Paul Hastings Achieves Jury Win for Dollar Tree

March 15, 2013

Washington, DC -- Paul Hastings, a leading global law firm, announced today that the firm achieved a jury win on behalf of discount retailer, Dollar Tree Stores Inc., in a case challenging the exempt status of Dollar Tree’s store managers.

The case began as a Fair Labor Standards Act collective action with over 900 opt-in plaintiffs, all former or current store managers of Dollar Tree, alleging that they had been misclassified as exempt employees and denied overtime. In September 2012, Paul Hastings successfully moved for decertification, arguing that the store managers’ job duties were too diverse for a collective action. As a result of decertification, all opt-in plaintiffs were dismissed. The case was then set for trial as to the four remaining named plaintiffs.

Paul Hastings led the trial team in a six-day trial in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. The Alabama jury returned a unanimous verdict, finding that Dollar Tree had properly classified each of the four plaintiffs as exempt and dismissing all claims with prejudice.

The case was pending in The United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama, Western Division.

Kenneth M. Willner and Carson H. Sullivan, partners at Paul Hastings, were trial counsel for Dollar Tree. Also representing the company were Barbara B. Brown, Neal D. Mollen, William C. (Cory) Barker of Paul Hastings.

Paul Hastings LLP is a leading global law firm with offices in Asia, Europe, and the United States. We provide innovative legal solutions to financial institutions and Fortune 500 companies. Please visit www.paulhastings.com for more information.