Diaz v. Jaguar Restaurant Group, LLC, No. 09-16046

FLSA Action for Unpaid Overtime

In Diaz v. Jaguar Restaurant Group, LLC, No. 09-16046, an action against plaintiff's former employer for unpaid overtime wages under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), the court reversed the district court's holding that plaintiff was an exempt administrative employee under the FLSA, where the administrative exemption issue was not tried by implied consent as plaintiff's testimony was relevant to another defense in this case: defendant's independent contractor defense.

As the court wrote:  "Isabel Diaz ("Diaz") filed a lawsuit against Jaguar Restaurant Group, LLC, Jagmar Management Group, LLC, Jagmar Brands, LLC, and Eduardo Durazo (collectively, "Jaguar"), her former employer, for unpaid overtime wages under the Fair Labor Standards Act ("FLSA"), 29 U.S.C. §§ 201-216. During trial, the district court allowed Jaguar to amend its Answer pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 15(b) to include the administrative exemption as an affirmative defense as it found that Diaz had injected the issue through her testimony at trial."

Related Resources

• Read the Eleventh Circuit's Decision in Diaz v. Jaguar Restaurant Group, LLC, No. 09-16046