Settlement Reached in Restaurant Lawsuit; Seven McDonald's Restaurants in Marin Agree to Settle Class Action Employment Lawsuit

Business Wire, March 13, 2006

SAN RAFAEL, Calif. -- Legal Aid of Marin and other attorneys representing restaurant workers are asking the Marin County Superior Court to approve a settlement reached with Michael Magruder and Magruder Inc., former owner of all seven McDonald's restaurants in Marin County ("McDonald's of Marin") to resolve a class action lawsuit against the restaurant franchise. The restaurants involved are located in Mill Valley, Corte Madera, San Rafael and Novato. If the settlement is ultimately approved by the court, the defendants will pay up to $1,450,000.00 to settle the case. The net settlement proceeds will be paid to employees who worked for Magruder from July 20, 2000 through December 31, 2004. The case is Gutierrez v. Magruder, Case No. CV 043269 filed in Marin County Superior Court.

In July 2004, a class action lawsuit was filed against the restaurant franchise on behalf of employees who worked at McDonald's of Marin restaurants. The suit alleged that the employees did not receive the wages due them under state and federal law and were retaliated against for speaking out about wage policies. On March 9, 2006, Superior Court Judge the Honorable Michael Dufficy preliminarily approved the class action settlement.

Magruder, who no longer owns the McDonald's restaurant chain, denied all liability in the lawsuit.

Plaintiffs in this case are represented by Talamantes/Villegas/Carrera, LLP of Tiburon, Legal Aid of Marin, and Chavez and Gertler of Mill Valley.

Plaintiffs' attorney, Legal Aid of Marin Executive Director, Roy Chernus states, "We are delighted that the defendant made a serious attempt with this settlement to compensate the workers for the minimum wage and other legal violations alleged to have occurred while they worked in the McDonald's restaurants here in Marin."

Talamantes/Villegas/Carrera attorney, Karen Carrera added, "Our clients encourage eligible current and former McDonald's employees to step forward, get paid, and participate in this very important settlement. It is very important for our clients that those individuals who worked at these restaurants receive a benefit from this case, which has been litigated for over two years." Jonathan Gertler, attorney for the plaintiffs stated, "Our clients are the true heroes of this case. As immigrant workers, they were courageous enough to stand up to company like McDonald's to demand not only to be properly compensated, but also to be treated with respect and dignity."

Counsel for Magruder stated, "Mr. Magruder firmly believes that he fully complied with California's complicated labor laws. The Company settled this matter due to the lack of some business records necessary to fully defend his business practices."

Current and or former employees who worked for McDonald's restaurants in Marin County from July 20, 2000 to December 31, 2004 should contact the Settlement Administrator, Rosenthal & Company at (800) 207-0343 with questions about how to participate in the settlement.