JOINT STIPULATED MOTION TO CONSOLIDATE ACTIONS

BENJAMIN H. SETTLE, District Judge.

JOINT STIPULATED MOTION TO CONSOLIDATE CASES AND STIPULATED BRIEFING SCHEDULE

I. INTRODUCTION.

As set forth more fully below, plaintiffs Mary McNutt and Richard D. Woeck (collectively "Plaintiffs"), plaintiffs in McNutt v. Swift Transportation Co. of Arizona, LLC, USDW, Western District, Case No. 3:18-cv-05668-BHS ("McNutt Action") and Woeck v. Swift Transportation Co. of Arizona, LLC, USDW, Western District, Case No. 3:19-cv-05342-BHS ("Woeck Action"), respectively, and Defendant Swift Transportation Co. of Arizona, LLC ("Defendant" or "Swift"), the defendant in both actions, hereby stipulate to the consolidation of the above-captioned matters.

Additionally, as required by Local Rule 42(b), the parties have met and conferred regarding scheduling for the consolidated action, and agree and stipulate as follows: (1) the consolidated action will follow the schedule of the Woeck Action, which the parties request the Court to set at a Case Management Conference after the pleadings for the consolidated action are settled; and (2) the schedule currently set in the McNutt Action be vacated.

II. STATEMENT OF PERTINENT FACTS

The McNutt Action was filed on August 15, 2018 in the Western District of Washington. The initial complaint asserted a Washington class action against Defendant Swift for (1) failure to pay rest breaks, (2) failure to pay minimum wage, (3) failure to pay overtime, and (4) willful refusal to pay wages arising out of Defendant's per-mile compensations scheme for its truck drivers. Thereafter, Plaintiff McNutt was advised by Defendant Swift that Hedglin v. Swift Transportation Co. of Arizona, LLC, USDC, Western District of Washington Case No. 3:16-Cv-05127-BHS (the "Hedglin Action") had been preliminarily approved as a class action settlement, and would release the Washington claims pled in this case. Therefore, on April 1, 2019, Plaintiff McNutt opted-out of the Hedglin Action settlement and filed a motion for leave to amend her complaint to allege a nation-wide FLSA claim and drop her Washington state law claims. Plaintiff McNutt's motion for leave to amend was granted on May 31, 2019, and she filed her First Amended Complaint on June 3, 2019.

While the motion to amend in the McNutt Action was pending, the Woeck Action was filed on April 25, 2019 as a nation-wide FLSA action. Plaintiff Woeck simultaneously opted-out of the Hedglin Action's settlement. As set forth further below, the nation-wide claims asserted in the Woeck Action are substantially the same as those asserted in the McNutt Action.

III. REASONING FOR CONSOLIDATION

The central allegation in both actions is that Defendant Swift fails to pay minimum wage for all hour worked because Plaintiffs are paid by the mile and thus are not compensated for onduty time other than driving.1 Both Plaintiffs were employee truck drivers for Swift and their respective lawsuits involve a significant (if not near total) overlap of legal and factual questions. Thus, consolidation will avoid duplicate filings of the same or similar papers, including class certification proceedings, which will save the Court and the parties significant resources.

Second, consolidation will avoid duplicative discovery. Given the overlap in the factual allegations and the legal issues, relevant evidence in both actions — e.g., the applicable per-mile compensation scheme, the Plaintiff's job duties and functions, the uncompensated on-duty time will only have to be produced once. This will save the parties significant resources, and save Court time and resources in the event of discovery disputes.

Third, this motion to consolidate is timely, as both actions are at an early and similar stage of litigation. The First Amended Complaint in the McNutt Action was filed June 3, 2019 and the Complaint in the Woeck Action was filed on April 25, 2019. Both actions are in the same district and before the same judge, and minimal discovery has been conducted so far. There is not currently an operative answer on file in either action.

Based on the foregoing, the parties request that McNutt and Woeck Actions be consolidated.

IV. THE PARTIES' STIPULATION UNDER LOCAL RULE 42

Ahead of filing this motion, the parties met and conferred regarding case schedule pursuant to Local Rule 42(b). The parties stipulate and agree that the case schedule previously laid out in McNutt should be vacated and the following schedule be implemented:

WHEREFORE, Plaintiffs and Defendant respectfully request that the Court grant this Joint Stipulated Motion and: (1) consolidate the McNutt and Woeck Action with the McNutt Action, the latter which will be the lead case (as the earlier filed), (2) the Court vacate the previous case schedule in McNutt and adopt the case management schedule set forth above.

IT IS SO ORDERED.