Sandoval v. Starwest Services, LLC et al

Filing 180

MEMORANDUM OF DECISION AND ORDER - It is hereby ORDERED that judgment be, and the same hereby is, entered in favor of the Plaintiff and against the Defendants jointly and severally in the amount of $25,508, representing $6,400 in back pay for regular wages, $6,354 in back pay for overtime wages, and an equal amount of each in liquidated damages. Signed by District Judge Anthony J Trenga on 07/18/2018. (dvanm, )

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF VIRGINIA
Alexandria Division

ROSA SANDOVAL,

Plaintiff,

Civil Action No. l:17-cv-01053 (AJT/TCB)

V.

STARWEST SERVICES, LLC, et ai.
Defendants.

MEMORANDUM OF DECISION AND ORDER

Plaintiff has sued Defendants Starwest Services, LLC ("Starwest"), Ehab Khalil, and

Tariq Algaily for violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act, 29 U.S.C. § 206 et seq. ("FLSA")
(Counts I and V), breach of contract (Count II), quantum meruit (Count III), and unjust
enrichment (Count IV). Plaintiff seeks damages for unpaid wages and overtime pay,
compensatory damages, liquidated damages, fees, interest, and costs pursuant to the FLSA.
On March 19, 2018, the Court denied the parties' Motions for Summary Judgment and on March
26, 2018, held a bench trial with respect to the following issues: (1) whether Plaintiff is an

"employee" or independent contractor under the FLSA; and (2) if an "employee," whether
Defendants' classifying Plaintiff as an independent contractor was in good faith and with

reasonable grounds for believing such a classification was not a violation of the FLSA.^ Based
on the evidence presented, the Court finds and concludes that (1) Plaintiff was an "employee" for
the purposes of the FSLA; (2) each of the Defendants is an "employer" under the FLSA; (3)
*At the conclusion of the trial, the Court took the matter under advisement and the partieshave submitted their posttrial Proposed Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law, as the Court directed. [Doc. No. 178] ("Defs.' Proposed
Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law"), [Doc. No. 179] ("PL's Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law").