Gayle v. Harry's Nurses Registry, Inc.

CourtDistrict Court, E.D. New York
DecidedJuly 31, 2020
Docket1:07-cv-04672
StatusUnknown

This text of Gayle v. Harry's Nurses Registry, Inc. (Gayle v. Harry's Nurses Registry, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, E.D. New York primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Gayle v. Harry's Nurses Registry, Inc., (E.D.N.Y. 2020).

Opinion

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT EASTERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK CLAUDIA GAYLE, Individually, on Behalf of All Others Similarly Situated and as a Class Representative, ALINE ANTENOR, ANNE C. DEPASQUALE, ANNABEL LLEWELLYN-HENRY, EVA MYERS-GRANGER, LINDON MORRI- SON, NATALIE RODRIGUEZ, JACQUELINE WARD, DUPONT BAYAS, CAROL P. CLUNIE, RAMDEO CHANKAR SINGH, CHRISTALINE PIERRE, LEMONIA SMITH, BARBARA TULL, HENRICK LEDAIN, MERIKA PARIS, EDITH MUKARDI, MARTHA OGUN JANCE, MERLYN PATTERSON, ALEX- ANDER GUMBS, SEROJNIE BHOG, GENEVIEVE BARBOT, CAROLE MOORE, RAQUEL FRANCIS, MARIE MICHELLE GERVIL, NADETTE MIL- LER, PAULETTE MILLER, BENDY PIERRE-JOSEPH, ROSE-MARIE ZEPHIRIN, SULAIMAN ALI-EL, DEBBIE ANN BROMFIELD, REBECCA PILE, MARIA GARCIA SHANDS, ANGELA COLLINS, BRENDA LEWIS, SOUCI- ANNE QUERETTE, SUSSAN AJIBOYE, JANE BURKE HYLTON, WILLIE EVANS, PAULINE GRAY, EVIARNA TOUSSAINT, GERALDINE JOAZARD, NISEEKAH Y. EVANS, GETTY ROCOURT, CATHERINE MODESTE, MAR- GUERITE L. BHOLA, YOLANDA ROBINSON, KARLIFA SMALL, JOAN-ANN R. JOHNSON, LENA THOMPSON, MARY A. DAVIS, NATHALIE FRAN- COIS, ANTHONY HEADLAM, DAVID EDWARD LEVY, MAUD SAMEDI, BERNICE SANKAR, MARLENE HYMAN, LUCILLE HAMILTON, PATRICIA ROBINSON,

Plaintiffs, -against- HARRY’S NURSES REGISTRY, INC., and HARRY DORVILIER,

Defendants.

ORDER 07-CV-4672 (NGG) (PK) NICHOLAS G. GARAUFIS, United States District Judge. In 2007, Plaintiffs brought suit against Defendants seeking to re- cover unpaid overtime pay and damages under the Fair Labor Standards Act. (Compl. (Dkt. 1).) Pending before the court is Plaintiffs’ motion for attorney’s fees and costs, which the court referred to Magistrate Judge Peggy Kuo for a report and recom- mendation (“R&R”). (Mot. for Atty’s Fees (“Mot.”) (Dkt. 276); Feb. 26, 2020 Order Referring Mot.) Judge Kuo issued the an- nexed R&R on July 14, 2020, recommending that the court grant Plaintiffs’ motion for attorney’s fees and costs in the amount of $11,944.50. (R&R (Dkt. 279) at 10.) No party has objected to Judge Kuo’s R&R, and the time to do so has passed. See Fed. R. of Civ. P. 72(b)(2). Therefore, the court reviews the R&R for clear error. See Gesualdi v. Mack Excavation & Trailer Serv., Inc., No. 09-CV-2502 (KAM) (JO), 2010 WL 985294, at *1 (E.D.N.Y. Mar. 15, 2010); La Torres v. Walker, 216 F. Supp. 2d 157, 159 (S.D.N.Y. 2000). Having found none, the court ADOPTS the R&R in full. SO ORDERED. Dated: Brooklyn, New York July 31, 2020 _/s/ Nicholas G. Garaufis__ NICHOLAS G. GARAUFIS United States District Judge UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT EASTERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK --------------------------------------------------------------------- X : CLAUDIA GAYLE, Individually, On Behalf of All : Others Similarly Situated and as a Class Representative, : ALINE ANTENOR, ANNE C. DEPASQUALE, : ANNABEL LLEWELLYN-HENRY, EVA MYERS- : GRANGER, LINDON MORRISON, NATALIE : RODRIGUEZ, JACQUELINE WARD, DUPONT : BAYAS, CAROL P. CLUNIE, RAMDEO : CHANKAR SINGH, CHRISTALINE PIERRE, : LEMONIA SMITH, BARBARA TULL, HENRICK : LEDAIN, MERIKA PARIS, EDITH MUKARDI, : MARTHA OGUN JANCE, MERLYN PATTERSON, : ALEXANDER GUMBS, SEROJNIE BHOG, : GENEVIEVE BARBOT, CAROLE MOORE, : RAQUEL FRANCIS, MARIE MICHELLE GERVIL, : NADETTE MILLER, PAULETTE MILLER, BENDY PIERRE-JOSEPH, ROSE-MARIE : REPORT AND ZEPHIRIN, SULAIMAN ALI-EL, DEBBIE ANN : RECOMMENDATION BROMFIELD, REBECCA PILE, MARIA GARCIA : 1:07-cv-04672 (NGG)(PK) SHANDS, ANGELA COLLINS, BRENDA LEWIS, : SOUCIANNE QUERETTE, SUSSAN AJIBOYE, : JANE BURKE HYLTON, WILLIE EVANS, : PAULINE GRAY, EVIARNA TOUSSAINT, : GERALDINE JOAZARD, NISEEKAH Y. EVANS, : GETTY ROCOURT, CATHERINE MODESTE, : MARGUERITE L. BHOLA, YOLANDA : ROBINSON, KARLIFA SMALL, JOAN-ANN R. : JOHNSON, LENA THOMPSON, MARY A. DAVIS, : NATHALIE FRANCOIS, ANTHONY HEADLAM, : DAVID EDWARD LEVY, MAUD SAMEDI, : BERNICE SANKAR, MARLENE HYMAN, : LUCILLE HAMILTON, PATRICIA ROBINSON : : Plaintiffs, : : -against- : : HARRY’S NURSES REGISTRY, INC., and HARRY : DORVILIER, : : Defendants. : : --------------------------------------------------------------------- X Peggy Kuo, United States Magistrate Judge: Plaintiffs filed a Motion for Attorney’s Fees and Costs seeking an order pursuant to 29 U.S.C. § 216(b), awarding the costs and fees of this action incurred on appeal. (“Motion,” Dkt. 276.) The Honorable Nicholas G. Garaufis referred the Motion to the undersigned for a Report and Recommendation. (Feb. 26, 2020 Order.) PROCEDURAL HISTORY

