What Relief Is Available Under the Wpcl

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V. WHAT RELIEF IS AVAILABLE UNDER THE WPCL

Under Lab. & Empl. § 3-507.2(b), an employee suing for unpaid "wages" may be awarded "an amount not exceeding three times the wage, and reasonable counsel fees and other costs" if there is a finding that the employer withheld the wage in violation of the Act and "not as a result of a bona fide dispute." Thus, a finding of no bona fide dispute justifying the withholding of the "wage" is a prerequisite both to recovery of additional damages as well as to a recovery of attorneys' fees and costs.

In Admiral Mortgage, Inc. v. Cooper, 357 Md. 533, 745 A.2d 1026 (2000), the Court of Appeals held that the finding of no bona fide dispute and the amount of discretionary additional damages (beyond the amount of the wage in dispute) are factual determinations that must be made by the jury. However, the court must then decide the amount of attorney fees and costs to award if the jury finds that there was no bona fide dispute. If an employer concedes that a portion of the disputed wages was owed but disputes the remaining amount in question, it acts at its peril in failing to pay the conceded amount.27 The determination of whether there was a bona fide dispute over whether the "wages" were owed must be made as of the time they are actually due to be paid, not based upon some later determination by the employer.28 There is no presumption of the lack of a bona fide dispute, but the burden is on the employer to prove the existence of a bona fide dispute.29

In Pinnacle Group LLC v. Kelly,...

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