Shortly after the parties agreed in August 2009 to the Mediator's Proposal for settling this case, they began the process of drafting the final settlement papers and requests for court approval. In the process of finalizing the settlement details, the parties realized that they had several disagreements about what settlement agreement language would capture the settlement that was agreed to. To resolve those disagreements, the parties agreed to participate in an arbitration before the mediator, Judge James Warren. Judge Warren issued rulings on the parties’ disagreements in March 2010. After receiving those rulings regarding the scope of the settlement, the parties worked to finalize the language of the written agreement. By June, the parties had resolved virtually all of their disagreements, except for one issue. As of June 22, 2010, the parties submitted that last issue to Judge Warren for his decision.

This settlement requires court approval before it can take effect. The parties will also seek the approval of the Arbitrator who has presided over the Veliz Arbitration. Thus, after Judge Warren provides the final language for the parties’ settlement agreement, the parties will request preliminary and final approval from Judge Seeborg of the U.S. District Court and Arbitrator Bruce Meyerson. After the parties obtain preliminary approval, a notice will be mailed to all potential participants in the settlement, providing detailed information regarding the terms and operation of the settlement, and explaining how to participate in, or comment on, the settlement. No settlement payments may be distributed until after final approval and the resolution of appeals, if any.

To make information about the settlement more widely available, we have established a toll-free telephone number with a recording that will present periodic settlement updates. The toll-free number for this settlement update information is (877) 338-3894. This number will be active 24-hours a day so you may call whenever is convenient.

August 2009 -- We are pleased to announce a settlement in principle in these overtime cases against Cintas. The parties have reached a mediated settlement in principle (in response to a proposal from a professional third-party mediator). When it is fully documented and finally approved by the Court, the settlement, for those participating, will resolve all claims now pending or that could have been brought relating to the subject matter of the cases before the federal courts and the arbitrator. The Court approval process will likely take several months, and the attorneys have begun drafting the settlement papers and taking the steps necessary to secure final court approval. Accordingly, the details of the settlement’s allocation plan will not be finalized until later in the process. The basic settlement terms are these:

1. Cintas will pay $22,750,000. Cintas’ payment will be allocated among: wages for persons with claims pending in the litigation and arbitration proceedings, the costs of notice to eligible persons and claims administration, and attorneys’ fees and costs for plaintiffs’ counsel.

2. Cintas will also pay the employer’s share of applicable state, federal, and FICA (social security) taxes on wages paid to litigating and arbitrating plaintiffs through the settlement.

3. In exchange, all of the pending claims and those which could have been brought against Cintas relating to the subject matter of the cases will be released and the cases will be dismissed with prejudice, except as to any individual who chooses not to participate in the settlement.

We will not know the potential value of any individual’s claim until the settlement and claims allocation process are completed, which will take several months. When the settlement details are preliminarily approved, individuals will receive notice approved by the Court explaining the settlement and how his or her respective claims will be treated.

As always, if you are contacted by a member of our litigation team with questions about this case or your claims, it is extremely important for you to respond promptly to any such requests. Please keep our legal team informed of any changes to your address, telephone number, or email address, so that we can contact you. Use the contact form on this website to update your contact information.