Breuer v. Jim's Concrete of Brevard, Inc., 538 U.S. 691 (2003)

May 19, 2003

OUTCOME: 9-0 Decision

Petitioner Breuer sued respondent, his former employer, Jim’s Concrete of Brevard, Inc., in a Florida state court for unpaid wages, liquidated damages, prejudgment interest, and attorney’s fees und ... er the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (FLSA), which provides, inter alia, that “[a]n action to recover … may be maintained … in any Federal or State court of competent jurisdiction,” 29 U.S.C. § 216(b). Jim’s Concrete removed the case to the Federal District Court under 28 U.S.C. § 1441(a), which reads: “Except as otherwise expressly provided by Act of Congress, any civil action brought in a State court of which the [federal] district courts … have original jurisdiction, may be removed by the defendant … to the [appropriate federal] district court.” Breuer sought an order remanding the case to state court, arguing that removal was improper because §216(b)’s provision that an action “may be maintained” in state court put forward an express exception to §1441(a)’s general removal authorization. Though the District Court denied Breuer’s motion, it certified the issue for interlocutory appeal. The Eleventh Circuit affirmed, saying that although Congress had expressly barred removal in direct, unequivocal language in other statutes, §216(b) was not comparably prohibitory. Held: Section §216(b) does not bar removal of a suit from state to federal court. Breuer’s case was properly removed under §1441. Pp. 2—8.