Reyes v. 24 West Food Corp.

District Court, S.D. New York

Reyes v. 24 West Food Corp.

Trial Court Opinion

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK SANTIAGO REYES, individually and on behalf of all others similarly situated,

Plaintiff,

CIVIL ACTION NO.: 18 Civ. 10878 (SLC) -v-

SETTLEMENT APPROVAL

24 WEST FOOD CORP., ABDEL K. ABUZAHRIEH, MOHAMMED ABUZAHRIEH, AND HIKMAT ABUZAHRIEH,

Defendants.

SARAH L. CAVE, United States Magistrate Judge.

The parties in this wage-and-hour case under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) have consented to my jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. 636(c) and Fed. R. Civ. P. 73 for all purposes (ECF No. 52), and have now submitted a joint Motion in support of settlement (ECF No. 51) and Settlement Agreement (ECF No. 51-1) for approval under Cheeks v. Freeport Pancake House, Inc.,

796 F.3d 199

(2d Cir. 2015). Courts generally recognize a “strong presumption in favor of finding a settlement fair” in FLSA cases like this one, as courts are “not in as good a position as the parties to determine the reasonableness of an FLSA settlement.” Souza v. 65 St. Marks Bistro, No. 15 Civ. 327 (JLC),

2015 WL 7271747

, at *4 (S.D.N.Y. Nov. 6, 2015) (citation omitted). Having carefully reviewed the joint Motion in support of settlement, the Settlement Agreement, and the accompanying exhibits, the Court finds that all of the terms of the proposed settlement, including the allocation of attorneys’ fees and costs, appear to be fair and reasonable under the totality of the circumstances and in light of the factors enumerated in Wolinsky v. Scholastic Inc.,

900 F. Supp. 2d 332, 335

(S.D.N.Y. 2012). Accordingly, the Court approves the settlement. This action is dismissed with prejudice and without costs except as may be stated in the Settlement Agreement. The Court will retain jurisdiction to enforce the Settlement Agreement. Any pending motions are moot. The Clerk of Court is respectfully requested to close ECF No. 51, mark it as “granted,” and close this case.

Dated: New York, New York January 14, 2022 SO ORDERED.

AHL. C United States Magistrate Judge

Reference

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