Bonnette et al v. Exceed Landscape Solutions Inc

Filing 22

ORDER granting 17 Joint MOTION for Settlement. Signed by Honorable Joseph F. Anderson, Jr. on 07/20/2015. (bshr, )

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF SOUTH CAROLINA
COLUMBIA DIVISION
RONALD BONETTE, MAURICE CLEMENTI,
MITCHELL LEE and FRANKLIN MOORE
Plaintiffs,
vs.
EXCEED LANDSCAPE SOLUTIONS, INC.
Defendant.

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No.: 3:14-cv-4773-JFA
ORDER

This matter is before the court on the Parties Joint Motion to Approve Settlement. The
matter predominantly involves claims by the Plaintiffs for unpaid overtime under the Fair Labor
Standards Act, 29 U.S.C. § 201, et. seq. (FLSA). Under that Act, settlement of FLSA claims are
subject to approval by the court. See, e.g., Taylor v. Progress Energy, Inc., 493 F.3d 454, 460 (4th
Cir.2007).
The parties represented to the court that Plaintiffs entitlement to overtime was contested.
The Defendant asserted that the FLSA did not apply to it and, in any event, the Plaintiffs were
exempt from the FLSA overtime provisions. Although the parties did not engage in formal
discovery, the Defendant provided the Plaintiffs with records showing hours worked during the
terms of their employment. Plaintiffs’ counsel represented that she consulted with each Plaintiff
and each agreed to a compromise of their claims.

The settlement calls for a one third

contingency to be paid to Plaintiffs’ counsel.
The court finds the settlement to be a reasonable compromise of claims and approves it.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
July 20, 2015
Columbia, South Carolina

Joseph F. Anderson, Jr.
United States District Judge