Odysseus, Avocados, and Election Litigation Timing

MICHAEL C. DORF

Cornell law professor Michael C. Dorf explains the legal concepts of ripeness and laches, which pertain to the timing of filing a lawsuit, and argues that in the context of election lawsuits, it is far better for courts to relax ripeness rules and risk unnecessary adjudications than to discard the doctrine of laches and risk widespread disenfranchisement and the undermining of confidence in fair elections.

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American Guarantee & Liability Insurance Co. v. ACE American Insurance Co.

Docket: 19-20779

Opinion Date: December 21, 2020

Judge: Edith Hollan Jones

Areas of Law: Civil Procedure, Insurance Law

After Mark Braswell died when his road bike collided with a stopped truck, his survivors filed suit against the truck's owner, the Brickman Group. Brickman was primarily insured by ACE and secondarily insured by AGLIC. ACE rejected plaintiffs' three settlement offers before and during trial. The jury ultimately awarded plaintiffs nearly $28 million, plaintiffs and Brickman settled for nearly $10 million, and AGLIC paid nearly $8 million of the amount. AGLIC then filed suit against ACE, arguing that because ACE violated its Stowers duty to accept one of the three settlement offers for the primary policy limits, ACE had to cover AGLIC's settlement contribution. The district court agreed. The Fifth Circuit affirmed the district court's judgment and held that ACE's Stowers duty was triggered by plaintiffs' third offer, and that ACE violated this duty. In this case, the offer generated a Stowers duty because it "proposed to release the insured fully" and it was not conditional. Furthermore, the evidence was sufficient to support that ACE violated its Stowers duty by failing to reevaluate the settlement value of the case and accept plaintiffs' reasonable offer.

Hewitt v. Helix Energy Solutions Group, Inc.

Docket: 19-20023

Opinion Date: December 21, 2020

Judge: James C. Ho

Areas of Law: Labor & Employment Law

The Fifth Circuit withdrew its prior opinion and substituted this opinion in its place. The petition for rehearing en banc remains pending. Plaintiff worked as a tool pusher for Helix and was paid a daily rate. Although Helix concedes that it required plaintiff to work over forty hours per week, Helix nevertheless attempts to avoid the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) overtime penalty by characterizing plaintiff as either an executive or highly compensated employee—both of which are exempt from the FLSA overtime requirements. The district court granted summary judgment in favor of Helix. The court reversed, holding that an employer can pay a daily rate under 29 C.F.R. 541.604(b) and still satisfy the salary basis test of section 541.602—but only if the employer complies with both the minimum weekly guarantee requirement and the reasonable relationship test. In this case, Helix does not comply with either prong because it pays plaintiff a daily rate without offering a minimum weekly required amount that is paid regardless of the number of hours, days or shifts worked, and Helix does not comply with the reasonable relationship test. The court noted that its reading of the regulations finds support not only from the Sixth and Eighth Circuits, but also in repeated statements by the Labor Department. The court rejected contentions to the contrary and remanded for further proceedings.

Molina-Aranda v. Black Magic Enterprises, LLC

Docket: 19-50638

Opinion Date: December 21, 2020

Judge: Catharina Haynes

Areas of Law: Labor & Employment Law

Plaintiff filed suit against Carmen and Jessie Ramirez and their company, Black Magic, alleging that the Ramirezes violated the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) and the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Plaintiffs claimed that the Ramirezes brought them to the United States under the H-2B visa program to work as construction workers, but once plaintiffs arrived in the country, they were made to work as truck drivers. Plaintiffs also claimed that the Ramirezes unlawfully deducted from their paychecks, denied them overtime pay, and sometimes failed to pay them entirely. The district court dismissed the claims for failure to state a claim, declined to exercise supplemental jurisdiction over plaintiffs' related state law claims, and denied plaintiffs' later-filed motion for leave to amend the complaint. The Fifth Circuit affirmed the district court's dismissal of plaintiffs' RICO claims where plaintiffs failed to adequately plead proximate causation; affirmed the district court's denial of plaintiffs' motion for leave to amend; reversed the dismissal of plaintiffs' FLSA claims where plaintiffs have adequately alleged that they handled goods or materials that had at some point travelled interstate, and that they lost wages as a result of the alleged FLSA violations; vacated the dismissal of the state law claims for new consideration of supplemental jurisdiction; and remanded for further proceedings.