Martinez v. Joe's Crab Shack Holdings

Opinion

PERLUSS, P. J.

Litigation by class action has long been recognized as a superior method of resolving wage and hour claims in California (see Brinker Restaurant Corp. v. Superior Court (2012) 53 Cal.4th 1004, 1033 [139 Cal.Rptr.3d 315, 273 P.3d 513] (Brinker)), including those seeking redress for unpaid overtime wages. Nonetheless, when confronted with the myriad individual facts asserted by employers in support of the executive exemption as a defense to a wage claim, courts at all levels have struggled to answer the question central to certification of a class — that is, “whether the…