Mitchell v. E-Z Way Towers, Inc.

Facts: The secretary of Labor brought suit against E-Z Way, alleging in the complaint that E-Z did not pay overtime to employees who worked more that forty hours per week, paid less than the minimum wage, and did not keep proper records of the employees. E-Z filed a "motion for more definite statement" (requesting the employee records, time frame of the alleged acts) and a motion to dismiss. The Secretary refused to amend the complaint, but instead chose to stand on the original complaint. The court entered a final order of dismissal.

Issue: Should the Secretary have amended his original complaint?

Holding: No, the complaint was sufficient.

Reasons: "A complaint should not be dismissed for failure to state a claim unless it appears beyond doubt that the plaintiff can prove no set of facts in support of his claim which would entitle him to relief". Discovery is the proper step of the trial process to allow both sides to figure out the facts of the case.

Judgment: Reversed and remanded.