Unpaid internships have come under increased scrutiny for their potential illegality under the Fair Labor Standards Act. Due to the limited case law and statutory guidance regarding interns, lower courts have issued conflicting opinions on the proper analysis courts should engage in to determine whether interns are considered “employees” under federal law. Such conflicting judicial interpretation is detrimental to both employers and interns. A bright line rule for determining when an intern qualifies as an employee under the FLSA is critical to settling the uncertainty in this area of the law
