A class of California truck drivers has asked a federal judge to grant final approval of $1.2M in attorney’s fees as part of a larger $3.5M settlement in a suit brought by drivers for Ruan Logistics Corp. Ruan was sued for a number of different violations of California employment law, including failure to provide meal and rest breaks as well as failure to pay drivers for time worked. Ruan had originally been granted summary judgement in 2013, but that decision was overruled on appeal to the Ninth Circuit, and has since been in intense litigation leading to the current settlement now before the court. Despite the contentious nature of the litigation, the parties have agreed on this settlement, saying in the motion for settlement approval “It is the ‘gold standard’ for wage and hour class action settlements because it imposes almost no burden on the employee while distributing virtually all of the settlement fund,” “This result is particularly impressive in light of the contentious yet professional character of this litigation.” The case is Burnham et al. v. Ruan Transportation, case number 8:12-cv-00688, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.
