We expect the checks will be mailed in mid-April 2020. Click here for a sample letter to use. Plaintiffs continue to believe that the issue was wrongly decided, contrary to every decision to have considered the issue, and thus are today presenting the issue to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals on a petition for mandamus. . Although the case is venued in Arizona, the case was assigned to a Judge from Alaska, the Honorable John W. Sedwick. Public Transport in Amsterdam 7:59 am. After those papers are filed with the Court, the matter will await decision by the District Court. We do get ripped off a lot. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Create a free website or blog at WordPress.com. After almost ten years of diligent effort by the entire legal team at Getman, Sweeney & Dunn, Martin & Bonnett, and Edward Tuddenham, a class action settlement between the driver Plaintiffs and Defendants Swift, IEL, Moyes and Killebrew, has been reached. The unfortunate thing is this lawsuit will be drug out, as stated previously, by big corporation. Also, the non-profit organization Public Justice filed aFriend of the Court brief in support of the drivers, to argue that the Federal Arbitration Act exempts all contracts of employment for workers in interstate transportation, no matter whether the worker is employed as a contractor or an employee. . Do you know if there is a website i can go to file? Click here to read Plaintiffs Response Brief. Where I have my truck signed on Im said to be independent contractor, but cannot haul freight for anyone but them, do not have choice of loads and have to take what they give me called forced dispatch , I found a load one time and they got pissed told me I do not call the shots. What goes around comes around and God does not like ugly. The approval order appoints SSI to act as Settlement Administrator and directs that SSI send notice to each affected class member informing them of their tentative settlement share and advising them how to make a claim or exclude themselves from the case, or how to object to the settlement. Due to the size of the class, it may take some time for class members to receive their notices. If you have not heard from us individually by mid-September, please contact the office for further advice concerning how to handle claims in the Ellis case. While the appeal moves slowly, we have every reason to be optimistic about a favorable outcome. Swift Transportation Co., Inc. Click here to review plaintiffs letter brief. If you are already a plaintiff in this case, you may call us if you wish us to send the letter on your behalf. Trucking and transport services : Us xpress. The question of whether the District Court had the authority under the FAA to send this case to arbitration is now before the 9th Circuit for decision. TheNew Primecase is not yet set for argument, but it will likely be during the October 2018 termand a final decision on the issue will not happen until sometime after that. (Def to J Berman re arbitration 3-19-10.pdf 143KB), Posted on Thursday, March 11 2010 at 10:05am. Knight-Swift said the$100 millionsettlement amount was fully reserved on the companys balance sheet as of Dec. 31, 2018, and is not expected to have a material impact on its future results (it must be nice to have an extra $100 million sitting around for a rainy day). While this issue is pending, the drivers have served discovery demands on Swift for documents and data related to the employment/contractor misclassification question and are awaiting Swifts response. We will continue to see longer days on the road with less pay. Because the Supreme Court has grantedcertiorarito (agreed to review)New Prime Inc. v. Olivera,theNinth Circuit Court of Appeals has stayed Swifts appeal of the Arizona District Courts January 2017 Order(in which the District Court ruled that the case cannot go to arbitration because the named-plaintiff drivers were/are employeesnot independent contractorsas a matter of law). Depositions and Upcoming Motion for Summary Judgment Posted May 11, 2016. (final mandamus petition _2_.pdf 128KB) A Writ of Mandamus is an extraordinary writ that seeks to have a Court of Appeals correct error by a district court, even though no appeal is presently available. The 10 year old case has been through quite a journey: The independent contractor model has been a minefield for fleets operating at the ports in California. We will continue to post new information as it becomes available. Driver may have concerved fuel enough where, of that $1056.63, he saved $100+ dollars on the trip. Click here to download a sample letter form to a debt collector, Swift or IEL. Swift offers several lease programs to help drivers get into their own vehicle. The plaintiffs complained they were paid less than federal minimum wage, when taking into account their lease payments and costs of maintaining their trucks and paying for fuel, tolls, and insurance (all of which were illegally deducted from the drivers paychecks). Swift Files Petition for Certiorari in the Supreme Court February 4, 2014. Its all subsidiary companies that own all of Primes trucks. Perhaps this is whats behind Moyes stepping down, though dont worry that hes going to be hurting, considering his 200k a month golden parachute. Hell do just fine. Posted on Thursday, March 11 2010 at 10:01am. On November 6, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the District Court erred by sending the case to arbitration. However, the Courts ruling now indicates that the Court will seriously consider whether the District Judge erred in sending this case to arbitration. On July 21st, the Court extended Plaintiffs deadline to file reply papers on the motion to August 3, 2010. last edited on Friday, July 23 2010 at 3:17pm. 5+ Years, Please select ALL of your current, valid drivers licenses. The pending motion for a preliminary injunction will be refiled in Arizona. Until then, we wait. Ellisis a case challenging Swifts failure to give notice of consumer background information. We will update our website if the acquisition affects our litigation in any way. The parties now have a short period of time to conduct discovery prior to a trial by the District Court on this critical issue. In a lease-purchase agreement, or lease-to-own trucking program, you need to make a down payment on the truck, but you own it at the end. Human still has to. If you have not received your check within three weeks (by 5/4/2020), please contact SSI. And to make matters worse, Judge Sedwick ruled in such a way that no appeal of his ruling is permitted, until after the arbitration occurs. The net effect is that claims are far more difficult and expensive to bring, allowing the companies to avoid the normal legal consequences for their illegal behaviors. The initial scheduling conference has been set by Judge Berman for February 