Strategic Delivery Solutions NY/NJ Lawsuit

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Between September 2013 and today, did you deliver pharmaceutical products for Strategic Delivery Solutions, LLC in New York or New Jersey?


IF YES:
The deadline to opt-in to join this case was February 21, 2023. If you missed that deadline but you are still interested in joining the lawsuit or otherwise pursuing potential claims against Strategic Delivery Solutions, LLC, please email us at Litigation@KakalecLaw.com or call (212) 705-8730


(Access the Consent to Sue Form here)

A lawsuit has been filed in federal court by delivery drivers who delivered pharmaceutical products for Strategic Delivery Solutions, LLC (“SDS”) and related individuals. Plaintiffs allege, among other things, that they were improperly classified by SDS as independent contractors, instead of as employees. Plaintiffs bring claims under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) and under New York State and New Jersey law for failure to pay overtime and for unlawful deductions. Defendants deny the allegations.

The Court has conditionally certified the lawsuit to proceed as a collective action.

How to Join This Case

If you are or were a driver who delivered pharmaceutical products for Strategic Delivery Solutions, LLC in New York or New Jersey between September 2013 and the present, you can join this case by by printing the Consent to Sue form, filling it out, and returning it no later than February 21, 2023 by email to Litigation@KakalecLaw.com, fax to (646) 759-1587, or mail to: SDS Litigation, Kakalec Law PLLC, 195 Montague Street, 14th Floor, Brooklyn, NY 11201.

If you do not have a printer, please email us at Litigation@KakalecLaw.com or call 212-705-8730 so we can send you a copy of the form to sign.

Read the Full Legal Notice & Court Documents

To read the full legal notice authorized by the Court in this case, click here: Legal Notice of SDS NY/NJ Lawsuit

To read the Amended Complaint in the case, click here: SDS NY/NJ Lawsuit Amended Complaint

To read the Court’s decision conditionally certifying the lawsuit, click here: Decision Granting Conditional Certification

QUESTIONS YOU MAY HAVE ABOUT THIS LAWSUIT

  1. Why did I receive a notice by mail, email, text, or WhatsApp message?
  2. What is this lawsuit about?
  3. What is a collective action and who is involved?
  4. Why is this lawsuit a collective action?
  5. Will joining this lawsuit create problems in my work with SDS?
  6. Has the Court decided who is right, and is there any money available now?
  7. What are the Plaintiffs asking for?
  8. Can I join this lawsuit?
  9. I’m still not sure whether I’m included.
  10. What happens if I join the lawsuit?
  11. What happens if I do nothing at all?
  12. How do I ask the Court to include me in this case?
  13. Do I have a lawyer in this case, or should I get my own lawyer?
  14. How will the lawyers be paid?
  15. Are there more details available?

1. Why did I receive a notice by mail, email, text, or WhatsApp message?

The Defendants’ records show that you have delivered pharmaceutical products for SDS for some time between September 2013 and the present. The notice explains that the Court has conditionally certified a collective action lawsuit that may affect you. You have legal rights and options that you may exercise in this case.

The lawsuit is currently known as Zambrano et al v. Strategic Delivery Solutions LLC, 15 Civ. 8410 (S.D.N.Y.) and is currently pending before Judge Edgardo Ramos in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. The notice is for the purpose of determining the identity of those persons who wish to be involved in this case.

2. What is this lawsuit about?

In this lawsuit, Plaintiffs allege that Defendants failed to pay drivers overtime compensation for work performed in excess of 40 hours per week, and that Defendants’ practices of taking deductions and requiring drivers to pay some expenses out of pocket were unlawful. In this case, the Plaintiffs claim that they were employees of SDS and not “independent contractors” as SDS has claimed.

3. What is a collective action and who is involved?

In a collective action lawsuit, one or more persons sue on behalf of other persons who have similar claims. All workers who decide to participate in the case by filing Consent to Sue forms are called “Opt-In Plaintiffs.” The initial drivers who sued — and all Opt-In Plaintiffs  — are called the Plaintiffs. SDS, David Kronick, Andrew Kronick, and Mike Ruccio, are called the Defendants, and the case is against them.

4. Why is this lawsuit a collective action?

The Plaintiffs seek to sue on behalf of themselves and all others “similarly situated.” The individuals that the Plaintiffs allege are similarly situated are those current and former delivery drivers who worked and/or performed services for Strategic Delivery Solutions, LLC delivering pharmaceutical products to pharmacies and other locations in New York and New Jersey between September 2013 and the present.

The FLSA permits this kind of lawsuit to be filed as a “collective action,” which permits one or more plaintiffs to start a lawsuit, and for other “similarly situated” plaintiffs to join the case to pursue their claims together. The Court has conditionally determined that you are similar enough to the Plaintiffs to receive notice of the pending lawsuit so that you may decide whether or not to join the case.

5. Will joining this lawsuit create problems in my work with SDS?

The Fair Labor Standards Act prohibits Defendants from terminating a worker’s employment or otherwise retaliating against workers because the worker has exercised their legal right to participate in this case, or because the worker has otherwise exercised their rights to recover their earned wages.

6. Has the Court decided who is right, and is there any money available now?

In granting conditional certification, the Court has not decided whether the Plaintiffs or the Defendants are correct, nor whether Plaintiffs will win or lose. In addition, there is no money or benefits being paid to the Collective now, and there is no guarantee that money or benefits will ever be obtained in this case.

