Brett Bartlett and Richard Alfred Quoted in Thompson's FLSA Employee Exemption Handbook "Amicus Program Increases Judicial Deference to DOL"

Brett Bartlett and Richard Alfred were quoted in the June 2008 issue of Thompson's FLSA Employee Exemption Handbook in the article, "Amicus Program Increases Judicial Deference to DOL."  The article reported on a recent trend in Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) litigation, where the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) and observers have reported that federal courts (particularly appeals courts) are frequently deferring to the interpretations of the DOL. The most significant factor driving this trend is the DOL's "Overtime Security Amicus Program," which "encourages litigants to request amicus curiae... briefs from DOL."

Brett noted that "the DOL's purpose is to ensure the consistent enforcement of the FLSA and its regulations, regardless of whether its interpretation of the laws results in a 'win' for the employee or the employer."

Richard added that "judicial deference to DOL opinion letters, amicus briefs, and field advisories makes sense for a number of reasons. Legal disputes in the wage/hour field have become increasingly complex in recent years, and many of the wage/hour issues now facing the courts turn on very technical points of law." He further explained that these circumstances render judicial deference to DOL prudent since the DOL possesses "decades of experience to commit to the analysis of those highly technical issues."