Am. Inst. for Foreign Study, Inc. v. Fernandez-Jimenez
| Citation | 468 F.Supp.3d 414 |
| Decision Date | 19 June 2020 |
| Docket Number | Civil Action No. 20-10920-NMG |
| Parties | AMERICAN INSTITUTE FOR FOREIGN STUDY, INC. d/b/a Au Pair in America and William L. Gertz, Plaintiffs, v. Laura FERNANDEZ-JIMENEZ, Defendant. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — District of Massachusetts |
Patrick M. Curran, Jr., Ogletree Deakins Nash Smoak & Stewart, P.C., Boston, MA, Robert M. Tucker, Stephen J. Macri, Pro Hac Vice, Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart, P.C., New York, NY, for Plaintiffs.
Nicholas J. Rosenberg, Gardner & Rosenberg P.C., Boston, MA, for Defendant.
This is an action for declaratory judgment in which plaintiffs American Institute for Foreign Study, Inc., doing business as Au Pair in America ("APIA"), and William L. Gertz ("Gertz", collectively with APIA, "plaintiffs") seek injunctive relief to compel Laura Fernandez-Jimenez ("defendant" or "Fernandez-Jimenez") to arbitrate her claims against plaintiffs on an individual basis rather than on behalf of herself and a putative class or collective action.
Pending before the Court, at this point, is plaintiff's motion for a preliminary injunction.
APIA is a Delaware corporation with its principal place of business in Stamford, Connecticut. APIA is a sponsor organization authorized by the United States Department of State ("DOS") to facilitate a cultural exchange program with foreign nationals pursuant to the DOS J-1 Visa Au Pair Program ("the Au Pair Program").
Gertz is APIA's Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer. He resides in Connecticut.
Fernandez-Jimenez is a Spanish national residing temporarily in the United States on a J-1 non-immigrant Visa. She has participated as an au pair in the Au Pair Program since August, 2018.
between the United States and participating countries. 22 U.S.C. § 2451.
As part of the application process to become an au pair, Fernandez-Jimenez was required to review and execute an agreement titled "Au Pair in America Terms and Conditions" ("the Terms & Conditions Agreement"). Relevant to the instant dispute, the Terms & Conditions Agreement contains an arbitration provision ("the Arbitration Provision") which provides:
This Agreement shall be governed by the laws of the State of Connecticut. I agree that any dispute with or claim against [the American Institute for Foreign Study ("AIFS") ], its staff, agents and all affiliated organizations, including those arising under this Agreement or my participation in the [Au Pair] Program, which is not settled informally, will be exclusively resolved by binding arbitration, to be conducted in substantial accordance with the commercial arbitration rules of the American Arbitration Association. The location of the arbitration and identity of the arbitrator will be decided by mutual agreement, with the costs to be borne exclusively by the [Au Pair] Program and the decision of the arbitrator shall be final. By accepting the terms of this Agreement, I agree that the U.S. Federal Arbitration Act governs the interpretation and enforcement of this Agreement and that I, Au Pair in America, and AIFS are each waiving the right to judicial and/or administrative agency resolution of disputes, any right to trial by jury, as well as the right to bring and resolve claims, either in an individual capacity or as a member of any class action, by any means and in any forum other than arbitration conducted by the American Arbitration Association.
Fernandez-Jimenez signed the Terms & Conditions Agreement on May 18, 2018. APIA is a party to that agreement but Gertz, individually, is not.
Fernandez-Jimenez matched with a host family in Massachusetts and resided with that family from August, 2018, through April, 2019. Thereafter, she applied for a secondary placement with a new host family and remains a participant elsewhere in the Au Pair Program.
In January, 2020, Fernandez-Jimenez filed a complaint in the Massachusetts Superior Court for Middlesex County on behalf of herself and a class of similarly situated individuals for alleged violations of the Massachusetts Wage Act, Mass. Gen. Laws c. 149, § 148 and c. 151 § 1A. Fernandez-Jimenez voluntarily dismissed her complaint in February, 2020, and, on that same day, filed a class arbitration demand with the American Arbitration Association ("AAA").
The AAA submitted a letter to the parties informing them that "the arbitration agreement submitted with the demand ... prohibits class, collective, or joint actions" and, for that reason, AAA was unable to administer the matter as a class. Fernandez-Jimenez responded that the Terms & Conditions Agreement does not preclude class actions but rather "states that the AAA is the exclusive forum for all claims, including individual and class claims." APIA responded with a letter of its own endorsing the AAA's position but AAA ultimately referred the question of arbitrability on a class basis to the chosen arbitrator.
Both parties continued to participate in the arbitration. On February 21, 2020, an administrative conference was convened by the AAA at which the parties discussed arbitration locale and the selection of an arbitrator. Plaintiffs filed their answer to Fernandez-Jimenez's class arbitration demand and preserved their right to argue that the matter is not arbitrable on a class or collective basis.
