Andrew Harrington v. Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc.

FOR PUBLICATION

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS

FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT

Nos. 23-15650

ANDREW HARRINGTON; KATIE

24-1979

LIAMMAYTRY; JASON

LENCHERT; DYLAN BASCH, D.C. No. 2:21-cv- 00940-DJH Plaintiffs-Appellees,

v. OPINION

CRACKER BARREL OLD

COUNTRY STORE, INC.,

Defendant-Appellant.

Appeal from the United States District Court for the District of Arizona Diane J. Humetewa, District Judge, Presiding

Argued and Submitted February 7, 2025 Phoenix, Arizona

Filed July 1, 2025

Before: Michael Daly Hawkins, Richard R. Clifton, and Bridget S. Bade, Circuit Judges.

Opinion by Judge Hawkins 2 HARRINGTON V. CRACKER BARREL OLD COUNTRY STORE, INC.

SUMMARY *

Labor Law

The panel (1) vacated the district court’s order granting preliminary certification of a collective action under the Fair Labor Standards Act and approving notice to a group of opt- in plaintiffs and (2) remanded for further proceedings. 29 U.S.C. § 216(b) allows employees alleging violations of minimum-wage and overtime-compensation requirements to litigate their claims collectively with other “similarly situated” plaintiffs. In a typical…