SEATTLE (LN) — U.S. District Judge Richard A. Jones on Friday remanded a putative class action under the Washington Equal Pay and Opportunities Act, ruling that lead plaintiffs Jeffrey Hill and Cherie Burke lacked Article III standing and that defendant MultiCare Health System’s removal to federal court was untimely.

The case stems from a recent amendment to the Washington Equal Pay and Opportunities Act, which requires employers with 15 or more employees to disclose wage scales and benefits in job postings. The amendment has spawned a wave of litigation, with MultiCare noting that Hill and Burke are lead plaintiffs in at least 32 separate EPOA cases.

Hill and Burke alleged that MultiCare failed to disclose pay information for job openings they applied for in June 2023 and June 2025, respectively. They claimed the lack of transparency prevented them from evaluating pay, negotiating salaries, and resulted in lost time.

MultiCare removed the case to federal court on October 6, 2025, arguing that the Washington Supreme Court’s decision in Branson v. Washington Fine Wine & Spirits LLC created new grounds for removal under the Class Action Fair Act. The court rejected this argument, finding the removal was untimely because the Branson decision did not trigger a new removal window under 28 U.S.C. § 1446(b)(3) or CAFA rules, as the amount in controversy was already known to the defendant when it received the complaint.

The court also ruled that the plaintiffs failed to establish Article III standing. While the EPOA’s disclosure requirements protect concrete interests, the judge found that the plaintiffs’ allegations of lost time and speculative harm to future wages were insufficient to demonstrate a concrete injury.

Citing prior district court decisions, the judge noted that "time lost in merely submitting an application is not an injury that the EPOA seeks to prevent or redress."

The judge declined to apply the futility exception to dismiss the case, noting that state courts are not bound by Article III standing requirements and might allow the case to proceed.

The case is remanded to King County Superior Court.