Small Kentucky Farm Fights Federal Government for a Fair Trial

LEXINGTON, Ky.—In a landmark decision, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2024 that the government must provide businesses with a jury trial in a real court when it seeks to impose monetary fines. But years later, government agencies continue to drag Americans into “administrative” courts where agency employees act as prosecutor, judge, and jury. David and Debbie Ross, owners of Triple R Farms in Berry, Kentucky, are trapped in one of the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) agency courts, where the deck is stacked against them.

In order to get their day in a real court, David and Debbie today filed a lawsuit with the Institute for Justice (IJ). IJ successfully argued a similar case on behalf of a New Jersey family farm; the government recently appealed the decision in that case to the U.S. Supreme Court, and the Supreme Court has not yet decided whether to hear that case.

“When the government wants to impose money penalties, it has to give you a trial in a real court with a real judge and jury—not a trial before an agency bureaucrat,” said IJ Senior Attorney Rob Johnson. “Yet the Department of Labor so far refuses to reform its procedures. We are suing to force the Department of Labor to follow the law.”

Triple R Farms grows tobacco, and, since it is a labor-intensive process, employs workers through the temporary farm visa program (H-2A) to cut and dry the leaves. During the 2020 harvest season, part of the farm’s crop was lost because of a flood. The farm nevertheless offered the workers the opportunity to stay on for the remainder of the season, but, when the work was all completed, the workers signed statements saying they were voluntarily leaving early. The DOL alleges that in fact the workers were fired. 

For that and other alleged violations, the DOL wants to fine David and Debbie $70,000—money the small farm doesn’t have. The DOL has scheduled an agency trial for later this year, which will occur in an in-house administrative court where the only judge will be an agency employee. Studies have found that agencies enjoy significantly higher win rates when they proceed in their own agency courts, rather than in real federal courts. 

“We did nothing wrong, but we don’t trust an agency court to believe that. We want to defend ourselves in a real court, with a real judge and a jury,” said Debbie. “The Department of Labor needs to listen to the Supreme Court and follow the Constitution.”

In 2021, brothers Joe and Russell Marino, owners of Sun Valley Orchards, joined with IJ to file a lawsuit challenging a DOL adjudication in which an agency judge imposed over $500,000 in liability. Last year, the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals unanimously ruled that the DOL’s agency courts violated the Constitution and that charges against the farm had to be brought in an independent federal court. In February, the U.S. Solicitor General asked the Supreme Court to hear the case. IJ is also representing small business owners in similar suits in Oklahoma and Washington, D.C. Both cases are currently awaiting rulings from the district courts.

The Rosses are also represented by Joseph Bilby of Sequeira Bilby PLLC as local counsel.