Employee Seeks $256K in Penalties in Overtime Dispute

An employee who says his employer wrongfully withheld overtime payments has recovered about $3,700 for the alleged violation so far – but he is fighting to get much more.

For HR pros, the case shows that depending on state law, the cost for violating applicable overtime rules can be sky high.

New Overtime Policy Leads to Lawsuit

Bruce Cohen is an attorney who worked for Consilio LLC, a nationwide legal document review company that has offices in Minnesota. Cohen worked for Consilio on an hourly basis.

In July of 2019, Consilio told Cohen and its other Minnesota-based hourly attorneys that it was going to start paying them at their base rate for all hours worked.

That news did not sit well with Cohen, and in August of the following year, he sued Consilio to allege violations of three separate Minnesota laws relating to the payment of wages: the Minnesota Payment of Wages Act, the Minnesota Fair Labor Standards Act, and the Minnesota Wage Theft Act.

He sued on behalf of himself and other similarly situated employees, and he sought overtime pay, liquidated damages, statutory penalties and injunctive relief.

Employee Seeks Penalties for Overtime Violations

Consilio paid a total of just over $256,000 in overtime wages and liquidated damages on the claim raised under the state’s fair labor standards act. That amount was for the entire class, and Cohen personally received about $3,700 from it.

Cohen argued that he was entitled to much more in penalties. More specifically, he asked for a combined total of $256,080 in penalties under the three statutes.

A federal district court decided Cohen wasn’t entitled to penalties, and he appealed.

On appeal, the court first decided that Cohen was not entitled to receive average daily wage penalties under the Minnesota Payment of Wages Act. This was the case, it said, because under the section of the law that Cohen proceeded under, only the state can pursue and recover those penalties. Thus, it concluded that Cohen wasn’t entitled to receive the $172,080 in penalties he sought under that law.

Employee Seeks Additional Relief

Next, the appeals court considered Cohen’s claim for penalties under the Minnesota Fair Labor Standards Act.

Cohen acknowledged that he had been paid for all overtime wages and liquidated damages he was due under that law. But he said he was entitled to another $42,000 in penalties under the law.

The appeals court said that to decide this question, it needed to know whether Consilio’s illegal overtime policy was still in place. If it is, it said, Cohen’s claim of penalties under this law may be viable. Because a dispute existed as to whether the policy remained in effect, the court sent this claim back to the lower court for further development. As a result, Cohen’s claim for $42,000 in penalties under the Minnesota Fair Labor Standards Act remains on the table.

Finally, the appeals court considered Cohen’s wage theft claim seeking $42,000 in penalties.

As to that claim, the appeals court said Cohen had already stipulated that he had received all the pay Consilio owed him – and that he did not point to any statutory authority supporting his claim for an award of a civil penalty under that statute. Therefore, it rejected his request for a civil penalty award under that statute.

The case was sent back to the lower court for further proceedings.

Overtime Rules: Know Your State Law

On a federal level, the Fair Labor Standards Act requires the payment of overtime wages (equal to 1.5 times the regular hourly rate) to non-exempt employees for hours worked beyond 40 in a workweek.

But that’s not the only law that potentially applies. Instead, many states have their own laws regulating the payment of wages – and some state laws are more favorable to employees than the federal law.

The key: Research and know the law in the state(s) where you do business, and pay close attention to all applicable requirements.

Cohen v. Consilio LLC, No. 24-2079 (8th Cir. 10/6/25).