On November 7, 2007, Claudia Gayle commenced an action on behalf of herself and other similarly situated nurses employed by Defendants. (Compl., Dkt. 1 ¶ 1.) Gayle sought to recover unpaid overtime pay and liquidated damages under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”). (Id. ¶¶ 22-24.) During the course of a years-long litigation—including, an appeal to the Second Circuit, see Gayle v. Harry’s Nurses Registry, Inc., 594 F. App’x 714 (2d Cir. 2014), and a petition for a writ of certiorari, which the Supreme Court denied, see Harry’s Nurses Registry, Inc. v. Gayle, 135 S. Ct. 2059 (2015)—three judgments were entered against Defendants. In total, Plaintiffs were awarded $760,315.76 for lost wages and liquidated damages under the FLSA, and fees and costs totaling $171,643.39. (Dkts. 180, 214, 225, 226; see also Dkt. 261 at 4.) On September 22, 2017, Defendant Harry Dorvilier filed a letter entitled “Motion for Sanctions.” (Dkt. 233.) Dorvilier alleged that Plaintiffs’ counsel, Jonathan A. Bernstein, was not properly distributing to Plaintiffs the money awarded to them by the Court. (Id. at 1-2.) Dorvilier

also alleged that Bernstein “double dipped” by keeping for himself funds that should have gone to the clients and, as a result, received more money than the Court awarded him. (Id. at 2.) After considering the briefing and evidence submitted by the parties, Judge Marilyn D. Go recommended that Defendants’ motion for sanctions “be denied in all respects.” (Dkt. 261 at 25.) Defendants filed objections to Judge Go’s report and recommendation on September 25, 2018. (Dkt. 262.) Judge Garaufis adopted the report and recommendation in full on September 30, 2018. (“Order,” Dkt. 264.) Defendants appealed this Court’s Order to the Second Circuit on November 16, 2018. (Appeal Docketed, No. 18-3472 (2d Cir. Nov. 16, 2018).) The parties engaged in motion practice before the Second Circuit, including a motion to consolidate Defendants’ appeal in this case with another case (Appellate Dkts. 30, 35, 38, 39, 52) and multiple motions to reinstate the appeal (see Appellate Dkts. 79-86, 90, 91, 96, 98; see also Dkt. 277 ¶ 11). The Second Circuit affirmed the Order on January 24, 2020 (Appellate Dkt. 133) and issued a mandate on February 14, 2020 (Dkt. 275). The Second Circuit

held that “the district court [did not] abuse[ ] its discretion in ultimately declining to impose sanctions on plaintiffs’ counsel.” Gayle v. Harry’s Nurses Registry, 802 F. App’x 1, 3 (2d Cir. 2020). On February 25, 2020, Plaintiffs filed the Motion (see Dkts. 276, 277), seeking attorney’s fees and costs “for work done on appeal.” (Dkt. 277 ¶ 4.) Plaintiffs seek $14,834.66 in fees (id. ¶ 13), representing a total of 37.86 hours of attorney and paralegal time. (Id. ¶ 10; Dkt. 277-2 at 2.) Bernstein’s hourly rate is $400 and the paralegal’s hourly rate is $80. (Dkt. 277-2 at 1, 2.) According to an exhibit submitted by Plaintiffs, the fees were incurred as follows:1 High Level Description Time Fees Paralegal Time 0.6 hours $48.00 Attorney Time (Excluding Fees Motion) 33.61 hours $13,446.66 Attorney Time on Fees Motion 3.05 hours $1,220 Attorney Travel Time 0.6 hours $120

Plaintiffs also seek $136.50 in copying costs. (Dkt. 277 ¶ 12; Dkt.

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Bluebook (online)
Gayle v. Harry's Nurses Registry, Inc., Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/gayle-v-harrys-nurses-registry-inc-nyed-2020.