Breuer v. Jim's Concrete of Brevard, Inc.

Background

An individual employee sued his former employer in a Florida state court for unpaid wages, liquidated damages, prejudgment interest, and attorney’s fees under the Fair Labor Standards Act. The employer removed the case to federal district court. The employee asked the federal court to send the case back, arguing that the FLSA’s language that a suit “may be maintained” in state or federal court meant removal was barred.

Reasoning

The Court addressed whether the FLSA phrase that an action “may be maintained ... in any Federal or State court” is an express bar on removal. The Court said federal courts already have original authority to hear FLSA claims, and removal is allowed under a separate statute unless Congress has expressly forbidden it. The word “maintain” is ambiguous — it can mean to begin a case or to continue one — and that ambiguity does not qualify as the clear, express prohibition required. The Court noted other statutes that unmistakably say removal is prohibited and concluded Congress knows how to write an absolute forum choice when it wants to.

Real world impact

The decision means employers may remove FLSA wage suits filed in state court to federal court when federal jurisdiction otherwise exists. The Court acknowledged that removal can make it harder or more costly for some employees to pursue small claims, but held the statutory text does not give employees a veto over removal. This ruling decides only where the case is heard, not the merits of the wage claims, which remain for the trial court to resolve.