Levitt v. Yelp! Inc.

Filing 6

NOTICE by Yelp! Inc. Defendant Yelp! Inc.'s Notice of Pendency of Other Actions or Proceedings (L.R. 3-13) (Attachments: #1 Exhibit A, #2 Exhibit B, #3 Exhibit C)(Brown, Matthew) (Filed on 4/7/2010)

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COOLEY GODWARD KRONISH LLP
A T T O R N E Y S A T LAW S A N FR A N C I S C O

COOLEY GODWARD KRONISH LLP MICHAEL G. RHODES (116127) ([e-mail]) MATTHEW D. BROWN (196972) ([e-mail]) BENJAMIN H. KLEINE (257225) ([e-mail]) SARAH R. BOOT (253658) ([e-mail]) 101 California Street, 5th Floor San Francisco, CA 94111-5800 Telephone: [phone] Fax: [phone] Attorneys for Defendant YELP! INC. UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

BORIS Y. LEVITT, on behalf of himself and all others similarly situated, Plaintiff, v. YELP! INC.; and DOES 1 through 100, inclusive, Defendants.

No. CV 10-1321 MHP

DEFENDANT YELP! INC.'S NOTICE OF PENDENCY OF OTHER ACTIONS OR PROCEEDINGS (L.R. 3-13) Courtroom: 15 Judge: Honorable Marilyn Hall Patel Trial Date: None Set

Defendant Yelp! Inc. ("Yelp"), by and through its undersigned counsel of record, hereby notifies the Court and all opposing parties pursuant to Civil Local Rule 3-13 that this action involves the same subject matter and the same defendant as two actions pending in another federal district court. Cats and Dogs Animal Hospital, Inc., et al. v. Yelp! Inc. An action entitled Cats and Dogs Animal Hospital, Inc., et al. v. Yelp! Inc., Case No. 2:10-cv-01340-VBF (SSx), ("Cats and Dogs") is pending in the United States District Court for the Central District of California, Western Division, before the Honorable Valerie Baker Fairbank. A true and correct copy of the First Amended Complaint in the Cats and Dogs action is attached hereto as Exhibit A.

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DEF. YELP'S NOTICE OF PENDENCY OF OTHER ACTIONS OR PROC. CASE NO. CV 10-1321 MHP

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COOLEY GODWARD KRONISH LLP
A T T O R N E Y S A T LAW S A N FR A N C I S C O

LaPausky v. Yelp! Inc. An action entitled LaPausky v. Yelp! Inc., Case No. 2:10-cv-01578-VBF (SSx), ("LaPausky") is also pending in the Unites States District Court for the Central District of California, Western Division, before the Honorable Valerie Baker Fairbank. A true and correct copy of the complaint in the LaPausky action is attached hereto as Exhibit B. The Cats and Dogs and LaPausky actions were ordered related and assigned to a single judge on March 12, 2010. A true and correct copy of the order relating the two actions is attached hereto as Exhibit C. The parties in Cats and Dogs and LaPausky have agreed in principle to consolidation of the two cases, although they have not yet agreed upon the appropriate method for achieving that result. The Cats and Dogs and LaPausky Actions Involve Overlapping Subject Matter with This Action The Cats and Dogs and LaPausky actions involve materially overlapping subject matter as this action. Yelp operates a website (www.yelp.com) that allows consumers to find local

businesses, and read and write reviews about them. The website features information on and reviews of businesses throughout the United States and is visited by approximately 30 million people per month. Yelp makes money by, inter alia, selling ads to local businesses, which appear as "Sponsored Results" on Yelp's website. Plaintiffs in all three actions are businesses that allege that, based on whether a business chooses to advertise with Yelp or not, the display of reviews of such business on www.yelp.com is either positively or negatively affected. Plaintiffs in all three actions assert claims for violation of California's Unfair Competition Law, Business and Professions Code Section 17200 et seq. Plaintiff in this action includes additional claims for (a) violation of California Business and Professions Code Section 17500, (b) negligent misrepresentation, and (c) intentional misrepresentation. Plaintiffs in the Cats and Dogs case include additional claims for (a) violation of Cal. Penal Code §§ 518-19 (extortion), (b) violation of Cal. Penal Code § 524 (attempted extortion), and (c) intentional interference with prospective economic advantage.

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DEF. YELP'S NOTICE OF PENDENCY OF OTHER ACTIONS OR PROC. CASE NO. CV 10-1321 MHP

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COOLEY GODWARD KRONISH LLP
A T T O R N E Y S A T LAW S A N FR A N C I S C O

All three actions are styled as class actions against Yelp, and plaintiffs in all three seek to represent nearly identically defined putative classes. Potential Transfer and Consolidation of the Cats and Dogs and LaPausky Actions In the coming days, Yelp intends to file motions to transfer the Cats and Dogs action and the LaPausky action to this district pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1404(a). Among other factors justifying such a transfer are the following: Yelp's principal place of business is in this district; three of the named plaintiffs in the Cats and Dogs action reside in this district; many of the individuals who will be witnesses reside in this district; and most, if not all, of the named plaintiffs in the Cats and Dogs and LaPausky actions have entered into agreements with Yelp containing forum-selection clauses in which they consented to jurisdiction and venue in the state and federal courts in San Francisco County, California. Transfer of the Cats and Dogs action and the LaPausky action to this district and consolidation of those actions with the Levitt action currently pending before this Court will avoid conflicts, conserve the courts' and the parties' resources, and promote an efficient determination of all three actions. Alternatively, if Yelp's efforts to transfer the Cats and Dogs action and the LaPausky action to this district pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1404(a) are unsuccessful, Yelp may consider seeking transfer pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1407 (Multi District Litigation Procedures). Dated: April 6, 2010 COOLEY GODWARD KRONISH LLP

/s/ Matthew D. Brown Matthew D. Brown (196972) Attorneys for Defendant Yelp! Inc.

843022 / HN

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DEF. YELP'S NOTICE OF PENDENCY OF OTHER ACTIONS OR PROC. CASE NO. CV 10-1321 MHP