Federal · Title 29 — Labor

29 U.S.C. § 258: Reliance on past administrative rulings, etc.

Civil

What this law says, in plain English

Employers may avoid liability for unpaid minimum wages or overtime if they acted in good faith reliance on a federal agency's ruling or administrative guidance, even if that guidance was later changed or invalidated.

Read the full statutory text
In any action or proceeding commenced prior to or on or after May 14, 1947 based on any act or omission prior to May 14, 1947 , no employer shall be subject to any liability or punishment for or on account of the failure of the employer to pay minimum wages or overtime compensation under the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, as amended [ 29 U.S.C. 201 et seq.], the Walsh-Healey Act, or the Bacon-Davis Act, 1 if he pleads and proves that the act or omission complained of was in good faith in conformity with and in reliance on any administrative regulation, order, ruling, approval, or interpretation, of any agency of the United States, or any administrative practice or enforcement policy of any such agency with respect to the class of employers to which he belonged. Such a defense, if established, shall be a bar to the action or proceeding, notwithstanding that after such act or omission, such administrative regulation, order, ruling, approval, interpretation, practice, or enforcement policy is modified or rescinded or is determined by judicial authority to be invalid or of no legal effect. 1 See References in Text note below.

Verify at the official source: Federal legislative text

Facing this? Know exactly what happens next.

MOFRD turns this code section into your situation: the deadlines that apply to you, the forms your county uses, and the resolution paths people in your position actually take. Free for 3 days — no card required.

This page is legal information, not legal advice. Code text is sourced from official publications and may lag amendments — always confirm at the official source linked above. Plain-English summaries and relationship data are AI-derived and reviewed on an ongoing basis; verify with a licensed attorney before acting.