Nationwide Class Of Mortgage Loan Officers Granted Conditional Certification In Overtime Suit
COLUMBUS, Ohio - A federal district court on May 23, 2011 granted conditional certification of a nationwide class of mortgage loan officers seeking to recover unpaid overtime (Tom Lewis, et al. v. The Huntington National No. 11-0058 (S.D. Ohio 2011)).
Current and former mortgage loan officers (MLOs) employed by The Huntington National Bank between January 2008 and the present filed suit against their employer in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, seeking unpaid overtime and related relief under federal and state law. The plaintiffs moved for conditional class certification, expedited discovery and court-supervised notice to potential opt-in plaintiffs. The plaintiffs also filed an emergency motion for protective order, cease-and-desist order and immediate granting of plaintiffs' motion for court supervised notice, sanctions and corrective actions.
Granted In Part
The District Court granted both motions in part. Granting conditional certification of the nationwide class, the judge opined that "[i]n this case, all factors weigh in favor of conditional certification. In support of their motion, the Plaintiffs have offered the allegations in their complaint and declarations of the Named Plaintiffs. This evidence shows that the putative Nationwide Class all perform the same job functions and are all compensated according to either the Plan or the Salary Plan, both of which implement the same system of payment for commission earnings. Additionally, Huntington has provided the affidavit of Annette Houck, Huntington's Associate General Counsel and Senior Vice President, who admits that all MLOs perform identical job duties and are compensated according to a unified system. Thus, the Plaintiffs have produced some evidence supporting their contention that the putative class was subject to a common policy and are therefore similarly situated. Moreover, named Plaintiff Lewis claims that there were approximately 175 active MLOs at the time he resigned in January 2011. This suggests that the putative class of current or former employees is a manageable size."
Moving on to the second motion, the District Court granted the request for corrective notice and held the request for restrictions on Huntington's communications with potential plaintiffs in abeyance.
(Abstract of Article from LexisNexis® Mealey's™ Litigation Report Employment Law, Vol. 7, Issue #11, June 2011).