Table of Contents
- Introduction
- 1) Equality of Working Conditions
- 2) Workday
- A) Concept
- B) Types of Workdays
- C) Mandatory Rest
- D) Extension of the Workday
- E) Overtime
- 3) Rest Days
- A) Holidays
- B) Sunday Premium
- 4) Vacations
- A) Vacation Calculation
- B) Distribution
- C) Start of vacation
- D) Vacation Premium
- 5) Salary
- A) Modalities
- B) Integration
- C) Remunerative Salary
- D) Payment Terms
- E) Determination of the Salary
- F) Minimum Wage
- G) Protective Rules and Salary Privileges
- 6) Annual Christmas Bonus (Aguinaldo)
Introduction
In previous posts on labor matters, we have already analyzed the main forms of termination of labor relations and their consequences in Types of Employment Terminations in Mexico, as well as the duration of such relationships and the employment contract in Employment Contract and Labor Relation’s Duration in Mexico entries, which we certainly invite you to examine.
Now, it is the turn to go a step further and deal with some more practical information on labor matters, such as those related to the working day, days of rest, vacations, overtime, salary, and many more topics of the general conditions for labor relations in Mexico. Everything from what is stipulated by the Federal Labor Law to the most innovative and important judicial criteria of the federal courts.
All of the above, because for beLegal Abogados S.C it is important to make known, both to workers and employers, their rights and obligations in labor matters, in addition to other matters such as administrative and tax matters, such as when we talk about social security contributions in Employers’ Social Security Contributions and Obligations in Mexico. This is because it is our desire to contribute to the culture of legality and good business culture.
Hence, this entry, whether you are a worker or an employer, will provide you with the minimum necessary knowledge regarding work so that you can assert your rights in time and, where appropriate, avoid incurring administrative-labor liability that may result in fines, credits, prosecutors and, even, even spending time in jail.
Without further ado, let’s start with the topic:
1) Equality of Working Conditions
As a guiding principle in matters of work, we have substantive equality. This means that the working conditions reflected in the contract, whether in writing or not, must be proportional to the services provided under equal conditions between men and women. In addition to not being able to be lower than those indicated by the Federal Labor Law, they must be reflected in the contract.
With the foregoing, any difference or exclusions agreed upon based on ethnic origins, nationality, sex, gender, age, disability, social condition, health conditions, religion, opinions, sexual preferences, pregnancy, marital status conditions shall be null and void, except those related to the worker’s technical capacity.
2) Workday
A) Concept
By working day, we must understand the time during which the worker is at the employer’s disposal to provide his work. The employer and worker may agree upon these working days by mutual agreement as long as the legal maximums are not exceeded.
B) Types of Workdays
The Federal Labor Law regulates three types of workdays, of which employers and workers may distribute the working hours. Days that are the following:
| Workday | Includes | Maximum Duration |
| Daytime | Between 6:00 AM to 8:00 PM | 8 Hours |
| Night Shift | Between 8:00 PM to 6:00 AM | 7 Hours |
| Mixed | It includes periods of daytime and night shift, but if it includes 3 and a half hours or more of the night shift, it shall be considered as that. | 7 Hours |
As you can see, the minimum that a worker in Mexico legally can work—not counting contractually where fewer hours can be agreed upon but which is relatively rare, is 42 hours a week and 48 hours on average. That’s why Mexican representative (deputy) Susana Prieto Terrazas presented a Reform Initiative to the Federal Labor Law to reduce the working day to 40 hours. An initiative that did not prosper.
C) Mandatory Rest
If the work is continuous, the employer is obliged to give the worker a break of at least 30 minutes. Continuous work should be understood as work that is carried out uninterruptedly for 8, 7, or 7 and a half hours continuously, that is, during the daytime, night shift, or mixed workday. So if the workday has a shorter duration, such as 4 hours, when it is part-time, there is no obligation to grant this rest. See the following binding criteria of our highest court: HALF-HOUR REST IN A CONTINUOUS DAY PROVIDED FOR IN ARTICLE 63 OF THE FEDERAL LABOR LAW. IT IS INAPPLICABLE IN THE REASON OF REDUCED DAYS[1].