7. What are the Plaintiffs asking for?

The Plaintiffs are seeking money damages for unpaid overtime wages, unpaid minimum wage, and the reimbursement of certain expenses. The Plaintiffs also seek “liquidated damages,” which could double the amount of any money damages owed. In addition, the Plaintiffs seek recovery of costs and attorneys’ fees.

8. Can I join this lawsuit?

By receiving a notice in the mail or a notice by text/email/WhatsApp, you have been identified as potentially eligible to join this lawsuit.

You can join this case if you are still a driver for SDS, or if you have stopped working for SDS.

You can join the case regardless of your immigration status and regardless of your work authorization status.

9. I’m still not sure whether I’m included.

If you are still not sure whether you are included, you can get help by calling or writing the Plaintiffs’ lawyers in this case, at the phone number or address listed below. Otherwise, you may seek legal advice from an attorney of your choice at your own expense.

10. What happens if I join the lawsuit?

If you choose to join this lawsuit, and are ultimately determined by the Court to be a Collective Member, you will be bound by the judgment in the case, whether it is favorable or unfavorable.

This notice does not mean that you have a valid claim or that you are entitled to any monetary recovery. Any such determination must still be made by the Court. If money or benefits are available and you opt into this case, you will be notified.

11. What happens if I do nothing at all?

If you choose not to join this lawsuit, you will not be directly affected by any ruling, judgment, or settlement on FLSA claims in this case, whether favorable or unfavorable. You will not be entitled to share any amounts which may be recovered by the Plaintiffs under the FLSA. You also will be free to independently retain your own counsel and file your own individual lawsuit for claims under the FLSA.

12. How do I ask the Court to include me in this case?

Linked here is a form called a “Consent to Sue Under the Fair Labor Standards Act.” If you choose to join this lawsuit it is extremely important that you read, sign, and promptly return a Consent to Sue form.

If you choose to join the lawsuit and be represented by Kakalec Law PLLC and Make the Road New York, you must read, sign, and promptly return the Consent to Sue form on or before February 21, 2023. You can print the Consent to Sue form, fill it out, and return it by email to Litigation@KakalecLaw.com, fax to (646) 759-1587, or mail to: SDS Litigation, Kakalec Law PLLC, 195 Montague Street, 14th Floor, Brooklyn, NY 11201. If you do not have a printer, please email us at Litigation@KakalecLaw.com so we can send you a copy of the form to sign.

If you do not wish to be represented by Kakalec Law PLLC and Make the Road New York, but nevertheless wish to join this case, you and/or your attorney should return a Consent to Sue form to the Court on or before February 21, 2023.

A signed consent form must be postmarked by February 21, 2023. If your signed Consent to Sue form is not postmarked by February 21, 2023, you may be prohibited from participating in any recovery obtained in this lawsuit.

13. Do I have a lawyer in this case, or should I get my own lawyer?

If you choose to join this lawsuit by signing and returning the enclosed Consent to Sue form by the deadline, you will be represented by the law firm Kakalec Law PLLC (attorneys Hugh Baran & Patricia Kakalec) and by Cristobal Gutierrez of Make the Road New York. You do not need to hire your own lawyer because Plaintiffs’ counsel will be working on your behalf.

Alternatively, you may choose to be represented by your own counsel or to proceed without a lawyer. If you want your own lawyer, you may hire one but you may have to pay them, and that lawyer will have to file a consent to sue form by the deadline. You may also join this action without hiring a lawyer by filing a consent to sue with the Court by the deadline.

14. How will the lawyers be paid?

Plaintiffs Blanca Alulema and Maria Tacoaman have an agreement with their attorneys called a “contingency fee agreement.” This means that, if Ms. Alulema and Ms. Tacoaman do not get money from this lawsuit—either by winning in court or negotiating a settlement with Defendants—they will not have to pay their attorneys anything. If Plaintiffs succeed and get money from one or more Defendants in this lawsuit, their lawyers will seek court approval to receive a percentage of that money as attorneys’ fees.

If you sign and return the attached Consent to Sue form and want to be represented by Plaintiffs’ lawyers (Kakalec Law PLLC and Make the Road New York), you agree to make Plaintiffs’ attorneys your agents to make decisions for you about this lawsuit. However, the Court will still have the authority to decide whether the contingency fee agreement with Plaintiffs’ counsel is reasonable and to decide whether Plaintiffs’ lawyers are adequate.

15. Are there more details available?

If you have any questions, or require additional information, please contact any of the following individuals, who are the attorneys for Plaintiffs Blanca Alulema, Maria Tacoaman, and several other opt-in Plaintiffs in this lawsuit:

Hugh Baran & Patricia Kakalec
KAKALEC LAW PLLC
195 Montague Street, 14th Floor Brooklyn, New York, 11201
Litigation@Kakaleclaw.com
(212) 705-8730

Jose Cristobal Gutierrez
MAKE THE ROAD NEW YORK
92-10 Roosevelt Ave. Jackson Heights, NY 11372
cristobal.gutierrez@maketheroadny.org
(718) 565-8500  

Defendants’ counsel in this case is:

David F. Jasinski & Erin Henderson
JASINSKI, P.C.
20 Hance Avenue, 3rd Floor
Tinton Falls, New Jersey 07724
Phone: (973) 824-9700, Fax: (732) 842-1805

PLEASE DO NOT CONTACT THE COURT CLERK ABOUT THIS MATTER