Texas Federal Judge Amos Mazzant has issued a final ruling striking down the overtime rule.  In the August 31 ruling, Judge Mazzant used essentially the same reasoning on which he based his temporary injunction ruling.  In light of this final decision, the appeal of his temporary injunction likely becomes moot.  In addition, Judge Mazzant made clear that he is not finding that the DOL is prevented from ever using a particular salary level, but rather is invalidating this particular rule as going “too far” in essentially eliminating those who perform exempt duties but make less than the high salary threshold.

Thus, the pressure on the DOL to appeal to ensure its authority to use a salary level appears to be gone as well.

In a separate ruling, Judge Mazzant denied the motion of the AFL-CIO to intervene in the case.  The union had sought to intervene in order to defend the overtime rule.  Of course, the union may attempt to appeal the denial of their right to join in the lawsuit, but this final ruling goes a long way in sounding the death knell of the Obama-era overtime rule.