92 F. Supp. 3d 445
E.D. Va.2015Background
- Plaintiff Armiya Bani Lagasan, a Filipino national, was recruited in the Philippines, taken to Qatar, and then transported to the U.S. in Feb. 2011 to work as a domestic servant for defendants Habdan and Jimia Al‑Ghasel.
- Plaintiff alleges defendants confiscated her passport, confined and isolated her, forced 18–19 hour days with no days off, paid roughly $200–$220/month, denied medical care, and she was rescued by ICE on Aug. 30, 2012.
- Plaintiff sued under the TVPA (18 U.S.C. §§ 1589, 1590, 1592, 1593A, 1594), the FLSA (29 U.S.C. § 201 et seq.), and Virginia state claims (breach of contract, fraud, false imprisonment, etc.).
- Defendants failed to appear or respond; the Clerk entered default and plaintiff moved for default judgment.
- The Magistrate Judge recommended, and the District Judge adopted, default judgment for plaintiff in the total amount of $749,351 (TVPA compensatory $369,606; TVPA punitive $369,606; breach of contract $10,319). The court withheld ruling on attorneys’ fees pending a future motion.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Liability under TVPA for forced labor/involuntary servitude/trafficking | Lagasan alleged recruitment, confiscation of documents, threats, confinement, long hours, minimal pay — satisfying §§1589,1584,1590,1592,1593A,1594 | Defendants defaulted and did not contest allegations | Default judgment: TVPA liability established for forced labor, involuntary servitude, trafficking, document abuse, benefit-from-trafficking, and conspiracy |
| FLSA minimum wage claim | Worked ~10,453 hours; paid $3,978; entitled to unpaid minimum wages and liquidated damages under §206 and §216(b) | No response (default) | Awarded unpaid wages at $7.25/hr plus equal liquidated damages (part of TVPA restitution calculation) |
| Emotional distress and punitive damages under TVPA | Seeks $400/day emotional distress ($226,000) and punitive equal to compensatory ($369,606) based on reprehensibility and repeated, intentional conduct | No response (default) | Court awarded emotional distress ($226,000) and punitive damages ($369,606) as reasonable given egregious conduct |
| Breach of contract additional recovery beyond FLSA | Contract promised Pennsylvania prevailing wage ($8.22/hr); plaintiff entitled to the contractual gap above federal minimum ($0.97/hr) | No response (default) | Awarded $10,319 for breach of contract as the non‑duplicative amount beyond FLSA recovery |
Key Cases Cited
- Ditullio v. Boehm, 662 F.3d 1091 (9th Cir. 2011) (punitive damages appropriate for conduct akin to criminal outrage)
- Nunag‑Tanedo v. E. Baton Rouge Parish Sch. Bd., 790 F. Supp. 2d 1134 (C.D. Cal. 2011) (TVPA protects victims from fraud and extortion leading to forced labor)
- Gurung v. Malhotra, 851 F. Supp. 2d 583 (S.D.N.Y. 2012) (example of substantial punitive and emotional‑distress awards in forced‑labor cases)
- State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co. v. Campbell, 538 U.S. 408 (2003) (standards for assessing reprehensibility and other factors in punitive damages analysis)
- Evaluation Research Corp. v. Alequin, 439 S.E.2d 387 (Va. 1994) (fraud damages measured by resulting injury to the misled party)