiting a trial date to determine how much overtime pay their clients will receive as a result.
4/27/2009
In granting Plaintiffs' motion for conditional certification, the court held that notice should be sent to all individuals across the country who were, or are, employed by Source Broadband or C-COR as installers after February 12, 2005. The court ordered Defendants to disclose contact information for members of the conditionally certified class within the next 30 days.
4/23/2009
We are excited to announce that on April 10, 2009, we sent notice of the case to thousands of current and former employees who worked for Solectron Corporation, Flextronics International, and/or Aerotek. If you are interested in joining the case you must return a consent form on or before July 9, 2009.
3/31/2009
Notice of this lawsuit will be sent to customer service representatives working in AT&T, Corp.'s Fairhaven, Massachusetts; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Lee's Summit, Missouri and El Paso, Texas call centers for the last three years.
3/23/2009
On March 20, 2009, the District Court for the Northern District of California granted conditional certification to current and former United Auto Credit Corporation employees pursuing claims for unpaid overtime wages.
3/19/2009
A healthcare worker has brought an action against Delta-T Group, Inc. and Delta-T Group Social Service Staffing, Inc., alleging he and others like him are denied overtime compensation under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), and are denied access to employee benefits pursuant to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), because Delta-T Group improperly classifies them as independent contractors.
3/19/2009
On March 17, 2009 Matt Morgan and Tim Selander won a two day court trial in a perceived disability case pursuant to the Minnesota Human Rights Act. Our client was awarded in excess of $110,000.
3/19/2009
On Tuesday, March 17, 2009, the United States District Court for the Western District of Tennessee fully adopted the Magistrate Judge's Report and Recommendation in Monroe et al. v. FTS USA, LLC, Civ. No. 08-2100 (W.D. Tenn.) granting the Plaintiffs' Motion for Conditional Class Certification and Court Authorized Notice.
3/18/2009
Nichols Kaster, PLLP is happy to announce that Megan Brennan, Reena Desai, and Anna Prakash have been hired as associate attorneys. Megan will be primarily working on individual sexual harassment and discrimination cases, while Reena and Anna will be primarily working with the Wage and Hour team.
3/9/2009
The lawsuit alleges that Domino's violated state and federal law by failing to reimburse employees for expenses they incurred while delivering pizzas.
3/4/2009
On Tuesday, March 3, 2009, call center employees represented by Nichols Kaster, PLLP filed suit against Michigan Bell Telephone Company, a subsidiary of AT&T.
2/20/2009
On February 19, 2009, a federal magistrate judge in the Western District of Pennsylvania recommended granting conditional certification to AT&T Corp. call center employees who allege that AT&T regularly denied them pay for working off-the-clock without compensation.
2/11/2009
The 10th Circuit Court of Appeals recently denied Sprint Nextel's attempt to have decisions by the district court certifying two nationwide classes of Sprint Nextel employees reversed.
1/28/2009
1/15/2009
We are excited to announce that on January 13th, we mailed notice to over 3,600 current and former employees eligible to join this overtime case! This is a very important moment in the case. Those who receive the notice will only have until April 13, 2009 to join the case. If you have any questions, please contact us toll free at (877) 448-0492.
1/13/2009
Employment Law 360, a daily newswire for Labor & Employment cases has listed the top ten busiest FLSA (Fair Labor Standards Act) practices in the nation. Nichols Kaster, PLLP was listed as the seventh busiest FLSA practice in the nation on that list which included plaintiff and defense firms. According to the article, the list was compiled based on number of cases filed in the last year that each firm was involved in.
12/12/2008
The court granted our motion to have the case certified as a nationwide class action. This is great news and means that all Business Direct Channel Account Executives and their managers will be automatically included in this case.
11/25/2008
On November 24th the District Court of Kansas certified this case as a class action.
10/30/2008
So far, five out of five district courts have denied Wells Fargo's motion, allowing our suits to proceed.
10/24/2008
On October 24th, the Court ruled to uphold the Magistrate Judge's decision to grant conditional class certification. Farmers now has ten days to provide us with a list of all Special Investigators who have worked for the company in the last three years so we can begin the notice period.
9/15/2008
On September 15, 2008, the Court granted our motion to conditionally certify this case as a collective action. The Court ordered Illinois Bell Telephone Company to provide us with a list of current and former call center employees who may be eligible and authorized us to send notice of the case to these people. Eligible individuals may join the case by completing and sending us a consent form or by contacting us toll-free at (877) 448-0492.
