California Court Denies Certification of Misclassification, Meal Period and Rest Period Claims against Joe's Crab Shack Restaurants
By Kara Maciel and Aaron Olsen
After five years of litigation, a Los Angeles Superior Court has denied class certification of a class action against Joe’s Crab Shack Restaurants on claims that it managers were misclassified as exempt and denied meal and rest periods in violation of California law. The court found that the plaintiffs had not established adequacy of class representatives, typicality, commonality or superiority, and emphasized a defendant’s due process right to provide individualized defenses to class members’ claims.
Because the case was handled by our colleagues in our Los Angeles office, we think it best not to comment on the decision other than to say that it highlights the need for creative strategies in defending against wage-hour class actions.
