Sandoval v. Florida Paradise Lawn Maintenance, Inc.

303 F. App'x 802
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
DecidedDecember 18, 2008
Docket08-12903
StatusUnpublished

This text of 303 F. App'x 802 (Sandoval v. Florida Paradise Lawn Maintenance, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Sandoval v. Florida Paradise Lawn Maintenance, Inc., 303 F. App'x 802 (11th Cir. 2008).

Opinion

PER CURIAM:

Nelson Sandoval and Ricardo Turicios (“Appellants”) appeal the district court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of Florida Paradise Lawn Maintenance, Inc, Luis Vigoa, Sr., and Florida Paradise Landscaping, Inc. (“Appellees”), dismissing Appellants’ claims for uncompensated overtime wages under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”), 29 U.S.C. § 201 et seq. Appellants contend that the district court erred in determining that Appellees were not required to pay overtime compensation under the FLSA’s “enterprise coverage” based on the district court’s determination that Appellants failed to present any evidence that Appellees were an “[ejnterprise engaged in commerce or in the production of goods for commerce” under the meaning of 29 U.S.C. § 203(s)(l)(A)(i). Appellants argue that Appellees were engaged in interstate commerce under the meaning of the FLSA because Appellees were engaged in the business of construction and grossed over $500,000 annually. We affirm.

I. BACKGROUND

Luis Vigoa, Sr. is the president and owner of the two corporate Appellees. The corporations perform grading services involving leveling of the ground and planting trees for their customers. Appellants performed grading services for Appellees. Appellants alleged that they worked for Appellees for more than three years and consistently worked in excess of forty hours weekly without receiving any overtime compensation as is required for covered enterprises under the FLSA. Appellants argue that Appellees are required to pay overtime compensation because Appellees qualify for “enterprise coverage” under the FLSA because the corporations are involved in interstate commerce and gross over $500,000 annually as required by the statute. See 29 U.S.C. 203(s)(l)(A)(ii). The district court determined that there were questions of fact regarding the $500,000 threshold and whether the two corporate defendants could be considered a single enterprise; however, the court granted summary judgment based on its determination that Appellants presented no evidence that Appellees were involved in interstate commerce *804 under the meaning of 29 U.S.C. § 203(s)(l)(A)(i).

II. STANDARD OF REVIEW

This Court reviews a district court’s grant of summary judgment de novo. Holloman v. Mail-Well Corp., 443 F.3d 832, 836 (11th Cir.2006). Summary judgment is appropriate when the evidence, viewed in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party, presents no genuine issue of fact and compels judgment as a matter of law. Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(c); Holloman, 443 F.3d at 836. In order to contest a properly made motion for summary judgment, the nonmoving party may not merely rely on its pleading; rather, the nonmoving party must respond by presenting affidavits or other evidence that sets out specific facts showing a genuine issue of material fact. Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(e); Young v. City of Palm Bay, Fla., 358 F.3d 859, 860 (11th Cir.2004). “A mere scintilla of evidence in support of the nonmoving party will not suffice to overcome a motion for summary judgment.” Young, 358 F.3d at 860.

III. DISCUSSION

Appellants contend that Appellees constitute an enterprise engaged in commerce under the FLSA, requiring them to pay overtime compensation to any employees that work more than forty hours in a workweek under 29 U.S.C. § 207(a)(1). The definitions section of the FLSA states:

“Enterprise engaged in commerce or in the production of goods for commerce” means an enterprise that—
(A)(i) has employees engaged in commerce or in the production of goods for commerce, or that has employees handling, selling, or otherwise working on goods or materials that have been moved in or produced for commerce by any person; and
(ii) is an enterprise whose annual gross volume of sales made or business done is not less than $500,000....

29 U.S.C. § 203(s)(l)(A)(i)-(ii). 1 Under the FLSA, the definition of “goods” “does not include goods after their delivery into the actual physical possession of the ultimate consumer thereof other than a producer, manufacturer, or processor thereof.” Id. § 203(i).

Appellees attached affidavits to their motion for summary judgment stating that all of their customers were located in Florida, all of the grading of ground and planting of trees was done in Florida, all of the trees were purchased in Florida, and all of the trees were grown in Florida. In Appellants’ response to the summary judgment motion, Appellants did not present any evidence disputing these statements. 2

Instead of producing evidence of interstate transactions, Appellants argued that the district court should presume that Appellees were engaged in interstate commerce because Appellees were involved with construction work and grossed over $500,000 annually. Appellants point to the *805 fact that an earlier version of 29 U.S.C. § 203(s)(4) indicated that businesses involved in construction or reconstruction automatically triggered FLSA jurisdiction. See Ferguson v. Neighborhood Hous. Servs. of Cleveland, Inc., 780 F.2d 549, 554 (6th Cir.1986) (holding that the employer was subject to FLSA jurisdiction because it was involved in construction or reconstruction under the meaning of the FLSA). However, Appellants acknowledge that the “construction or reconstruction” language is no longer in the statute and that Appellants can no longer simply argue that Appellees were involved in construction to trigger FLSA jurisdiction.

Despite the acknowledgment that the construction language is no longer in the statute, Appellants argue that the prior inclusion on construction employers under FLSA jurisdiction should be persuasive in light of the $500,000 annual income threshold for triggering jurisdiction.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Jeffrey Scott v. K. W. Max Investments, Inc.
256 F. App'x 244 (Eleventh Circuit, 2007)
William Dwayne Young v. City of Palm Bay
358 F.3d 859 (Eleventh Circuit, 2004)
Otis J. Holloman v. Mail-Well Corporation
443 F.3d 832 (Eleventh Circuit, 2006)
Joseph Thorne v. All Restoration Svcs. Inc.
448 F.3d 1264 (Eleventh Circuit, 2006)
Polycarpe v. E & S Landscaping Service, Inc.
572 F. Supp. 2d 1318 (S.D. Florida, 2008)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
303 F. App'x 802, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/sandoval-v-florida-paradise-lawn-maintenance-inc-ca11-2008.