Legal Challenge To DOL Overtime Rule Continues To Move Forward

As Connecting the Dots has reported previously, new federal overtime regulations are set to take effect on December 1, 2016, but dozens of business groups, along with 21 U.S. states, are challenging this regulation in court, trying to stop it before businesses are asked to comply with it. 

MSCI’s partners at the National Association of Wholesalers (NAW) are part of this challenge. On October 17, NAW and the other business plaintiffs in the case, Plano Chamber of Commerce, et al. v. Perez et al. filed a motion to consolidate the proceedings in the case with the proceedings in the lawsuit launched by the 21 states. (Neither the states nor the government opposed that motion.) A preliminary hearing in the states’ case, which is called Nevada et al. v. Department of Labor et al., is set for November 16. 

On October 18, the federal government filed a motion to stay the briefing on the motion for summary judgment made by the business plaintiffs in Plano Chamber et al. “pending proceedings on the preliminary injunction motion in Nevada,” or failing that, “an extension of time to and including December 14, 2016 … in which to file a response to the Business Plaintiffs’ summary judgment motion.” The business plaintiffs answered the federal government’s motion on October 21 with a brief opposing the request. 

The business groups and state governments are not the only entities that oppose the rule. The U.S. House delay the rule (the Senate has not yet taken up that measure) and Democrats in Congress have asked that implementation be postponed.

 MSCI opposes the overtime regulation, which will impose significant new costs on its members. Click here for a full summary of the DOL rule.