JAHID Hossen and his former employer, Island Protective Service, and its principal, MD Nurul Islam Bhuiyan, have agreed to settle Hossen’s lawsuit, which alleges Fair Labor Standards Act violations.
Hossen, represented by attorney Cong Nie, and Island Protective Service, through attorney Robert T. Torres, stipulated to the entry of a final judgment in the amount of $115,016.42, upon approval of the federal court.
The settlement agreement provides for a total settlement amount of $52,000, paid over a period of over 12 years (at $2,000 per month for the first four months, and thereafter, at $300 per month).
“If defendant fails to pay when due and then fails to cure it, the entire balance of the judgment would be immediately due,” the settlement stated.
The settlement terms were reached by the parties following two settlement conferences held on Oct. 7, 2021 and Nov. 10, 2021, and monitored and facilitated by Magistrate Judge Heather Kennedy.
According to the parties’ joint motion, “The $52,000 settlement amount represents approximately 40% of the total potential maximum recovery of the claims in this case and claims not yet asserted by plaintiff against defendant. The $52,000 amount is close to the actual amount of wages likely owed by defendant to plaintiff (which the parties estimate to be in the range of $50,000 to $54,000). An important factor for the parties to reach this settlement is the anticipated difficulty in collecting from defendant if plaintiff chooses to proceed with trial.”
In a prior FLSA case, 11 former employees of the same defendant obtained in total a judgment of over $200,000 against defendant, but have not been able to collect on that judgment fully. The monthly payment made by defendant on that judgment is currently $500.
The parties believe that the settlement represents a fair and reasonable compromise of the claims given the bona fide disputes and the anticipated difficulty in collecting from defendant.
As to legal fees, the settlement agreement stated that plaintiff entered into a written contingency agreement with the law firm of his counsel that provides for 33.3% of the total recovery as plaintiff’s legal fees.
“Under the lodestar calculation, attorney’s fees would be $6,306.00. 33.3% of the total settlement amount of $52,000.00 would be more than twice the lodestar amount.”
“The proposed payment plan is spread out over more than 12 years, which would extend counsel’s representation for a significant period of time. The risk of non-payment by defendant would be shared by plaintiff and his counsel — if, to the contrary, counsel was to receive the entire amount of legal fees up front, plaintiff would be left to bear solely the risk of default on future payments.”
Therefore, the 33.3% contingency fee is fair and reasonable, the parties stated.
The parties are asking the court to approve the settlement.
Chief Judge Ramona V. Manglona of the District Court for the NMI has recused herself from the case because her nephew, attorney Oliver Manglona also represented the defendant.
Designated Judge Frances M. Tydingco-Gatewood on Monday issued an order referring the case to Magistrate Judge Kennedy for findings and recommendations.
Hossen sued Island Protective Service for breach of contract and for not paying him minimum wage, his regular wage, and overtime in violation of the provisions of FLSA.
