Unpublished Disposition
NOTICE: Fourth Circuit I.O.P. 36.6 states that citation of unpublished dispositions is disfavored except for establishing res judicata, estoppel, or the law of the case and requires service of copies of cited unpublished dispositions of the Fourth Circuit.
Before WIDENER, ERVIN, and WILKINSON, Circuit Judges.
Fred R. Joseph, Joseph, Greenwald & Laake, and J. Craig Peyton for appellants.
Thomas Aquinas Woodley, Mulholland & Hickey, for appellees.
PER CURIAM:
This appeal arises from an action filed by over four hundred fire and rescue service employees asserting entitlement to overtime compensation under the Fair Labor Standards Act, 29 U.S.C. Secs. 201 et seq. The district court granted partial summary judgment in favor of the plaintiffs on the issue of liability, and defendant-employers noted this appeal.
The district court's order left the issue of damages for future resolution. Orders granting partial summary judgment as to liability "where assessment of damages or awarding of other relief remains to be resolved have never been considered to be 'final' within the meaning of 28 U.S.C. Sec. 1291." Liberty Mutual Insurance Co. v. Wetzel, 424 U.S. 737, 744 (1976); Dilly v. S.S. Kresge, 606 F.2d 62 (4th Cir.1979). Although an exception to this general rule is available where the assessment of damages involves only a ministerial function, Parks v. Pavkovic, 753 F.2d 1397, 1401-02 (7th Cir.), cert. denied, 473 U.S. 906 (1985), we are not convinced in this case that only ministerial tasks remain.
We accordingly grant appellees' motion and dismiss the appeal for lack of jurisdiction. We dispense with oral argument because the dispositive issues have been decided authoritatively.
DISMISSED.