Joseph M. Hanna, Chair of Goldberg Segalla’s Sports and Entertainment Practice Group, was quoted in a Law360 update on the continuing Minor League Baseball (MiLB) class action lawsuit.

Initially filed in 2014, the MiLB suit has since faced roadblocks in determining the players’ class action status. Most recently, U.S. Magistrate Judge Joseph C. Spero ruled the players eligible to continue as a single class after amending their claims.

In the piece, Joe Hanna points out other obstacles the players may face as their case continues through the court system. “It is not simply whether an employee is at work but whether that employee’s particular activities were sufficiently integral to the principal activities at hand — if an employee arrives to work early but does not work, they need not be paid for the time they did not work.”

Joe continues on to point out that Judge Spero has “essentially already determined the question over hours worked,” which would mean a jury is not required to deliberate on the factual issue itself. Joe concluded by saying, “If this ruling were to be upheld, the MLB likely would be prohibited from cross-examining the majority of players asserting when they arrived and left the ballpark and their activities at the park.”

Read the article here:

“Judge Breathes New Life Into Minor Leaguers’ Wage Suit,” Law360, April 3, 2017 (login required)