5th Circuit Court rules FMLA numerosity requirement not a bar to federal jurisdiction.(Family and Medical Leave Act of 199)(Brief article)

Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff

A federal court can hear a case brought under the Family Medical Leave Act even if the employer lacks the minimum number of employees under the statute, the 5th Circuit has ruled.

The court held that "the employee-numerosity requirement is an element of the claim, not a limit upon the federal court's subject-matter jurisdiction."

The suit was brought by an employee who requested leave to undergo surgery. Pursuant to a memorandum stating that the employee qualified as an "eligible employee" under FMLA, the employer granted the request. However, she was terminated on the day she was scheduled to return to work after the employer discovered she was not an "eligible employee" because the employer had fewer than 50 workers at or within 75 miles of the worksite.

The employee argued that the employer was equitably estopped from arguing that she wasn't an eligible ...