Hardie, et al v. Cal-ISO

Case Synopsis

Arias Sanguinetti helped secure a $19 million settlement for California Independent System Operator (ISO) employees who were wrongly denied overtime pay. The lawsuit, brought by control room operator Mark Hardie, revealed that dispatchers and other critical staff had been misclassified as exempt—even as they worked exhausting shifts managing the state’s power grid.

These employees often slept under desks during the grid’s launch and worked nonstop during California’s 2000–2001 energy crisis. Despite the intensity and personal toll of their jobs, the ISO claimed their roles required discretion and exempted them from overtime. A California judge disagreed, finding their work strictly governed by procedures and lacking the independent judgment needed for exemption.

This settlement was secured after trial, which is exceedingly rare in class action cases and requires top-level trial skills.