In April, 2020, Fernandez-Jimenez filed an amended demand for class and collective action arbitration, asserting additional claims for common law negligent misrepresentation, fraud, breach of duty and federal claims for minimum wage and overtime payments pursuant to the Fair Labor Standards Act, 29 U.S.C. §§ 201 et seq. ("the FLSA"). On May 13, 2020, the AAA advised the parties that an arbitrator had been appointed.
The following day, plaintiffs filed their complaint in this Court seeking declaratory judgment pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §§ 2201 and 2202 that (1) the Court is exclusively authorized to decide the class arbitrability issue (Count I), (2) defendant's claims cannot proceed on a class or collective basis (Count II) and (3) the Court should enter an order compelling defendant to submit all claims against plaintiffs to binding arbitration on an individualized basis pursuant to the Federal Arbitration Act, 9 U.S.C. § 4 ("the FAA") (Count III). That same day, plaintiffs filed the instant motion for a preliminary injunction.
This Court convened a hearing by videoconference regarding that motion on June 15, 2020, at which defendant conceded that this Court should decide the issue of class arbitrability.
Shortly before the June 15 hearing, Fernandez-Jimenez filed a separate action in the Massachusetts Superior Court for Middlesex County on behalf of herself and a class of similarly situated individuals against Gertz but not the APIA. In that action, Fernandez-Jimenez alleges violations of the Massachusetts Wage Act (Count I) and breach of duty (Count II). Gertz removed that case to this Court on diversity grounds and it was assigned to this Session as a related case. See Fernandez-Jimenez v. Gertz, No. 20-cv-10920-NMG.
To obtain a preliminary injunction, the moving party must establish (1) a reasonable likelihood of success on the merits, (2) the potential for irreparable harm if the injunction is withheld, (3) a favorable balance of hardships and (4) a consideration of the effect on the public interest. Jean v. Mass. State Police, 492 F.3d 24, 26-27 (1st Cir. 2007). Out of these factors, the likelihood of success on the merits "normally weighs heaviest in the decisional scales." Coquico, Inc. v. Rodriguez-Miranda, 562 F.3d 62, 66 (1st Cir. 2009). Fernandez-Jimenez contests only the first factor.
The Court may accept as true "well-pleaded allegations [in the complaint] and uncontroverted affidavits." Rohm & Haas Elec. Materials, LLC v. Elec. Circuits, 759 F. Supp. 2d 110, 114, n.2 (D. Mass. 2010) (quoting Elrod v. Burns, 427 U.S. 347, 350, n.1, 96 S.Ct. 2673, 49 L.Ed.2d 547 (1976) ). The Court may also rely on otherwise inadmissible evidence, including hearsay, in deciding a motion for preliminary injunction. See Asseo v. Pan Am. Grain Co., 805 F.2d 23, 26 (1st Cir. 1986). Ultimately, the issuance of preliminary injunctive relief is "an extraordinary and drastic remedy that is never awarded as of right."
Peoples Fed. Sav. Bank v. People's United Bank, 672 F.3d 1, 8-9 (1st Cir. 2012) (quoting Voice of the Arab World, Inc. v. MDTV Med. News Now, Inc., 645 F.3d 26, 32 (1st Cir. 2011) ).
Plaintiffs seek injunctive relief on the grounds that: (1) the Court must decide the availability of class or collective arbitration pursuant to the Terms & Conditions Agreement; (2) defendant may not arbitrate her claims against plaintiffs on a class or collective basis; and (3) defendant may not pursue any claims against plaintiffs on a class or collective basis.
It is undisputed that Gertz is not a party to the Terms & Conditions Agreement. Nevertheless, the parties draw no analytical distinction between APIA and Gertz for purposes of plaintiffs’ preliminary injunction motion. The Court, however, finds it necessary to address the propriety of injunctive relief with respect to each plaintiff separately.
APIA contends that whether Fernandez-Jimenez can arbitrate her claims on a class or collective basis is a question of arbitrability for the Court rather than for the...
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Am. Inst. for Foreign Study, Inc. v. Fernandez-Jimenez
...district court granted a preliminary injunction to the Institute and denied relief to Gertz. Am. Inst. for Foreign Study, Inc. v. Fernandez-Jimenez, 468 F. Supp. 3d 414, 425-26 (D. Mass. 2020).Because the Agreement does not authorize class arbitration and because Gertz's claim is moot, we a......
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American Institute for Foreign Study, Inc. v. Fernandez-Jimenez
...granted a preliminary injunction to the Institute and denied relief to Gertz. Am. Inst. for Foreign Study, Inc. v. Fernandez-Jimenez, 468 F.Supp.3d 414, 425-26 (D. Mass. 2020). Because the Agreement does not authorize class arbitration and because Gertz's claim is moot, we affirm. I. The Ag......