Santiago et al v. Radioshack Corporation

Filing 1

NOTICE of Removal from Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois, case number (2011-CH-05309) filed by Radioshack Corporation Filing fee $ 350, receipt number 0752-6036502. (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit A - State Court Record)(Linas, Jonathan)

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE
NORTHERN DISTRICT OF ILLINOIS
EASTERN DIVISION
MICHAEL SANTIAGO and TIMOTHY
FRANZKE, individually and on behalf of
all others similarly situated,
Case No. 11-CV-3508

Plaintiffs,
v.
RADIOSHACK CORPORATION,
Defendant.

NOTICE OF REMOVAL
Defendant RadioShack Corporation (“RadioShack”), pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §§ 1331,
1441, and 1446, hereby removes to this Court the lawsuit captioned Michael Santiago, et al. v.
RadioShack Corporation, which was filed in the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois on
February 10, 2011 and designated as Case No. 2011-CH-05309 (the “State Court Lawsuit”). In
support of removal, RadioShack states as follows:
1.

On February 10, 2011, Plaintiffs Michael Santiago and Timothy Franzke filed the

State Court Lawsuit against RadioShack.
2.

RadioShack was served with a copy of the summons and the complaint in the

State Court Lawsuit on April 25, 2011.
3.

The complaint alleges that Plaintiffs Santiago and Franzke worked as hourly non-

exempt store managers for RadioShack in Illinois. (Complaint at ¶¶ 1-2). Plaintiffs allege that
RadioShack failed to compensate them for all hours worked during their employment – including
overtime hours worked – in violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act, 29 U.S.C. §§ 201, et seq.

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(“FLSA”), the Illinois Wage Payment & Collections Act, 820 ILCS §§ 115, et seq., and the
Illinois Minimum Wage Law, 820 ILCS §§ 105, et seq. (Id. at ¶¶ 17-18, 23-25, 35-59.)
4.

Plaintiffs seek to bring their FLSA claim as a collective action pursuant to 29

U.S.C. § 216(b) and their state-law claims as a class action on behalf of “[a]ll individuals who
were employed in the [S]tate of Illinois by the Defendant, its subsidiaries or affiliated companies,
as non-exempt store managers or other positions performing similar responsibilities for the
Defendant at any time during the relevant statute of limitations.” (Complaint at ¶¶ 26, 59).
Plaintiff Santiago also brings an individual claim captioned “retaliatory discharge” that alleges
he was terminated in retaliation for reporting violations of the law. (Id. at ¶¶ 60-66).
5.

RadioShack hereby removes the State Court Lawsuit based on federal-question

jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §§ 1331 and 1441. This Notice of Removal is timely and
proper pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1446.
I.

Federal-Question Jurisdiction Exists In This Case
6.

Plaintiffs allege in the complaint that RadioShack failed to pay for all hours

worked in violation of the FLSA, 29 U.S.C. § 201, et seq., and seek to bring their FLSA claim as
a collective action pursuant to 29 U.S.C. § 216(b).
7.

This Court has original jurisdiction over Plaintiffs’ FLSA claim under 28 U.S.C.

§ 1331 because the claim arises under federal law. See 28 U.S.C. §§ 1331, 1441(a)-(b).
8.

This Court also has supplemental jurisdiction over Plaintiffs’ state-law claims

pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1367(a) and those claims may be removed in conjunction with Plaintiffs’
federal claims under 28 U.S.C. § 1441(c).
II.

RadioShack Has Complied With 28 U.S.C. § 1446.
9.

The State Court Lawsuit was commenced within the judicial district of the United

States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.

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10.

All pleadings in the State Court Lawsuit are attached to this Notice of Removal as

Exhibit A, in compliance with 28 U.S.C. § 1446(a).
11.

This Notice of Removal is being filed with this Court within 30 days after

RadioShack’s receipt of the summons and complaint in the State Court Lawsuit, in compliance
with 28 U.S.C. § 1446(b). See Murphy Bros. v. Michetti Pipe Stringing, Inc., 526 U.S. 344, 354,
119 S.Ct. 1322, 1328 (1999).
12.

Promptly after filing this Notice of Removal, RadioShack will give written notice

of the filing of this Notice of Removal to all parties of record and will file a copy of the Notice of
Removal with the Clerk of the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois as required by 28 U.S.C.
§ 1446(d).

Dated: May 25, 2011

Respectfully submitted,

/s/ Jonathan M. Linas
Michael J. Gray (06210880)
[e-mail]
Jonathan M. Linas (6290055)
[e-mail]
JONES DAY
77 West Wacker
Chicago, IL 60601-1692
Telephone:
[phone]
Facsimile:
[phone]

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CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I hereby certify that on May 25, 2011, I served the foregoing NOTICE OF REMOVAL
by U.S. Mail on the following counsel of record for Plaintiff:
Adam J. Betzen
Betzen Law Office, LLC
2863 W. Leland Avenue, Suite 1
Chicago, Illinois 60625
James Zouras
Ryan F. Stephan
Stephan Zouras, LLP
205 N. Michigan Avenue, Suite 2560
Chicago, Illinois 60601

/s/ Jonathan M. Linas
Attorney for Defendant
RadioShack Corporation

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