The Southern District of Indiana order, issued May 11, resolves disputes between Sparks and TLC House and Residential Services, LLC, over how to notify potential plaintiffs in the Fair Labor Standards Act lawsuit. The court granted Sparks’ motions to approve the notice and opt-in consent form, rejecting defendants’ objections to the method of service and the scope of the collective.
Sparks alleges that TLC House and its owner, Tamara Brown, violated the FLSA by failing to pay overtime premiums to caregiver employees who worked more than 40 hours in a workweek. The suit seeks unpaid overtime premiums, liquidated damages, and attorney fees.
The parties clashed over the relevant time period for the collective. Sparks proposed a notice covering all present and former caregiver employees who worked 40 or more hours on or after April 1, 2022, the date defendants became subject to the FLSA. Defendants argued for a narrower window starting October 6, 2022, citing the three-year statute of limitations for willful violations.
The court sided with Sparks, ruling that the notice could include potential plaintiffs whose claims depend on equitable tolling. The judge noted that whether equitable tolling applies is an individualized determination that cannot be made on a classwide basis, but that fact does not negate that those workers are similarly situated to the plaintiff.
Quoting Seventh Circuit precedent, the court wrote, "[f]rom filing to judgment, 'collective actions permit individualized claims and individualized defenses.'"
Defendants also objected to sending text messages to putative plaintiffs, calling the method "overly intrusive and unwarranted." The court overruled the objection, permitting plaintiff’s counsel to send one text message to each putative plaintiff’s cell phone number.
"Receiving one text message, without any attachment or link in it, is not overly intrusive in today's world and may well be the most reliable means of communication in 2026 for many people," the order states.
The court also addressed several drafting disputes. It rejected defendants’ request to add language warning potential plaintiffs that the time period for recovery is "yet to be determined," finding the additional text unnecessary and potentially confusing. The court also agreed with defendants to change the plural "claims" to the singular "claim" in certain sections to avoid confusing lay readers.
Under the approved notice, defendants must provide plaintiff’s counsel with the name, address, cell phone number, email address, and dates of employment for each potential collective member within 14 days. Defendants must also provide dates of birth for individuals whose initial mailings return as undeliverable, to be used for skip tracing.
Sparks’ attorney, Ronald Weldy of Weldy Law, will represent the collective. The notice instructs potential members that they may join by returning a consent form by mail, email, or text to Weldy’s office.