Free Joint Preliminary Status Report - District Court of Federal Claims - federal

Case 1:06-cv-00451-EGB

Document 10

Filed 11/28/2006

Page 1 of 6

IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF FEDERAL CLAIMS ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) )

JOHN MEREDITH, Plaintiffs, v. THE UNITED STATES, Defendant.

No. 06-451C (Judge Bruggink)

JOINT PRELIMINARY STATUS REPORT Pursuant to Appendix A of the Rules of the United States Court of Federal Claims ("RCFC"), plaintiff and defendant respectfully submit the following joint preliminary status report: a. Jurisdiction

Plaintiff states that this Court has jurisdiction to consider and decide this action pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1491 and 29 U.S.C. § 201, et seq. Defendant is not aware of a basis upon

which to challenge the Court's jurisdiction at this time. b. Consolidation

The parties agree that this case should not be consolidated with any other case. c. Bifurcation

The parties agree that trial of liability and damages should not be bifurcated. d. Deferral

Case 1:06-cv-00451-EGB

Document 10

Filed 11/28/2006

Page 2 of 6

The parties agree that further proceedings in this case should not be deferred pending consideration of another case before this Court or any other tribunal. e. Remand/Suspension

The parties agree that no remand or suspension will be sought. f. Joinder

The parties agree that no additional parties will be joined. g. Dispositive Motions

One or both parties may move for summary judgment pursuant to RCFC 56. h. Relevant Issues 1. Whether defendant can meet its burden of proof to

establish that plaintiff was exempt from the overtime provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act ("FLSA"), 29 U.S.C. § 201 et seq. 2. If defendant fails to meet its burden of proof as

to Issue 1, then: a. Whether the defendant can meet its burden of proof to establish that it reasonably and in good faith classified plaintiff as exempt from overtime provisions of the FLSA, such that the Court may exercise discretion pursuant to 29 U.S.C. § 260 to

2

Case 1:06-cv-00451-EGB

Document 10

Filed 11/28/2006

Page 3 of 6

award no liquidated damages, or an amount less than provided in § 216(b). b. Whether plaintiff can meet his burden of proving a willful violation of the FLSA to establish that a three-year, rather than a two-year, statute of limitations applies to plaintiff's claim pursuant to 29 U.S.C. § 255(a). c. The amount of backpay and liquidated damages, if any, to which the plaintiff is entitled. 3. If plaintiff is the prevailing party, the amount

of reasonable attorney fees and other costs to which he is entitled pursuant to 29 U.S.C. § 216(b). i. Settlement

The parties anticipate pursuing settlement negotiations prior to and during the discovery period. j. Trial

As stated above, one or both parties may move for summary judgment pursuant to RCFC 56. If dispositive motions are not

submitted, or if they are not completely dispositive of this action, the parties anticipate proceeding to trial. do not request expedited trial scheduling. The parties

At this time, the

parties anticipate that trial would take place in Washington, D.C.

3

Case 1:06-cv-00451-EGB

Document 10

Filed 11/28/2006

Page 4 of 6

k.

Electronic Case Management

The parties have no special issues regarding electronic case management needs. l. Additional Information

There is no additional information of which the Court should be aware at this time. m. Proposed Discovery Plan

The parties intend to conduct simultaneous discovery through interrogatories, requests for admission, requests for production of documents, and depositions. discovery schedule: Exchange of Initial Disclosures: Close of Fact Discovery: Disclosure of Expert Witnesses: January 15, 2007 May 15, 2007 July 15, 2007 The parties propose the following

Respectfully submitted, s/ Donna M.B. King DONNA M.B. KING 309 West Pennsylvania Ave. Towson, Maryland 21204 Tel: (410)494-1005 Fax: 410-769-8333 Attorney for Plaintiff PETER D. KEISLER Assistant Attorney General DAVID M. COHEN Director s/ Todd M. Hughes TODD M. HUGHES Assistant Director

4

Case 1:06-cv-00451-EGB

Document 10

Filed 11/28/2006

Page 5 of 6

s/ Robert E. Chandler ROBERT E. CHANDLER Trial Attorney Commercial Litigation Branch Civil Division Department of Justice Attn: Classification Unit 1100 L Street, N.W., 8th Floor Washington, D.C. 20530 Tel: (202) 514-4678 Fax: (202) 514-8624 Attorneys for Defendant November 28, 2006

5

Case 1:06-cv-00451-EGB

Document 10

Filed 11/28/2006

Page 6 of 6

CERTIFICATE OF FILING I hereby certify that upon this 28th day of November 2007, a copy of the foregoing "JOINT PRELIMINARY STATUS REPORT" was filed electronically. I understand that notice of this filing will be

sent to all parties by operation of the Court's electronic filing system. system. Parties may access this filing through the Court's

s/ Robert E. Chandler