Amaro, et al. v. Gerawan Farming, Inc., et al.
Filing
72
ORDER Approving Form and Manner of Class Action Notice, signed by District Judge Dale A. Drozd on 9/15/2016. (Gaumnitz, R)
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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
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FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
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RAFAEL MARQUEZ AMARO, JESUS
ALARCON URZUA, on behalf of
themselves and others similarly situated,
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ORDER APPROVING FORM AND
MANNER OF CLASS ACTION NOTICE
Plaintiffs,
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No. 1:14-cv-00147-DAD-SAB
v.
GERAWAN FARMING, INC., a
California corporation; GERAWAN
FARMING PARTNERS, INC., a
California corporation; DOES 1 – 10,
inclusive,
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Defendants.
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On May 20, 2016, the court granted Rafael Amaro and Jesus Alarcon Urzua’s
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(“plaintiffs”) motion for class certification pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure (“FRCP”)
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23. (Doc. No. 57.) On June 3, 2016, Gerawan Farming, Inc. and Gerawan Farming Partners, Inc.
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(“defendants”) filed a motion for reconsideration. (Doc. No. 58.) The court denied the motion
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for reconsideration on August 22, 2016 and subsequently ordered the parties to meet and confer
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within 21 days to decide on the form and manner of class notice. (Doc. No. 67.) The parties
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submitted a joint status report in this regard on September 12, 2016. (Doc. No. 71.)
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According to the joint status report, the parties have agreed on the form of the notice.1
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Finding no issues with the form, the court approves it as presented in the parties’ joint status
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report. (Doc. No. 71-1.)
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Additionally, according to their joint status report, the parties have also agreed that the
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initial notice to the class will be conducted by a professional third-party administrator, Rust
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Consulting, Inc. The court approves of this aspect of the proposal as well.
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The parties also agree the notice will be translated into Spanish. However, the parties fail
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to specify that a court certified interpreter will perform the translation. The court approves of the
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translation of the notice into Spanish so long as that translation is done by a court certified
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interpreter.
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However, according to the joint status report, the parties have reached an impasse with
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respect to timing. Plaintiffs request the court order defendants to provide the class list to Rust
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Consulting within fourteen days of the issuance of this order. Furthermore, plaintiffs request the
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court order Rust Consulting to mail the notice to the class members twenty-one days after receipt
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of the class list. On the other hand, defendants urge the court to delay the issuance of any such
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orders in light of the fact they have petitioned the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals pursuant to
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FRCP 23(f) for permission to appeal this court’s granting of class certification.2
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The court will not indefinitely delay the issuance of notice pending the Ninth Circuit’s
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review of defendants’ petition. Rather, defendants are encouraged to file a motion for a stay if
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that is what they desire. In order to provide defendants an opportunity to do so, the court will
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extend the deadline to provide the class list to thirty days after issuance of this order instead of the
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fourteen days requested by plaintiffs. The deadline for mailing notice will be set at twenty-one
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days after provision of the class list.
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The form to be used for the notice is attached as Exhibit A to the parties’ Joint Status Report.
(Doc. No. 71-1.)
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The case number for this petition is 16-80120.
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For the reasons stated above:
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1. The court approves the form of the notice, as set forth in Doc. No. 71-1;
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2. The court approves the use of Rust Consulting, Inc. to conduct the notice procedure;
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3. The court approves the translation of the notice into Spanish, provided the translation is
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performed by a court certified translator;
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4. The court orders defendants to provide the class list to Rust Consulting within thirty
days of issuance of this order; and
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5. The court orders notice to be mailed to all class members within twenty-one days of
provision of the class list.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
Dated:
September 15, 2016
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
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