Malebranche, et al. v. Colonial Automotive Group, Inc., et al. (Lawyers Weekly No. 09-028-17)

1 COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS SUFFOLK, ss. SUPERIOR COURT Civ. No. 2016-3479-BLS2 DJHON MALEBRANCHE, WISKINDA LAMANDIER, NICHOLAS PEZZANO, and CHRISTOPHER FARIAS, on behalf of themselves and all others similarly situated, Plaintiffs vs. COLONIAL AUTOMOTIVE GROUP, INC.; GORDON CHEVROLET, INC. f/k/a GORDON CHEVROLET GEO, INC.; COLONIAL NISSAN OF MEDFORD, INC.; GORDON VOLKSWAGEN, INC.; COLONIAL DODGE, INC; and LAWRENCE GORDON, Defendants MEMORANDUM OF DECISION AND ORDER ON DEFENDANTS’ AMENDED MOTION TO DISMISS This is a putative class action against a family of automotive dealerships and their parent company, Colonial Automotive Group, Inc. (CAG), alleging a failure to pay car sales employees compensation due under the Massachusetts wage and overtime laws. G.L.c. 149 §§ 148, 150. Plaintiffs Djhon Malebranche, Wiskinda Lamandier, Nicholas Pezzano, and Christopher Farias were employed as such salespersons. The First Amended Class Action Complaint (the Complaint) asserted both statutory violations (Counts I through V) and common law claims (Counts VI through IX). Defendants CAG and Gordon Chevrolet, Inc. (Gordon Chevrolet) moved to dismiss pursuant to Rule 12(b) (6), Mass.R.Civ. P. By the time of the motion hearing, the plaintiffs had voluntarily dismissed the common law claims, leaving only Counts I through V. As to those claims, CAG and Gordon Chevrolet contend that the Complaint fails to 2 allege facts sufficient to show that either of them ever employed plaintiffs.1 For the reasons set forth below, this Court concludes that the Motion must be Denied. BACKGROUND The Complaint sets forth the following allegations, which this Court assumes as true for purposes of this Motion. CAG is a domestic corporation that manages and controls the business operations and employment matters for all of the sixteen automotive dealerships that comprise the “Colonial Automotive Group,” including Gordon Chevrolet, Colonial Nissan, Colonial Dodge, and Gordon Volkswagen. ¶¶ 5, 15. Gordon Chevrolet (formerly known as Gordon Chevrolet Geo) is a foreign corporation with a principal office in Acton, Massachusetts. ¶ 5. Colonial Nissan, Colonial Dodge, and Gordon Volkswagen are all domestic corporations with principal offices in Medford, Hudson, and Westborough, Massachusetts, respectively. ¶¶ 6-9. As sub-corporations or subsidiaries of CAG, the dealerships function as CAG’s agents. ¶ 36. CAG and the dealerships all do business under the Colonial Automotive Group umbrella, and regularly sell cars to members of the public. ¶¶ 15-16, 34, 41. CAG controls, operates, oversees, and/or directs both the business and employment operations for the dealerships, including hiring and firing, creating and implementing payroll policies, overseeing employee performance, maintaining personnel and employment records, and controlling work schedules. ¶ 33. CAG also operates a general website for all of the dealerships, representing the group “as a single ‘dealership’ that actively employs over 600 employees.” ¶ 34. 1 Defendants also contended that the plaintiffs did not […]

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