8/4/2008
Federal Court Allows Sprint Retail Employees Represented by Nichols Kaster & Anderson, PLLP To Continue With Claims To Collect Their Unpaid Commissions
6/18/2008
If you have not returned your consent to join this lawsuit and are interested in making a claim for your unpaid wages, you must return the consent form to our offices before July 7.
5/22/2008
The Magistrate Judge has recently granted our motion for conditional class certification.
5/13/2008
Nichols Kaster and the Donati Law Firm have brought a nationwide lawsuit on behalf of hourly workers who are or were employed by Kellogg Company as operators or production workers in any of its numerous plants located across the country.
5/7/2008
Currently, 76 Special Investigators have joined this case for lost wages. In order to join we must have received and filed your consent form by June 2, 2008. If you have any questions please feel free to contact us at (877) 448-0492.
5/6/2008
On May 2nd, 2008 we mailed judicial notice out to just over 1100 former and current Network Technicians in the state of Minnesota to notify them about this lawsuit.
5/5/2008
On May 2, 2008, Plaintiffs in the lawsuit Sibley et al v. Sprint Nextel Corp. and Sprint/United Management Co., filed a motion seeking to certify the case as a nationwide class action.
5/1/2008
On April 17, 2008, Nichols Kaster sued Countrywide for wage and hour violations under California laws and the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).
4/15/2008
We are thrilled to announce that today we mailed notices to over 900 former and current loan officers eligible to join this overtime case.
4/9/2008
Nichols Kaster sued HSBC again last week for wage and hour violations under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and California laws.
4/9/2008
Nationwide has agreed that judicial notice of this case should be sent to all potential class members. Special Investigators eligible to participate in this litigation will be receiving notice on or about April 3, 2008.
4/8/2008
On March 25, 2008, we received an Order from Judge Montgomery granting our motion for Conditional Class Certification.
4/3/2008
Call center employees represented by Nichols Kaster, PLLP filed a wage and hour action against Illinois Bell Telephone Company d/b/a AT&T Illinois, SBC Illinois and Ameritech Illinois on April 1, 2008.
4/3/2008
Call center employees represented by the law firm of Nichols Kaster, PLLP have brought a putative collective action for unpaid wages and overtime against Wisconsin Bell Telephone Company d/b/a AT&T Midwest. The suit was filed in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin on March 31, 2008.
3/27/2008
On March 27, 2008, a former employee of Starbucks Coffee Company filed a class action lawsuit in Minnesota State Court in Washington County.
3/25/2008
An important deadline is approaching quickly! The Notice period for this lawsuit ends on April 1, 2008, so we can only accept consent forms to join this case for one more week. We currently have 132 clients on the case and continue to receive consent forms. If you have any questions, please contact us toll free at 877-448-0492.
3/24/2008
On March 19, 2008, Judge Maxine Chesney of the Northern District of California gave a sweeping victory to NKA when she conditionally certified a nationwide class of current and former loan officers who were denied overtime.
3/17/2008
The case has reached an important point. Perfect Mortgage a/k/a Bergin Financial agreed that notice should be sent to all potential class members.
2/29/2008
Two more cable companies have been sued this month for wage and hour violations.
2/20/2008
Nichols Kaster Draws Attention to Jury Trial Question
Attorney Steven Andrew Smith represents plaintiff on case that draws attention to the question of whether a plaintiff is entitled to a jury trial in a Minnesota Human Rights Act case under the Minnesota Constitution.
2/11/2008
Lawsuit to Recover Commissions for Sprint Nextel's Retail Employees brought by Nichols Kaster, PLLP
Nichols Kaster, PLLP has brought a putative nationwide class action lawsuit on behalf of commissioned employees against Sprint Nextel Corporation and Sprint/United Management Company.
2/8/2008
We have filed a class action lawsuit in the U.S. District of Minnesota on behalf of current and former loan officers of American Equity Mortgage. The lawsuit alleges that American Equity Mortgage violated the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) by misclassifying its loan officers as exempt from the FLSA.