On the other hand, if apparently this half hour of rest is granted to the worker, such as so that he can enjoy his meals, but by instruction of the employer he cannot leave the workplace during that time, then, even if the worker does not work that half hour, the corresponding time shall be computed as an effective time of the workday and, where appropriate, you shall have the obligation to pay based on overtime. See the binding precedent: SALARY FOR THE PERIOD OF REST IN A CONTINUOUS WORKING DAY. IT MUST BE COVERED AS EXTRAORDINARY TIME IF THE WORKER, INSTEAD OF REST, WORKS DURING SAID PERIOD[2].
D) Extension of the Workday
In cases of an accident or imminent risk in which the life of the worker, his colleagues, the employer, or even the very existence of the company is in danger, the working day may be extended for the time strictly necessary to avoid these perils.
The hours of work worked under these extraordinary circumstances shall be paid for an amount equal to that corresponding to each of the hours of the day.
E) Overtime
In extraordinary circumstances, the working day may be extended, but it may never exceed 3 hours a day or 3 times in a week. These overtime hours shall be paid 100% more than the salary corresponding to the hours of the day.
Moreover, workers are not obliged to provide overtime service, except in the case of an accident. However, if the working day in a week is extended by more than 9 hours, the employer is obliged to pay the excess time by 200% plus the corresponding salary per hour worked.
Now, it’s important to mention that in accordance with the provisions of article 784 of the Federal Labor Law, section VIII[3], the worker shall have a presumption of certainty that you, as the employer, must rebut in the labor trial that he worked the overtime that he stated in his claim, as long as these do not exceed the 9 hours normally allowed by law on a weekly basis.
In any case, when the worker in his claim makes implausible statements, the labor courts can validly reason their implausibility and absolve the payment of overtime that exceeds the legal maximums, taking into account issues such as whether the worker took weekly rest days or periods of rest to regain energy. Of course, this does not imply absolving the employer from paying the 9 weekly overtime hours allowed by law. For this, see the following precedents:
OVERTIME. WHEN THE EXTRAORDINARY WORKDAY IS CONSIDERED UNLIKELY BECAUSE IT EXCEEDS 9 HOURS PER WEEK, IT IS NOT POSSIBLE TO ABSOLVE THE EMPLOYER COMPLETELY OF THE REFERRED BENEFIT, BUT IN ANY CASE ONLY OF THE EXCESS HOURS[4].
OVERTIME. ITS REASONABILITY SHOULD BE EXAMINED WHEN IT IS NOTICED THAT THE DURATION OF THE DAY IS UNLIKELY EVEN IN THE CASE IN WHICH THE DEFENDANT DOES NOT APPEAR AT THE HEARING AND THE CLAIM IS CONSIDERED TO BE ANSWERED IN THE AFFIRMATIVE SENSE[5].
OVERTIME. THE CLAIM IS UNLIKELY WHEN IT IS BASED ON A DAY THAT EXCEEDS THE LEGAL EIGHT HOURS DAILY WITHOUT THE WORKER HAVING A SINGLE DAY TO REST[6].
OVERTIME. IT IS LEGAL FOR BOTH THE LABOR COURT AND THE AMPARO COURT TO PROCEED TO STUDY THE REASONABILITY OF EXTRAORDINARY WORK TIME WHEN IT IS NOTICED THAT THE LENGTH OF THE DAY IS UNLIKELY[7].
3) Rest Days
Rest so that the worker can develop his life plan outside of his workplace, enjoy recreation, and regain energy, is guaranteed at a constitutional level in article 123, section A, section IV of the Political Constitution of the United Mexican States[9] and implies that for every 6 days of work the worker enjoys at least one day of rest with full salary. That day of rest will be ensured to be on Sunday, although there is no obligation as such to make it so, as we will see later.
A) Holidays
In addition to the weekly day of rest guaranteed by law, mandatory days of rest shall also be those considered holidays, which are officially the following:
1.- January 1.
2.- The first Monday of February in commemoration of February 5.
3.- The third Monday of March in commemoration of March 21.
4.- May 1.
5.- September 16.
6.- The third Monday of November in commemoration of November 20.
7.- On December 1 of every 6 years, when there is a new president of the Republic.
8.- December 25.
9.- That determined by the federal and local electoral laws, in the case of ordinary elections, to carry out the election day.
As you can see, these mandatory rest days do not include popular dates such as December 31, January 1, Mother’s and/or Father’s Day, Easter holidays, etc. Hence, the employer is not obliged to consider those and other days as non-working days.
