KCR Attorneys Bill Kershaw, Lyle Cook & Stuart Talley get "overtime" win against PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP on behalf of class of nearly 2,000 current & former Attest Associates in California

7/6/10

As set forth in a prior update, plaintiffs obtained class certification on behalf of unlicensed Attest Associates on March 25, 2008. Then, about a year later, and after extensive legal briefing, Judge Karlton rendered a decision on the parties' cross motions for summary judgment on March 10, 2009. In short, we (plaintiffs) won.

Judge Karlton decided that class members are entitled to overtime pay because they do not meet the requirements for either the "professional," "administrative," or "executive" exemptions. Specifically, he found that Attest Associates are not "exempt professionals" because they are not licensed CPAs, and they are not "exempt administrators" because they work under more than "general supervision."

This occurred in late March 2009, and the 9th Circuit Court accepted the case for an early appeal.  This appeal will decide the question of whether or not Attest Associates are exempt. Briefing on PwC's appeal was completed in March 2010, and we hope to have oral argument sometime later this year. In the meantime, Judge Karlton has stayed all proceedings at the District Court level (i.e., our trial date, further discovery, etc.) pending the appeal.