1/25/2008
This case has reached a critical point! Rock Financial has agreed that notice of this case should be sent to all potential class members. As such, over 750 individuals eligible to participate in this litigation will be receiving notice on February 1, 2008. Those interested in joining the case have until April 1, 2008 to return a consent form. If you have any questions, please contact us toll free at 877-448-0492.
12/11/2007
We have filed a class action lawsuit in the Central District of California on behalf of Soma Financial Loan Officers and Loan Processors.
11/12/2007
The deadline to join the lawsuit against Qwest on behalf of call center workers is NOVEMBER 17, 2007. To date, more than 1700 current and former call center employees from around the country have joined this lawsuit to demand payment of unpaid wages.
10/9/2007
We are at a very exciting point in the case! Earlier today, we won a motion to compel. The Court ordered Defendants to produce to us the "call clip library" maintained on its intranet site. We believe these call clips will provide great evidence as they are recorded phone calls between loan consultants and prospective customers.
On Friday, October 5, 2007, we filed a motion for partial summary judgment, asking the Court to find that a loan consultant's primary job duty is to sell loans. On that same day, Defendants filed their motion for summary judgment on several issues including whether Dan B. Gilbert is individually liable as an "employer" under the FLSA and whether a loan consultant's primary job duty is to provide financial consulting services rather than sales.
We do not yet have a hearing date for these summary judgment motions as we have just begun the briefing process. We will update you on the progress of these motions and any Court rulings that may arise as a result of them.
9/24/2007
To date, more than 1200 current and former call center employees from around the country have joined this lawsuit to demand payment of unpaid wages. We are still in the discovery phase of this case and are in the process of contacting everyone to answer your questions and obtain additional information from you. There is still time to join this lawsuit to make a claim for your unpaid wages. If you, or someone you know, wish to join this case or have any questions please call us at 1-877-448-0492 as soon as possible. You can also download a Consent Form and fax it to us at 612-338-4878.
8/14/2007
We are still waiting on a ruling from the Court on Defendant's motion to dismiss the action against Rock Financial, a Quicken Loans Company. However, we optimistically continue to seek plaintiffs who would like to pursue overtime claims. If you, or someone you know, has worked as a Mortgage Banker with Rock Financial in the past three years and did not receive overtime compensation, please contact us immediately.
8/8/2007
We are pleased to inform you that the backup tapes containing emails from April - June 2004 are finally being provided to our computer forensics expert. In addition, we recently produced our expert damages report. Defendants' expert damages report is due to us by September 5, 2007. We anticipate that the trial will likely be pushed out a couple of months due to these expert issues. As always, if you have questions about the case, please do not hesitate to contact us.
8/7/2007
The Judge issued an Order today ruling in our favor on some significant issues. First, the Court denied Todd White's motion asking the Court to find that he was not an "employer" and that he should be dismissed from the case. As a result, he must respond to our motion asking the Court to find that property specialists were not properly classified as exempt, within nine days. Second, the Court refused to stay the proceedings against White pending the bankruptcy, so the case against him will move forward. With respect to the bankruptcy action, that case is still pending.
8/6/2007
Over 2,500 Minnesota National Guard Members returned home last month. These uniformed services members are protected by the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA). Under USERRA, an employer may not deny initial employment, promotions, or other benefits of employment because a person is a member of the uniformed services. USERRA also protects a service member’s right to re-employment upon his or her return from military service. If you believe you have been discriminated against or denied re-employment because of your military service, please contact our office at 1-877-448-0492.
8/1/2007
On Friday, July 30, 2007, Judge Michael J. Davis of the District of Minnesota issued an order granting our Motion for Conditional Class Certification in the overtime lawsuit against Qwest. The Court concluded that Sales Consultants and Sales & Service Consultants were similarly situated nationwide and could proceed through discovery as a class. This is a significant victory in the lawsuit against Qwest as it allows us to send judicial notice of the lawsuit to current and former call center employees of Qwest who worked in both Consumer and Small Business Call Centers as various Sales Consultants and Sales & Service Consultants since August 30, 2003. Qwest has also been ordered to provide NKA with a list of the names and addresses of these employees; we expect the size of the potential class to be more than 8,000 individuals. If you have any information or questions about this, or need to update your contact information, please contact us at 1-877-448-0492.
7/2/2007
Currently, approximately forty individuals have joined this case, and that number continues to increase daily. Our Motion for Conditional Class Certification and Court-Approved Notice is currently pending with the Court.