However, if workers agree to work the mandatory rest days mentioned above, the consequence shall be that they earn 200% more than the daily salary for that day. That is, if the worker earns the minimum wage, for example, in Ciudad Juárez, which is 374.89 pesos per day (THREE HUNDRED AND SEVENTY-FOUR 89/100 NATIONAL CURRENCY), that holiday must be paid to the worker in the amount of 1, 124.67 pesos ( ONE THOUSAND ONE HUNDRED TWENTY-FOUR 67/100 NATIONAL CURRENCY)
B) Sunday Premium
Although, as we have already seen, the law stipulates that the worker should preferably rest on Sundays, it is also true that the reality of work and, above all, certain businesses whose best day of sales and income is on Sundays force employers to need the services of their workers for that day. Given this, the lawmakers, in order to compensate for this almost universal day of rest, created a figure called Sunday Premium.
The Sunday Premium is nothing more than an extra bonus for working on Sunday, 25% more than the ordinary daily salary. Therefore, if a worker works regularly on Sunday, this last day must be paid with the Sunday Premium included; otherwise, it shall be accumulated and then claimed before the labor courts.
In any case, if the contract did not expressly stipulate that the worker would work on Sunday, the worker would have the burden of proof to prove that he actually worked on the claimed Sundays so that the employer could be ordered to pay the accumulated amount of the premium. See the following criterion: SUNDAY PREMIUM. FOR PAYMENT TO PROCEED, IT IS UP TO THE PLAINTIFF TO PROVE HAVE WORKED ON THE MANDATORY REST DAYS[10].
4) Vacations
Another labor issue that generated great debate and disagreement in our country was the vacations that workers were entitled to for providing their services. So much so that on December 27, 2022, new rules were issued to establish workers’ vacations. Here we tell you.
A) Vacation Calculation
In accordance with the law, people who have more than 1 year of service shall enjoy an annual period of paid vacation, which in no case may be less than 12 working days, and which shall increase by 2 working days until reaching 20 for each subsequent year of service. Starting in the sixth year, the vacation period shall increase by 2 days for every 5 years of service.
With the above and in order to illustrate it, for each year of seniority your worker has, and after he completed at least the first full year of work, this shall be the vacations your worker is entitled:
| Years Worked | Vacation Days |
| 1 | 12 |
| 2 | 14 |
| 3 | 16 |
| 4 | 18 |
| 5 | 20 |
| 6 | 22 |
| 6 to 10 | 22 |
| 11 to 15 | 24 |
| 16 to 20 | 26 |
| 21 to 25 | 28 |
| 26 to 30 | 30 and so on |
It’s important to mention that vacations cannot be compensated with any remuneration.
B) Distribution
If the worker has more than 12 days of vacation, he must enjoy the first 12 continuously, and he may distribute the rest in the manner and time required.
C) Start of Vacation
Although, as we have already seen, the law stipulates that this right arises once the year of work has been completed, it is also important to specify that vacations shall not be granted automatically after that year. On the contrary, in accordance with Article 81 of the Federal Labor Law[11], vacations shall be granted within 6 months following the completion of one year of service by the worker.
D) Vacation Premium
In addition to the worker enjoying the benefit of taking days off for vacation with full payment, the law also created an additional figure for the enjoyment of this period: the vacation premium. This figure practically consists of a sum of no less than 25% of the total salaries that would correspond to workers during the vacation period.
5) Salary
Salary is the remuneration that the employer must pay the worker for their work. It’s also the most important aspect of the employment relationship, so much so that it often determines whether a worker wants to work for a specific employer. Given this importance, federal lawmakers established a series of rules for this benefit in the Federal Labor Law. Now, we will see them.
A) Modalities
The salary can be set per unit of time (which is the most common), per unit of work, by commission, at a lump sum, or in any other way.
In this sense, salary per unit of time shall be specifically established in the respective contract, where the employer and the worker may agree on the amount, provided that it is a remunerative salary and the maximum working day that is already established is not exceeded. In any case, the income received by workers through this modality shall in no case be less than that corresponding to a daily shift.
On the other hand, when the salary is set per unit of work, in addition to specifying the nature of the work, the quantity and quality of the material, and the condition of the tools and supplies that the employer, if applicable, provides to execute, shall be stated the work and the time for which they shall be made available to the worker, without being able to demand any amount for the natural wear and tear that the tool suffers as a result of the work.
