United States District Court, E.D. Arkansas, Jonesboro Division
RAYMOND HATCHER, Individually and on Behalf of All Others Similarly Situated PLAINTIFF
v.
FRANK A. ROGERS & CO, INC.; and EDWARD SCOGGINS DEFENDANTS
PLAINTIFFS Raymond Hatcher, signature forthcoming, DEFENDANT
FRANK A. ROGERS & CO., INC. Edward Scoggins, Sanford Law
Firm, PLLC Josh Sanford Attorneys for Plaintiffs
HUSCH
BLACKWELL Hillary Klein Attorneys for Defendants
ORDER
D. P.
MARSHALL JR. UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
The
Court appreciates the parties' addendum. All material
things considered, the proposed settlement is fair,
reasonable, and adequate. Lynn's Food Stores v.
United States, 679 F.2d 1350, 1353 (11th Cir. 1982);
see also Melgar v. OK Foods, 902 F.3d 775, 779 (8th
Cir. 2018). The parties' agreement is attached. The
settlement reflects a good-faith compromise of disputed
issues based on a thorough investigation of the wage-related
facts. The lawyers' fees are modest given all the work
shown in the docket. In these circumstances, the Court has
adequate information to evaluate them without reviewing
billing records. The joint motion to approve the settlement,
No.31, is granted. Hatcher's complaint will be dismissed
with prejudice.
So
Ordered.
SETTLEMENT
AGREEMENT AND RELEASE OF CLAIMS
This
agreement, along with all exhibits hereto (collectively, the
''Settlement Agreement"), is entered into by and
between Frank A. Rogers & Co., Inc. (as well as its
former and current directors, officers, agents, employees,
attorneys, predecessors, successors, subsidiaries, and
affiliated entities) and Edward Scoggins (collectively
"Defendants"), on the one hand, and Raymond Hatcher
("Mr. Hatcher"), Bryan Herring ("Mr.
Herring"), Thomas Peoples ("Mr. Peoples"),
Jerry Jewell ("Mr. Jewell"), and Harold Ray
Barnhill ("Mr. Barnhiil") (collectively,
"Plaintiffs"), on the other hand, in the case of
Raymond Hatcher v. Frank A. Rogers & Co., Inc. and
Edward Scoggins, No. 3:17-cv-00190-DPM, filed in the
U.S. District Court of the Eastern District of Arkansas (the
"Lawsuit").
RECITALS
WHEREAS,
Mr. Hatcher filed this action against Defendants alleging
violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act
("FLSA"), individually and on behalf of a
collective group pursuant to 29 U.S.C. § 216(b), and
violations of the Arkansas Minimum Wage Act
("AMWA"), individually and on behalf of a putative
class under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23 ("Rule
23") on July 27, 2017 (Doc. 1);
WHEREAS,
Defendants filed an Answer denying the material allegations
in the Complaint on September 11, 2017 (Doc. 4);
WHEREAS,
pursuant to 29 U.S.C. § 216(b), the Court conditionally
certified a collective action for the FLSA claims in the
Lawsuit on October 31, 2017 (Doc. 15);
WHEREAS,
six additional individuals opted into the FLSA collective
action (Docs. 19-24);
WHEREAS,
no Rule 23 class has been certified;
WHEREAS,
the parties reached an agreement fully and finally settling
the Plaintiffs' claims in the Lawsuit (the
"Settlement"), and hereby reduce those terms to a
formal agreement for Court approval:
WHEREAS,
Defendants deny all the allegations in the Lawsuit and any
and all liability and damages of any kind to anyone with
respect to these alleged facts or causes of action asserted
in the Lawsuit, but nonetheless, without admitting or
conceding any liability or damages whatsoever have agreed to
settle the Lawsuit on the terms and conditions set forth in
this Settlement Agreement to avoid the burden, expense, and
uncertainty of continuing the Lawsuit;
WHEREAS,
the parties recognize that the outcome in the Lawsuit is
uncertain and that achieving the final result through the
litigation process would require substantial additional risk,
discovery, time, and expense to both parties;
WHEREAS,
the Plaintiffs and their counsel have conducted an
investigation and evaluation of the facts and law relating to
the claims asserted in the Lawsuit and have determined that
the settlement as provided in this Settlement Agreement is in
the best interests of all and that the settlement provided in
this Settlement Agreement represents a fair, reasonable, and
adequate resolution of the Lawsuit; and
NOW
THEREFORE, the parties, intending to be legally bound and in
consideration of the mutual covenants and other good and
valuable consideration set forth below, do hereby agree as
follows:
AGREEMENT
1.
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