6/26/2007
We have filed a class action lawsuit in the Central District of California on behalf of thousands of hourly workers who worked at Celestica Corporation's facility in Fontana, CA. The suit seeks unpaid wages for time that employees of Celestica and Adecco, USA Inc. spent waiting to pass through security screening, as well as compensation for denied meal and rest periods. The lawsuit is entitled Cervantez et al. v. Celestica Corp. et al. If you worked in Celesttica's Frontana, CA facility in the last four years and would like more information about the case, please contact us at 1-877-448-0492.
5/15/2007
The Court issued a Scheduling Order setting this case for a trial date of November 5, 2007. We are very excited about having a trial before the end of the year. Currently, we are in the process of calculating damages for all the Plaintiffs involved in the case and preparing our supplemental expert report. We recently finished combing through the over 91,000 emails produced by Quicken and are in the process of obtaining even more emails as the Court ruled in our favor and ordered Quicken to produce to us all emails sent and received for the month of May 2004. We consider this to be a big victory as the emails contain great evidence related to the issues at the heart of this litigation.
5/11/2007
In April, Nichols Kaster moved for conditional class certification in our case on behalf of loan officer who were denied overtime pay while working for Defendant Premier Mortgage Funding. The court granted that motion earlier this week.
5/11/2007
Last week, Nichols Kaster filed a lawsuit against HSBC Mortgage Corp. The lawsuit, filed as a putative class and collective action, alleges that HSBC failed to pay proper overtime compensation to its loan officers, and retaliated against an employee who complained about the practice. The lawsuit was filed in federal court in the Northern District of California alleging violations of both federal and state wage and hour laws. We are now waiting for the Defendant to answer the Complaint. In the meantime, if you have any lists or names of current or former loan officers, please send them to us immediately so that we can notify these individuals of this lawsuit. With each day that passes, these individuals may be losing a day of overtime pay. If you have any questions please contact us toll free at 1-877-448-0492. The case is Wong et al. v. HSBC Mortgage et al, case no. 07-2446.
1/24/2007
This case is still in the early discovery stages. We will be taking the deposition of a Qwest corporate representative in February. By March 1, 2007, we will be asking the Court to conditionally certify a class of employees who worked for Qwest in the St. Paul call center within the past 3 years. There is still time to join this case to make a claim for unpaid wages and overtime. If you know of any current or former Call Center Sales Consultants or Sales and Service Consultants who wish to join the lawsuit, please have them contact us at 612-256-3200.
10/23/2006
We are currently waiting for the judge to rule on our Motion for Summary Judgment. We will keep you updated throughout this process. In the meantime, if you have any questions, or if any of your contact information has changed, please call us toll-free at (877) 448-0492.
10/20/2006
Nichols Kaster, PLLP, has filed a suit against the state of Minnesota. A former safety inspector for the Occupational Safety and Health Division has alleged that big companies got special treatment.
10/9/2006
In addition to the $300,000.00 awarded to Megan Maule by a jury in September, the Judge awarded her an additional $144,500.00, or five years, of future wage loss.
10/6/2006
On October 3, 2006, a Minnesota state court jury awarded Brian Kidwell $197,000 on his whistleblower claims against his former employer, Sybaritic, Inc. Post-trial motions for attorney’s fees, costs and interest are pending. Sofia Andersson of Nichols Kaster, PLLP was lead trial counsel for Mr. Kidwell.
9/27/2006
In August 2006, Nichols Kaster, PLLP filed a collective action against Qwest claiming that its pay practices violate the Fair Labor Standards Act. All call center sales consultants and all sales and service consultants working in Minnesota within the past three years are eligible for this case. For more information, please contact our firm at 877-448-0492.
9/27/2006
Nichols Kaster, PLLP has filed a class action lawsuit against GEICO challenging the manner in which the company determines rates for auto insurance policies. NKA has asked the court to certify a class of all African-Americans who hold, or have held, GEICO auto insurance policies issued on or after April 3, 2000. For more information, please contact our firm at 877-448-0492.
7/26/2006
In response to a lawsuit charging the company with violating the Minnesota Cold Weather Rule, CenterPoint Energy has agreed to settle the suit for $13.5 million.
7/25/2006
Cara LaBrie and Robbi Pickeral, two former female sportswriters at the Pioneer Press, filed a complaint with the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), alleging sexual discrimination.