B) Integration
The salary shall be integrated with the payments made by daily quota, premiums, perceptions, housing, bonuses, commissions, benefits in kind, and any other amount or benefit that is given to the worker for his work. See as an example SALARY, INTEGRATION OF. (ARTICLE 84 OF THE FEDERAL LABOR LAW)[12].
However, when it comes to the subject of social security (which one of our partners discussed in the entry Employers’ Social Security Contributions and Obligations in Mexico) there are some exceptions to integrating the base contribution salary, which are the following:
1.- Work instruments such as tools, clothing, and other similar items.
2.- Savings, when it is made up of a deposit of an equal weekly, biweekly, or monthly amount from the worker and the company; if it’s constituted in a different way or the worker can withdraw it more than twice a year, this benefit shall be part of the salary; nor shall the amounts granted by the employer for social purposes of a union nature be taken into account.
3.- The additional contributions that the employer agrees to grant in favor of his workers for retirement insurance contributions, unemployment in advanced age, and old age.
4.- The contributions that the employer must cover in terms of the Social Security Law, the contributions to the Institute of the National Housing Fund for Workers, and the shares in the company’s profits.
5.- Food and housing when they are provided to the workers on an expensive basis; it is understood that these benefits are onerous when the worker pays for each of them at least 20% of the general minimum wage in force in Mexico City.
6.- Groceries in kind or in money, as long as their amount does not exceed 40% of the general minimum wage in force for Mexico City.
7.- Awards or bonuses for attendance and punctuality, provided that the amount of each of these concepts does not exceed 10% of the base contribution salary.
8.- The amounts contributed for social purposes, considering as such those delivered to constitute funds for a pension plan established by the employer or derived from collective contracting. The pension plans shall only be those that meet the requirements established by the National Commission of the Retirement Savings System.
9.- Overtime within the margins established in the Federal Labor Law (9 hours per week). That is to say, if this limit is exceeded, the payment of the excess overtime is included in the salary.
C) Remunerative Salary
The salary must be remunerative and never less than the minimum. Furthermore, the quantity and quality of the work must be taken into consideration when setting the amount of the salary. If this is not the case, based on the provisions of article 57 of the Federal Labor Law[13], the worker may request a modification of his salary when it is not remunerative in relation to the functions performed.
The salary per unit of work shall be such that, for a normal job, in an 8-hour day, it results in the amount of the minimum wage, at least.
D) Payment Terms
The deadlines for paying salaries may never be longer than one week for people who perform material work and fifteen days for other workers.
E) Determination of the Salary
To determine the amount of compensation that must be paid to workers, the salary corresponding to the day on which the right to compensation arises shall be taken as a basis, including the daily rate and the proportional part of the benefits mentioned in section B)
In cases of salary per unit of work and, in general, when the remuneration is variable, the average of the earnings obtained in the 30 days actually worked before the birth of the right shall be taken as the daily salary. If there has been an increase in salary during that period, the average of the earnings obtained by the worker from the date of the increase shall be taken as the basis.
When the salary is set per week or per month, it shall be divided by 7 or 30, as the case may be, to determine the daily salary. As well as on a ten-year, fortnightly basis when this has been established.
F) Minimum Wage
The minimum wage is the lowest amount that the worker must receive in cash for the services provided on a workday. The salary that must be sufficient to satisfy the normal needs of the head of a family in the material, social, and cultural order to provide the compulsory education of the children.
It’s important to highlight that according to a reform of March 30, 2021, the law stipulated that the annual setting of minimum wages, or their revision, should never be below the observed inflation during the period of its validity.
Finally, minimum wages may not be subject to compensation, discount, or reduction except in the following cases:
1.- Alimony decreed in favor of alimony creditors.
2.- Payment of income referred to in article 151 of the Federal Labor Law[14]. In any case, this discount may not exceed 10% of the salary.
3.- Payment of installments to cover loans from the National Housing Fund for Workers intended for the acquisition, construction, repair, expansion, or improvements of residential homes or the payment of liabilities acquired for these concepts.
4.- For payments to cover credits granted or guaranteed by the Institute of the National Fund for Workers’ Consumption intended for the acquisition of durable consumer goods or the payment of services. These discounts will be preceded by the acceptance freely made by the worker and may not exceed 10% of their salary.
