Two-Step FLSA Collective Certification Rejected by 5th Cir. (1)

Workers seeking certification of a Fair Labor Standards Act collective must meet a heightened evidentiary standard before they’re allowed to notify others who might want to join the case, the Fifth Circuit said in a ruling that eliminated a pro-plaintiff process for federal wage-and-hour lawsuits.

District courts “must rigorously scrutinize” whether potential opt-in plaintiffs are similarly situated to each other “at the outset of litigation,” before authorizing notice, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit ruled Tuesday. This requires courts to identify material facts and legal issues early on, and dictate the amount of preliminary discovery accordingly, the ...