Designated for publication
- White v. U.S. Corrections, LLC, 19-51074, appeal from W.D. Tex.
- Wilson, J. (Elrod, Duncan, Wilson), Fair Labor Standards Act
- Reversing district court’s 12(b)(6) dismissal of plaintiff’s overtime claim under the FLSA, holding that, while the Motor Carrier Act (“MCA”) exemption from the FLSA governed the plaintiff’s job transporting prisoners for the defendant, the district court erred in dismissing the claim at the pleading stage.
- The defendant had attached a number of documents to its Rule 12(b)(6) motion to support its argument that plaintiff’s prisoner transportation job was governed by the MCA, and that the Department of Transportation had regulatory purview over the job pursuant to the Interstate Transportation of Dangerous Criminals Act (“Jeanna’s Act”), which defendant argued was a prerequisite for application of the MCA exemption. The plaintiff moved for partial summary judgment, arguing that Jeanna’s Act applicability actually removed her job from the MCA exemption. The district court adopted the magistrate recommendation to dismiss the overtime claims and deny the plaintiff’s motion for partial summary judgment.
- Whether Jeanna’s Act renders the MCA exemption inapplicable to private sector employees is a res nova question in the 5th Circuit. “[T]he MCA exemption, 29 U.S.C. § 213(b)(1), provides that an employee is exempt from the FLSA’s overtime pay requirement if ‘the Secretary of Transportation has power to establish qualifications and maximum hours of service pursuant to the provisions of section 31502 of Title 49.’ … The Secretary of Transportation need only possess the power to regulate the employees at issue; it need not actually exercise that power for the [MCA] exemption to apply.” (Internal quotation marks and citations omitted). The Court rejected plaintiff’s argument that, because Jeanna’s Act authorizes the Attorney General to regulate employees of private prisoner transportation companies, the Department of Transportation does not have the requisite authority to regulate the prisoner transportation to trigger the MCA exemption. “[T]he Attorney General’s authority to regulate the transportation of violent prisoners in interstate commerce does not obviate the Secretary of Transportation’s authority to regulate employees of ‘motor carrier[s]’ and ‘motor private carrier[s]’ as contemplated by the MCA exemption. The MCA exemption and Jeanna’s Act are not mutually exclusive, and White’s job with USC falls under the purview of both.”
- Nevertheless, the Court held that the plaintiff’s complaint plausibly set forth an FLSA overtime claim, and that a dismissal at the Rule 12(b)(6) stage was premature. “While USC adequately raised the MCA exemption as an affirmative defense to White’s claim, ‘[i]f the employer claims that the suing employee is exempt from the overtime requirement, then the employer has the burden of proving that the employee falls within the claimed exempted category.’ Johnson, 758 F.3d at 630. USC attempted to meet this burden by attaching several exhibits to its motion to dismiss (and to its response to White’s motion for partial summary judgment). But the ‘determination as to whether an employee is exempt under the [FLSA] is primarily a question of fact’ typically better suited for summary judgment. Dalheim v. KDFWTV, 918 F.2d 1220, 1224 (5th Cir. 1990). This is just such a typical case.”
Unpublished
- U.S. v. Gutierrez, 19-11283, appeal from N.D. Tex.
- per curiam (Davis, Elrod, Oldham), criminal
- Granting Anders motion to withdraw, and dismissing appeal.
- U.S. v. Nelson, 19-30130, appeal from M.D. La.
- per curiam (Higginbotham, Southwick, Engelhardt), habeas corpus
- Affirming district court’s denial of § 2255 petition regarding claims of ineffective assistance of counsel.
- U.S. v. Cahoon, 20-10300, appeal from N.D. Tex.
- per curiam (King, Southwick, Ho), criminal
- Granting Anders motion to withdraw, and dismissing appeal.
- U.S. v. Leija, 20-10397, appeal from N.D. Tex.
- per curiam (Davis, Elrod, Oldham), criminal
- Granting Anders motion to withdraw, and dismissing appeal.
- U.S. v. Wilson, 20-10655, appeal from N.D. Tex.
- per curiam (King, Southwick, Ho), criminal
- Granting Anders motion to withdraw, and dismissing appeal.
- U.S. v. Smith, 20-10822, appeal from N.D. Tex.
- per curiam (King, Smith, Wilson), criminal, sentencing
- Affirming sentence for conviction of conspiring to possess methamphetamine with intent to distribute.
- U.S. v. Aguillon-Hernandez, 20-10842, appeal from N.D. Tex.
- per curiam (Haynes, Willett, Ho), criminal, sentencing
- Affirming sentence for conviction of conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute 50 grams or more of a substance containing a detectable amount of methamphetamine.
- Perry v. Christian, 20-20277, appeal from S.D. Tex.
- per curiam (Clement, Higginson, Engelhardt), § 1983
- Affirming district court’s dismissal for failure to state a claim and for lack of subject matter jurisdiction of numerous constitutional and statutory claims arising from the deprivation of descendants of African-American enslaved people of more than 15 million acres of land.
- In re: Price, 20-30419, appeal from E.D. La.
- per curiam (Dennis, Southwick, Engelhardt), § 1983
- Dismissing as frivolous appeal from district court decision requiring respondent to gain permission of court before filing any more lawsuits against state and federal judges for issuing unfavorable opinions.
- U.S. v. Ford, 20-40084, appeal from E.D. Tex.
- per curiam (King, Southwick, Ho), criminal
- Granting Anders motion to withdraw, and dismissing appeal.
- Herod v. Powell, 20-40162, appeal from S.D. Tex.
- per curiam (Clement, Higginson, Engelhardt), prisoner suit
- Dismissing as frivolous appeal of prisoner plaintiff’s § 1983 suit.
- U.S. v. Alfaro, 20-40207, appeal from S.D. Tex.
- per curiam (Dennis, Costa, Engelhardt), criminal
- Granting Anders motion to withdraw, and dismissing appeal.
- U.S. v. Gray, 20-50846, appeal from W.D. Tex.
- per curiam (Higginbotham, Costa, Engelhardt), criminal
- Granting Anders motion to withdraw, and dismissing appeal.
- Blanco-Reyes v. Garland, 20-60005, petition for review of BIA order
- per curiam (Davis, Sewart, Dennis), immigration
- Denying El Salvadoran petitioner’s petition for review of BIA order denying her motion to reopen her removal proceedings.
- U.S. v. Renchie, 20-60524, appeal from S.D. Miss.
- per curiam (Wiener, Southwick, Duncan), criminal, sentencing
- Dismissing appeal of 240-month sentence for guilty-plea conviction of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of a mixture or substance containing methamphetamine, under appeal waiver.
- Bailey v. Saul, 20-60790, appeal from N.D. Miss.
- per curiam (Jones, Clement, Graves), social security
- Affirming denial of appeal of ALJ’s decision denying social security benefits.
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