5.- Payment of debts contracted with the employer for advance payment of salaries, payments made in excess to the worker, errors, losses, breakdowns, or acquisition of items produced by the company or establishment. The amount required may in no case be greater than one month’s wages, and the discount may not exceed 30% of the excess of the minimum wage.
6.- Payment of fees for the constitution and promotion of cooperative societies and savings banks, provided that the workers expressly and freely express their agreement. Furthermore, they must not be greater than 30% of the surplus of the minimum wage.
7.- The payment of ordinary union dues provided for in the union statutes. In any case, the worker may express in writing his wish that the union fee not be applied, in which case the employer may not deduct it.
G) Protective Rules and Salary Privileges
In the Federal Labor Law, the lawmakers established a series of privileges and regulations aimed at privileging the salary, which are the following:
1.- Workers shall freely dispose of their salaries. Any provision or measure that distorts this right shall be void.
2. The right to receive a salary is inalienable, as is the right to receive the wages earned.
3. The salary shall be paid directly to the worker. Only in cases where he is unable to personally collect the debt shall payment be made to the person you designate as agent by means of a power of attorney signed by two witnesses.
4.- The cash salary must be paid precisely in legal tender, and it is not permitted to do so in merchandise, vouchers, tokens, or any other representative sign with which the currency is intended to be replaced.
5. The salary may be paid by deposit in a bank account, debit card, transfer, or any other electronic means only with the worker’s express consent. The employer shall always cover the expenses or costs caused by these alternative means of payment.
6.- The worker must have access to detailed information on payment concepts and deductions. Payment receipts must be delivered to the worker in printed form or by any other means, without prejudice to the fact that the employer must deliver them in printed form when the worker so requests.
7.- Printed salary payment receipts must have the worker’s handwritten signature for their validity. However, payment receipts contained in online digital tax receipts (CFDI) can replace printed receipts.
8.- Benefits in kind must be appropriate for the personal use of the worker and his family and reasonably proportionate to the amount of the salary paid in cash.
9.- The transfer of salaries in favor of the employer or third parties is void, whatever the name or form given to it.
10.- The workers’ salary shall not be subject to any compensation.
11.- The employer’s obligation to pay the salary is not suspended, except in the cases with the requirements established in the Federal Labor Law.
12.- The imposition of fines on workers is prohibited, regardless of their cause or concept.
13. The salary shall be paid in the place where the workers provide their services.
14.- Payment of wages must be made on a working day, established by agreement between the worker and the employer, during working hours or immediately after their termination.
15.- Debts contracted by workers with their employers shall under no circumstances accrue interest.
16.- Workers’ salaries may not be attached, except in the case of alimony decreed by the competent authority.
17.- Salaries earned in the last year and compensation due to workers are preferential over any other credit, including those that enjoy a real guarantee, tax credits, and those in favor of the Mexican Social Security Institute, overall assets of the employer.
18.- Workers do not need to file for bankruptcy, suspension of payments, or succession. The Court shall proceed to attach and auction the assets necessary for the payment of salaries and compensation.
19.- The beneficiaries of the deceased worker shall have the right to receive benefits and compensation pending coverage, exercise actions, and continue lawsuits without the need for inheritance proceedings.
20.- In order to discourage the waste of workers’ salaries, the establishment of intoxicating beverage outlets and gambling is prohibited in workplaces. This prohibition shall be effective within a four-kilometer radius of work centers located outside towns.
6) Annual Christmas Bonus (Aguinaldo)
Finally, as a special annual benefit derived from their salary, workers shall be entitled to an annual bonus that must be paid before December 20 of each year, equivalent to at least 15 days of ordinary salary. See for this purpose the following criterion: VACATIONS, VACATION PREMIUM AND AGUINALDO. SALARY THAT SHOULD SERVE AS A BASIS FOR ITS QUANTIFICATION[15].
Workers who have not completed the year of service, regardless of whether they are working or not on the date of settlement of the bonus, shall have the right to be paid the proportional part of it, according to the time they have worked, whatever it may be. It’s appropriate to take into consideration the following criterion: AGUINALDO. THE RIGHT OF WORKERS SEPARATED FROM EMPLOYMENT TO CLAIM THEIR PROPORTIONAL SHARE ARISES FROM THE MOMENT OF SEPARATION[16].
