In re: DEWEY & LEBOEUF LLP, et al., Debtor.VITTORIA CONN, on behalf of herself and all others similarly situated, Plaintiff, v. DEWEY & LEBOEUF LLP, Defendant., 487 B.R. 169

Summary

The complaint satisfied the pleading requirements of Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(a). It contained a short and plain statement of the facts sufficient to give the debtor notice of the relief the employee and the putative class were entitled to receive, and it stated a plausible claim for relief. The debtor did not dispute the mass layoffs or the failure to satisfy the full notice periods required under the WARN Acts unless otherwise excused. The debtor acknowledged that the issue of the liquidating fiduciary principle under 29 U.S.C.S. § 2101(a)(1) was not determinative on a motion to dismiss. The action was properly brought as an adversary proceeding under Fed. R. Bankr. P. 7001(7) because WARN Act claims sought equitable relief. The court declined to rule on class certification at the motion to dismiss stage under Fed. R. Civ. P. 23(c)(1)(A). Because they were not properly asserted in an adversary proceeding, the administrative or priority status of the employee’s claims under 11 U.S.C.S. § ...