Culley v. Lincare Inc. et al

Filing 63

ORDER Signed by District Judge Morrison C. England, Jr. on 9/17/2016. The Court approves the second version of the Notice of Pendency of Class Action provided by Plaintiff (Bhowmik Decl., ECF No. 62-1), amended as described above; (2) Defendant shall disclose all class members contact information to Class Counsel and the third-party administrator within 15 days; (3) the Class Notice shall be mailed within 30 days; and (4) the September 22, 2016, hearing on this matter is VACATED.(Deutsch, S)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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CHRISTINA CULLEY,

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No. 2:15-cv-00081-MCE-CMK

Plaintiff,
v.
LINCARE INC., ALPHA
RESPIRATORY INC., and DOES 1
THROUGH 50,

ORDER GRANTING PLAINTIFF’S
MOTION FOR APPROVAL OF NOTICE
OF PENDENCY OF CLASS ACTION TO
THE CERTIFIED CLASS

Defendants.

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On August 15, 2016, Plaintiff submitted a proposed form of class notice and made

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a motion for its approval. ECF No. 60. Defendants objected to: (1) the ordering of its

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sections; and (2) the wording of the class definition. Defs.’ Resp. 1:5–8, 1:28–2:3, ECF

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No. 61. Plaintiff agreed to reorder the notice’s sections, but insisted on its original

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wording in the class definition. Pls.’ Reply 1:2–5, ECF No. 62.

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The only bone of contention then is whether the class should be introduced as “all

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those individuals employed by Defendants Lincare, Inc. and Alpha Respiratory, Inc.”

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(preferred by Plaintiff) or as simply “all those individuals employed by Alpha Respiratory

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Inc.” (preferred by Defendants). Defendants fear that recipients of the notice naming

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both parties will mistakenly give the impression that the class also includes those

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individuals who were employed solely by Lincare Inc. See Defs.’ Resp. 1:8–10, ECF
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No. 61. Plaintiff fears that only naming Alpha Respiratory Inc. will cause confusion

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among class members since many of the class members’ employment documents, such

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as paystubs, bore the Lincare Inc. logo. See Pls.’ Reply 1:19–24, ECF No. 62. To

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prevent any possible confusion, the first sentence should be amended to read:

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TO: all those individuals employed by Defendant Alpha
Respiratory Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Defendant
Lincare, Inc., as non-exempt employees during October 21,
2010 to the present (the “Class Period”).

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Accordingly, (1) the Court approves the second version of the Notice of Pendency
of Class Action provided by Plaintiff (Bhowmik Decl., ECF No. 62-1), amended as

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described above; (2) Defendant shall disclose all class members’ contact information to

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Class Counsel and the third-party administrator within 15 days; (3) the Class Notice shall

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be mailed within 30 days; and (4) the September 22, 2016, hearing on this matter is

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VACATED.

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IT IS SO ORDERED.

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Dated: September 17, 2016

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