By beLegal abogados staff
Contact the firm at [email protected]
Call our offices at (656) 271-41-43 for Spanish assistance or (656) 774-75-73 for English.
[1] Thesis: 2a./J. 150/2009. Second Chamber of the Mexican Supreme Court of Justice. Ninth Judicial Epoch. Binding Precedent. Digital Registration: 166177.
[2] Thesis: 2a./J. 38/96. Second Chamber of the Mexican Supreme Court of Justice. Ninth Judicial Epoch. Binding Precedent. Digital Registration: 200558.
[3] Article 784.- The Court shalll exempt the worker from the burden of proof, when by other means it is possible to gain knowledge of the facts, and for this purpose, at the request of the worker or if it is considered necessary, it shall require the employer to exhibit the documents that, according to the laws, have the legal obligation to keep in the company, under the warning that, if they are not presented, the facts alleged by the worker shall be presumed true. In any case, it shalll be up to the employer to prove his statement when there is controversy about: […]
VIII.- Ordinary and extraordinary workday, when it does not exceed nine hours.
[4] Thesis: 2a./J. 36/2017 (10a.) Second Chamber of the Mexican Supreme Court of Justice. Tenth Judicial Epoch. Binding Precedent. Digital Registration: 2014583.
[5] Thesis: 2a./J. 35/2014 (10a.) Second Chamber of the Mexican Supreme Court of Justice. Tenth Judicial Epoch. Binding Precedent. Digital Registration: 2006388.
[6] Thesis: IV.2o.T. J/46. SECOND COLLEGIATE COURT ON LABOR MATTERS OF THE FOURTH CIRCUIT. Ninth Judicial Epoch. Binding Precedent. Digital Registration: 172757.
[7] Thesis: 2a./J. 7/2006. Second Chamber of the Mexican Supreme Court of Justice. Ninth Judicial Epoch. Binding Precedent. Digital Registration: 175923.
[8] Thesis: 4a./J. 20/93. Former Fourth Chamber of the Mexican Supreme Court of Justice. Eighth Judicial Epoch. Binding Precedent. Digital Registration: 207780.
[9] Article 123.- […]
The Congress of the Union, without contravening the following bases, must issue laws on labor, which shall govern:
A. Among workers, day laborers, domestic employees, artisans and in general, all employment contracts: […].
IV.- For every six days of work, the worker must enjoy one day of rest, at least. […].
[10] Thesis: IV.3o.T. J/67. THIRD COLLEGIATE COURT ON LABOR MATTERS OF THE FOURTH CIRCUIT. Ninth Judicial Epoch. Digital Registration: 171669.
[11] Article 81.- Vacations must be granted to workers within six months following completion of one year of service. Employers shall annually provide their workers with a certificate containing their seniority and, in accordance with it, the vacation period that corresponds to them and the date on which they must enjoy it.
[12] Thesis: V.2o. J/40. SECOND COLLEGIATE COURT OF THE FIFTH CIRCUIT. Eighth Judicial Epoch. Binding Precedent. Digital Registration: 218747.
[13] Article 57.- The worker may request the Court to modify the working conditions when the salary is not remunerative or the working day is excessive or there are economic circumstances that justify it.
The employer may request the modification when economic circumstances arise that justification.
[14] Article 151.- When the rooms are rented to workers, the rent may not exceed half a percent per month of the cadastral value of the property and the following rules shall be observed:
I. Companies are obliged to keep them in habitable conditions and to make the necessary and convenient repairs in a timely manner:
II. Workers have the following obligations:
a). Pay the rents.
b). Take care of the room as if it were their own.
c). Inform the company of any defects or deterioration that they observe.
d). Vacate the rooms upon termination of the employment relationship within a period of forty-five days and
II. Workers are prohibited from:
a). Using the room for purposes other than those indicated in this chapter.
b). Sublet rooms.
[15] Thesis: I.13o.T. J/8. THIRTEENTH COLLEGIATE COURT ON LABOR MATTERS OF THE FIRST CIRCUIT. Ninth Judicial Epoch. Binding Precedent. Digital Registration: 173974.
[16] Thesis: SECOND COLLEGIATE COURT ON LABOR MATTERS OF THE FOURTH CIRCUIT. Ninth Judicial Epoch. Binding Precedent. Digital Registration: 173853.