Employment law firm Outten & Golden was among the lead counsel in a federal class action settlement that will benefit 1,200 American Airlines pilots who were also active service members.
On Feb. 15, a federal judge in Boston approved the more than $6.5 million settlement, which is among the largest of its kind in U.S. history. The order protects the employment rights of service members and veterans under the Uniformed Services Employment & Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA). These service members are now eligible to receive retroactive retirement contributions for thousands of periods of military leave taken while employed with American Airlines since Jan. 1, 1997. A copy of the judge’s order can be found here.
“This groundbreaking settlement shows what can be accomplished for our courageous service members and veterans when they take action to enforce their rights,” said Peter Romer-Friedman, Outten & Golden class action counsel, in a statement.
A prominent employment litigation firm, Outten & Golden was featured in New York’s Leading Lawyers 2016 and negotiated this settlement in U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts. Co-counsel included: R. Joseph Barton and Jason Leviton of Block Leviton LLP; Matthew Z. Crotty of Crotty & Son PLLC (a former Army ranger); Thomas G. Jarrard of the Law Office of Thomas Jarrard (a retired Marine); and Robert Mitchell (a retired Marine).