IN THE NEWS

from Verdicts & Settlements
(front page story; August 6, 1999)

"Waging a Battle"

Attorney Andrew Ellis settled a class-action claim with Corning Inc. for $1 million after the company failed to pay overtime to employees who worked more than eight hours a shift.

PAGE 6 (story continued)

"Simple Reward"

In less than seven months, plaintiffs' attorney Andrew Ellis settled a $1 million wage class action with Corning Inc.
by BOBBI MURRAY

The situation wasn't all that unusual—795 workers at a plastics plant in a gritty San Fernando Valley neighborhood, an employer that neglects to pay them overtime and an employee who seeks legal help to file a wage claim.

What was unusual was the company's reaction. On Oct 9, 1998, the same day plaintiffs' attorney Andrew Ellis sent a complaint to Corning Inc. about its failure to pay overtime, he got a call from Corning's head counsel. Ellis was taken aback. In his 5 1/2 years of practice, he has been involved in dozens of wage claim battles and has learned not to expect a swift response.

"Within three weeks after the case was filed, we had an agreement in principle in place. Within four or five weeks of that time, we had a signed settlement agreement," Ellis says. "This is the fastest class-action lawsuit that's ever been settled, at least in my eyes. Usually these things take two, three, five or six years."

The outcome wasn't bad either — a $1 million settlement, with $450,000 in attorney fees.

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