Rule 15-1401. Applicability; Definitions

(a) Applicability. This Chapter applies to the establishment of liens for unpaid wages governed by Code, Labor and Employment Article, Title 3, Subtitle 11. To the extent that the Commissioner of Labor and Industry, acting pursuant to Code, Labor and Employment Article, § 3-1109, acts on behalf of an employee, the Commissioner shall be regarded as the employee for purposes of filing, sending, and serving notices, pleadings, and other papers. (b) Definitions. In this Chapter, (1) the definitions in Code, Labor and Employment Article, § 3-1101 apply except as expressly otherwise provided or as necessary implication requires, and (2) “LE” means the Labor and Employment Article of the Maryland Code. Committee note: LE § 3-1101 (b) defines “employer” as “includ[ing] a person who acts directly or indirectly in the interest of another employer with an employee.” That language also appears in the definition of “employer” in the Federal Fair Labor Standards Act (29 U.S.C. § 203 (d)), the Maryland Wage and Hour Law (LE § 3-401 (b)), the Maryland Equal Pay Act (LE § 3-301 (b)(2)), and the Maryland adoption, medical, and parental leave laws (LE §§ 3-801, 3-802, and 3-1201). The scope of that provision is defined, with respect to both multiple employers and corporate officers and supervisory personnel, in Federal and Maryland case law and regulations. See, for example, McFeeley v. Jackson Street Entertainment , 825 F.3d 235 (4 th Cir. 2016); Perez v. Sanford-Orlando Kennel Club , 515 F.3d 1150 (11 th Cir. 2008); Newell v. Runnels , 407 Md. 578 (2009); 29 C.F.R. § 825.104. Under those interpretations, depending on the facts, it is possible that more than one entity as well as certain officers or supervisory employees of an entity may be regarded as employers or additional employers for purposes of the unpaid wages lien law. Each such person against whom a lien is sought must be separately identified in, and served with, all notices, pleadings, and other papers affecting the person.