17, 2010 at 9 am in courtroom 21B of the U.S. District Court, 500 Pearl Street, New York, New York 10007-1312. THIS MESSAGE HAS BEEN APPROVED BY THE COURT IN VAN DUSEN. A Magistrate Judge has not yet been assigned. For more information on arbitration cases generally, see http://www.tlpj.org the website of a public interest law firm primarily working on arbitration issues. Click here to review the Plaintiffs motion for reconsideration. The Drivers opposed the stay, and ultimately both courts denied the stay requests, again agreeing with the Drivers. Swift allegedly made. Go to the Haas Bergman (spelling may be incorrect) website and checkout their lawsuits. The Order compelling arbitration, sent to the arbitrator the question of whether the FAA applies. InMontalvo v. Swift Transportation Co. of AZ, LLC,andCalix v. Central Refrigerated Service, Inc.,the plaintiffs claimed that Swift and Central violated various California state laws for failing to pay drivers minimum wage for the time spent at Swifts and Centrals new hire orientation in California from July 12, 2007 to July 10, 2015. We believe the contract is unlawful, deceptive, and coercive, and we are asking that the Court grant a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction:(1) enjoining 16 and 17E of the new Agreement; (2) requiring Defendants to inform all lease operators including those who have already signed the Agreement that paragraphs 16 and 17E have been enjoined and are no longer operative; (3) enjoining Defendants and their counsel from engaging in any further contacts with current opt-ins and putative class members regarding the matters raised in this suit, including communications that request or require LOs to enter into agreements that may in any way impact the liability or damages issues that are currently pending before this court, without first informing Plaintiffs counsel and obtaining permission from the Court. (321 ORDER that plaintiffs motion at [315] is GRANTED i.pdf 38KB), Click here to review the 9th Circuits decision. Click here to review plaintiffs letter brief. Well, in the end, they will lose the independence that comes from being an independent contractor. With that .90 each load/trip first has the miles calculated empty/loaded to pick up-delivery. Posted on Monday, April 12 2010 at 4:22pm. (LogOut/ Our motion seeks to stop Lease collections efforts against truckers until the Court determines if the Lease is lawful. last edited on Friday, December 10 2010 at 12:53pm, Posted on Monday, December 6 2010 at 9:29am. Under the law of contract, plaintiffs seek to declare the contracts void or voidable for unconscionability. Lease truck payments can range anywhere from $300 to upward of $1,200 per week depending on if you choose a used or new truck and the trucking company you sign on with. Owner operators put on as many trucks as FedEx approves. If the settlement is approved by the Court, it will resolve the claims of roughly 20,000 owner operator drivers (since 1999) in this case. The case in the district court will continue on the same schedule the judge set, and at the same time, both parties will argue the appeals. The Ninth Circuit yesterday gave Plaintiffs good news when it ruled that the petition for a writ of mandamus raises issues that warrant a response. In this case, Swift and IEL claim that they do not attempt to collect the full amount of unpaid lease payments. The Drivers have moved torenew (883) their Collective Action Motion (105), which is fully briefed by both sides, and have moved forClass Certification of a nationwide class of Lease Operators (884). The Supreme Court gets approximately 7,000 requests to hear cases each year, but hears only one to two percent. Most other companies lease a truck at $750-$800 a week for older models or $1,100-$1,200 for new equipment. Judge Sedwick denied Plaintiffs motion for reconsideration. The Court has scheduled a final fairness hearing to consider the response of the class and whether to approve the settlement on January 22, 2020, at 10:00 a.m. at the Federal Courthouse in Phoenix, AZ. I agree with you 100 %. 01:05 PM. And we believe that no driver should be forced to participate in this meeting. The motion is still pending in the District Court. Judge Berman found that most of the events involved in the suit emanate from Arizona and that therefor the suit should be transferred. We are hopeful that the Court will affirm our position and reverse the District Court, since the Circuit already ruled that Plaintiffs were correct on this precise question in its prior ruling on the mandamus petition. In the meantime, the Ninth Circuit stay means that our case cannot proceed until these issues are resolved by the Supreme Court. The 9th Circuit live-streams oral arguments, and archives them for viewing afterward. Ive been driving tractor trailer for 44 years had the old class D 1971 class A CDL grandfathered 1989 this is America Trucking industry the trucking industry is going to fall theres no great trucking company to work for in America theyre all vultures. In September, Swift requested Plaintiffs attorneys to engage in the first settlement mediationthis is the first movement toward settlement negotiation since the case was filed. Pretty much that is all carriers none that I know actually pay you for the amount of miles you actually run hell on weeks where I do eventually put in a 3000 mile pay week I pretty much put in about 3300 to 3500 and we have to always log everything we do because of dot saying if we are away from home we are working so then they should start paying us for that. Pretty soon theyll tell you we pay as the crow flies. They will be dead and buried by the time this gets paid as if it ever will. So, the drivers filed a motion in the District Courtto compel Swift to answer discovery. SSI will also set up a settlement website to give important information about the case and provide forms to Class Members, including claims forms and change of address forms. Their lies have benefited them at the expense of destroying many a drivers careers. Further, please let Getman Sweeney know if you have been overbilled by defendants, or threatened with the higher charges. Click here to review the complaint in this case. To find out more, read our privacy policy . Example: Load is 1975 miles. GPS! The Plaintiffs lawyers in this case were required to take steps to protect these claims from interference by a proposed class action settlement in theEllis v Swift Transportationcase. As this case moves toward its inevitable conclusion, Swift continues to make numerous efforts to delay the day of decision. Posted on Thursday, March 25 2010 at 9:43am. Source: truckinginfo, wsj, forbes, wsj, bloomberg, sec. My truck would be paid off today and I probably be hauling cattle or steel. Change). The parties filed competing proposals for how the issue should be decided.