Evans v. D. Cefalu Mgmt., Inc.

334 F. Supp. 3d 1277
CourtDistrict Court, S.D. Florida
DecidedSeptember 25, 2018
DocketCASE NO. 16-60613-CIV-ZLOCH
StatusPublished

This text of 334 F. Supp. 3d 1277 (Evans v. D. Cefalu Mgmt., Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, S.D. Florida primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Evans v. D. Cefalu Mgmt., Inc., 334 F. Supp. 3d 1277 (S.D. Fla. 2018).

Opinion

WILLIAM J. ZLOCH Sr., United States District Judge *1279THIS MATTER is before the Court upon Defendants' Memorandum In Support Of The Defendants' Award For Attorneys' Fees And Costs Associated With Plaintiff's Non-Appearance At His Deposition (DE 29), Motion For Bill Of Costs (DE 66), and Verified Motion For Attorney's Fees Against Plaintiff's Counsel And His Law Firm (DE 68). The Court has carefully reviewed said Motions, the entire court file and is otherwise fully advised in the premises.

As the Court explained in its prior Order (DE 64), granting Defendants' Motion For Summary Judgment (DE 26), Plaintiff Troy Evans (hereinafter "Plaintiff") in the above-styled cause brought only one claim against Defendants D. Cefalu Management, Inc., and Christine Difiore Kirsch (hereinafter "Defendants") for failure to pay overtime compensation in accord with the Fair Labor Standards Act, 29 U.S.C. § 201, et seq. (hereinafter "the FLSA"). The Court granted summary judgment for Defendants because Plaintiff failed to contest by either a response to Defendants' Statement Of Undisputed Material Facts In Support Of Their Motion For Summary Judgment (DE 27), or even by any argument within his Response (DE 43) that Plaintiff was in fact paid all overtime compensation he was owed, regardless of whether Defendants were actually covered by the FLSA. Defendants maintained that they are not covered by the FLSA because they allege their income does not meet the statutory requirements. Plaintiff has at all times in the case contested that argument. See, e.g. DE 43. But, as Plaintiff did not contest Defendants' facts, supported by their own records, that overtime was paid, the Court did not find it necessary to resolve the coverage issue.

Defendants now maintain that they should be awarded attorney's fees and costs. Pursuant to 29 U.S.C. § 216(b), the Court is required to award attorney's fees only to a prevailing plaintiff in an FLSA case: "The court in such action shall, in addition to any judgment awarded to the plaintiff or plaintiffs, allow a reasonable attorney's fee to be paid by the defendant, and costs of the action." The statute is silent as to a prevailing defendant's entitlement to attorney's fees. Thus, the Eleventh Circuit in Kreager v. Solomon & Flanagan, P.A. held that the FLSA makes an attorney's fee award mandatory only for prevailing plaintiffs, in accordance with the 'American Rule.' 775 F.2d 1541, 1542-43 (11th Cir. 1985) (citing Alyeska Pipeline Service Co. v. Wilderness Society, 421 U.S. 240, 95 S.Ct. 1612, 44 L.Ed.2d 141 (1975) ; Christiansburg Garment Co. v. EEOC, 434 U.S. 412, 416 & n.5, 98 S.Ct. 694, 54 L.Ed.2d 648 (1978) ). In that case, the court explained that an exception to this rule would be bad faith, and "The bad faith exception to the American Rule is not limited to suits that are filed in bad faith. The exception also encompasses bad faith acts preceding and during litigation." Id. at 1543 (citations omitted). See also Barnes v. Dalton, 158 F.3d 1212, 1214 (11th Cir. 1998) ("The key to unlocking a court's inherent power is a finding of bad faith." (citing In re Mroz, 65 F.3d 1567, 1575 (11th Cir. 1995) ). Courts within this Circuit have correctly observed that, "Bad faith is a stringent standard that makes it difficult for a defendant to prevail." Ellis v. All My Sons Moving & Storage of Orlando, Inc., No. 6:07-CV-2017-ORL-19DAB, 2009 WL 2496626, at *2 (M.D. Fla. Aug. 12, 2009) (citing *1280Murray v. Playmaker Serv., LLC, 548 F.Supp.2d 1378, 1382 (S.D. Fla. 2008) ).

Defendants suggest that the appropriate basis for sanctions is the Court's inherent power. In a seminal case on the Court's authority to award sanctions pursuant to this inherent authority, Chambers v. NASCO, Inc., the Supreme Court affirmed this basis as an appropriate source of power for fee-shifting attorney's fees, even in situations in which, absent the extraordinary circumstance of bad faith, the 'American Rule' would apply. 501 U.S. 32, 45, 111 S.Ct. 2123, 115 L.Ed.2d 27 (1991). The Court also cautioned that, "Because of their very potency, inherent powers must be exercised with restraint and discretion." Id. at 44, 111 S.Ct. 2123 (citing Roadway Express, Inc. v. Piper, 447 U.S. 752, 764, 100 S.Ct. 2455

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Related

Head v. Medford
62 F.3d 351 (Eleventh Circuit, 1995)
Glatter v. Mroz
65 F.3d 1567 (Eleventh Circuit, 1995)
Barnes v. Dalton
158 F.3d 1212 (Eleventh Circuit, 1998)
ACLU of Georgia v. Miller
168 F.3d 423 (Eleventh Circuit, 1999)
Clarence Thomas v. Tenneco Packaging Co., Inc.
293 F.3d 1306 (Eleventh Circuit, 2002)
Bivins v. Wrap It Up, Inc.
548 F.3d 1348 (Eleventh Circuit, 2008)
Alyeska Pipeline Service Co. v. Wilderness Society
421 U.S. 240 (Supreme Court, 1975)
Roadway Express, Inc. v. Piper
447 U.S. 752 (Supreme Court, 1980)
Hensley v. Eckerhart
461 U.S. 424 (Supreme Court, 1983)
Blum v. Stenson
465 U.S. 886 (Supreme Court, 1984)
Chambers v. Nasco, Inc.
501 U.S. 32 (Supreme Court, 1991)
Larry Bonner v. City of Prichard, Alabama
661 F.2d 1206 (Eleventh Circuit, 1981)
Murray v. Playmaker Services, LLC
548 F. Supp. 2d 1378 (S.D. Florida, 2008)
Loranger v. Stierheim
10 F.3d 776 (Eleventh Circuit, 1994)

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Bluebook (online)
334 F. Supp. 3d 1277, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/evans-v-d-cefalu-mgmt-inc-flsd-2018.