What is the Statute of Limitations for an Overtime Claim?
Time Limits for Overtime Claims Under Massachusetts and Federal LawThe statute of limitations under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act ("FLSA") is two years. Under the Massachusetts overtime laws, it is three years.
This means you can still bring a claim if any of the unpaid hours fall within the applicable limitations period, but you will not be able to recover damages for time that falls outside. For example, if you worked for an employer for five years and bring a claim for unpaid overtime in year five, you can still recover for all damages going back two years for the FLSA and three under Massachusetts law, but you will not be able to recover the earlier time. Most employees would seek to recover under Massachusetts law, for obvious reasons. There are some employees, however, who are exempt under Massachusetts law but not under federal law (for example, restaurant, hotel, and gas station employees). For these individuals, you most likely will be limited to the two year look back under the FLSA, so it is important to speak with an employment lawyer as soon as possible if you think you are owed overtime wages. Learn more here about overtime under Massachusetts and federal law. |
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Meet Our Employment Lawyers
Emily Smith-Lee is the owner and founder of slnlaw. She is a 1996 graduate of Boston College Law School. She was previously a partner at the Boston office of a large international firm, where she worked for thirteen years before starting the firm that became slnlaw in 2009. She has been recognized as Massachusetts Superlawyer each year since 2013, and in 2018 earned recognition as one of Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly's Lawyers of the Year. She has written a book on employment law: Rules of the Road, What You Need to Know About Employment Laws in Massachusetts, been interviewed by the Massachusetts Superlawyers magazine about non compete agreements, and written an op-ed in the New York Times about the dangers of non competes. Along with the rest of the slnlaw team, she has helped hundreds of clients navigate, negotiate, or defend against their non compete agreements.
Rebecca Rogers: Rebecca is a 2006 graduate of Boston College Law School, and has worked with slnlaw since 2013. She previously worked as an intellectual property litigation attorney for Fish & Richardson in Boston, Massachusetts, and clerked for the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court. Rebecca has helped many clients understand and evaluate their non compete agreements and develop strategies for defending against non compete enforcement and negotiating resolution.
Jenna Ordway: Jenna is a 2013 graduate of Quinnipiac Law School, and also earned an LLM in Taxation from Boston University in 2015. She has been affiliated with slnlaw since 2011, first as a law clerk and then as an attorney. Jenna has been recognized since 2019 as a "Rising Star" by Massachusetts Superlawyers. Jenna works with employers to develop reasonable and enforceable employee agreements, including non competes. She has also helped employees understand and evaluate their non compete agreements and develop strategies for defending against non compete enforcement and negotiating resolution.
Elijah Bresley: Eli is a 2014 graduate of Seton Hall Law school, and has worked with slnlaw since 2020. He previously worked for a boutique employment law firm outside of Boston, and then for the Labor and Employment department of a large Boston firm. He also spent a year clerking for the judges of the Superior Court in Hartford, Connecticut. Eli has helped clients both evaluate and negotiate their non compete agreements, and defended non compete claims in state and federal courts.
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We have years of experience representing individuals and small businesses solve many different employment problems, large and small. You can use the button below to schedule a call back from a member of our team to learn more about working with us, or give us a call at 781-784-2322.
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