Fleming v. Black Diamond Captl

── Fleming v. Black Diamond Captl ── Court: Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit Date: May 11, 2026 Category: Private Civil Federal Case: 24-30291 Document: 87-1 Page: 1 Date Filed: 05/11/2026 United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit United States Court of Appeals Fifth Circuit ____________ FILED May 11, 2026 No. 24-30291 Lyle W. Cayce ____________ Clerk Troy Fleming, On behalf of themselves and all other similarly situated; Jarrod Nabor, On behalf of themselves and all other similarly situated; Davarian Ursin, On behalf of themselves and all other similarly situated; Charles Ziegeler, On behalf of themselves and all other similarly situated; Ronnie Millet, On behalf of themselves and all other similarly situated, Plaintiffs—Appellants, versus Black Diamond Capital Management L.L.C., Defendant—Appellee. ______________________________ Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana USDC No. 2:20-CV-1476 ______________________________ Before Graves, Higginson, and Wilson, Circuit Judges. Per Curiam:* After reversing summary judgment, our court remanded for the district court to resolve one question: Did Black Diamond Capital _____________________ * This opinion is not designated for publication. See 5th Cir. R. 47.5. Case: 24-30291 Document: 87-1 Page: 2 Date Filed: 05/11/2026 No. 24-30291 Management specifically direct the closing of the Bayou Steel plant, causing the mass layoff of its employees without sufficient notice under the Worker Adjustment Retraining Notification (WARN) Act? After a bench trial, the district court answered: No. We AFFIRM. I. Background Bayou Steel1 operated a steel plant in LaPlace, Louisiana. Fleming v. Bayou Steel BD Holdings II L.L.C., 83 F.4th 278, 284 (5th Cir. 2023). In September 2019, it terminated 300 employees without proper notice under the WARN Act. Fleming v. Bayou Steel BD Holdings II LLC (“Bench Trial Ord.”), No. 20-1476, 2024 WL 1621128, at *3 (E.D. La. Apr. 15, 2024). The company filed for bankruptcy the next day. Fleming, 83 F.4th at 284. In 2020, a putative class of terminated employees (plaintiffs) sued Bayou Steel and Black Diamond—a private equity firm that owned Bayou Steel through a subsidiary. Id. at 287. The district court granted defendants summary judgment. Id. at 287–88. But our court reversed for plaintiffs’ claims against Black Diamond, and we remanded for further factual development to resolve whether Black Diamond specifically directed the plant’s closure. Id. at 299–300. After a limited bench trial, Black Diamond prevailed. Bench Trial Ord., 2024 WL 1621128, at *3. Plaintiffs appealed again. II. Standard of Review On an appeal from a bench trial, we review factual findings for clear error and legal issues de novo. Guzman v. Hacienda Recs. & Recording Studio, Inc., 808 F.3d 1031, 1036 (5th Cir. 2015). A factual finding is clearly erroneous if we are “left with the definite and firm conviction that” the trial court is _____________________ 1 BD LaPlace, LLC (d/b/a Bayou Steel). 2 Case: 24-30291 Document: 87-1 Pa