Hohenberg v. Ferrero USA, Inc
Filing
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MOTION for Settlement Motion for Final Approval of Class Action Settlement, MOTION for Attorney Fees Motion for Attorneys' Fees, Costs, and Incentive Awards by Athena Hohenberg, Laura Rude-Barbato. (Attachments: # 1 Memo of Points and Authorities in Support of Motion for Final Settlement Approval (Redacted Version), # 2 Memo of Points and Authorities in Support of Motion for Approval of Attorneys' Fees, Costs, and Incentive Awards (Redacted Version), # 3 Declaration of Ronald A. Marron, # 4 Declaration of Jack Fitzgerald, # 5 Declaration of Athena Hohenberg, # 6 Declaration of Laura Rude-Barbato, # 7 Affidavit of Charlene Young)(Fitzgerald, John) (ag).
1 LAW OFFICES OF RONALD A.
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MARRON, APLC
RONALD A. MARRON (175650)
ron@consumersadvocates.com
MAGGIE REALIN (263639)
maggie@consumersadvocates.com
B. SKYE RESENDES (278511)
skye@consumersadvocates.com
3636 4th Avenue, Suite 202
San Diego, California 92103
Telephone: (619) 696-9006
Facsimile: (619) 564-6665
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THE WESTON FIRM
GREGORY S. WESTON (239944)
greg@westonfirm.com
JACK FITZGERALD (257370)
jack@westonfirm.com
MELANIE PERSINGER (275423)
mel@westonfirm.com
COURTLAND CREEKMORE (182018)
courtland@westonfirm.com
1405 Morena Blvd. Suite 201
San Diego, CA 92110
Telephone: (619) 798-2006
Facsimile: (480) 247-4553
8 Class Counsel
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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
Case No. 3:11-cv-00205-H-CAB
Pleading Type: Class Action
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IN RE FERRERO LITIGATION
DECLARATION OF ATHENA HOHENBERG IN
SUPPORT OF MOTION FOR FINAL APPROVAL &
MOTION FOR APPROVAL OF ATTORNEYS’ FEES
AND INCENTIVE AWARDS
Judge: The Honorable Marilyn L. Huff
Hearing: July 9, 2012
Time: 10:30 a.m.
Location: Courtroom 3
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In re Ferrero Litigation, Case No. 3:11-CV-00205-H-CAB
DECLARATION OF ATHENA HOHENBERG
1 I, Athena Hohenberg, declare:
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I am a Plaintiff and was appointed Class Representative in the above-captioned lawsuit.
3 I submit this declaration in support of Plaintiffs’ Motion for final approval and Motion for Approval of
4 Attorneys’ Fees and Incentive Awards. I have firsthand knowledge of the matters stated in this
5 declaration, and could and would testify thereto.
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My Decision to Volunteer to Bring this Lawsuit
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I volunteered to bring this lawsuit because it was upsetting to me that Ferrero would take
8 advantage of my trust by giving me the impression that Nutella was a healthy breakfast for my
9 daughter, when in fact it is a desert item. I imagined that other mothers would feel the same way. Even
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10 though my lawsuit sought a refund for the Nutella I purchased, my primary motivation or goal for
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11 bringing this lawsuit was to get Ferrero to stop advertising Nutella in this way in order to prevent it
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12 from tricking other moms the way I felt tricked.
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3.
Before ultimately deciding to volunteer and participating in this lawsuit, I conferred
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14 extensively with my attorney, Ron Marron, in an effort to understand the consumer and advertising
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15 laws and what would be expected of me, including my obligations and responsibilities, as a class
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16 representative. After several discussions relating to Ferrero’s advertising, and the healthy products I
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17 like to feed my daughter, I retained attorney Mr. Marron on January 27, 2011.
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My Participation in this Lawsuit
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Since I decided to bring this suit, I have been in frequent communication with Mr.
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20 Marron and other attorneys involved in the case. For example, throughout the lawsuit I received many
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21 telephone calls, emails and letters from Class Counsel’s offices, providing me with continuous updates
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22 and developments about the case’s progress. These communications frequently accompanied and
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23 explained legal documents such as pleadings, court rulings, requests for documents, interrogatories, and
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24 deposition transcript(s), which I read carefully to ensure I understood them and what was occurring in
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25 the case. I often contacted my attorneys or their staff with questions concerning legal documents, the
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26 legal process, scheduling, and other related matters.
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In re Ferrero Litigation, Case No. 3:11-CV-00205-H-CAB
DECLARATION OF ATHENA HOHENBERG
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During the course of this lawsuit I have received and reviewed the following e-mails
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January 26, 2011 e-mail RE: Retainer Agreement;
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January 26, 2011 e-mail RE: News Article, “Italy fears for Nutella with new EU
food labels”;
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January 26, 2011 e-mail RE: Nutella Commercial;
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January 28, 2011 e-mail RE: CLRA Notice Letter;
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January 31, 2011 e-mail RE: initial draft of the Complaint;
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February 2, 2011 e-mail RE: filed Complaint;
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February 2, 2011 e-mail RE: topclassactions.com Article;
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February 17, 2011 e-mail RE: First Amended Consolidated Complaint request
for information concerning advertising seen;
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April 4, 2011 e-mail RE: filed Consolidated Complaint;
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April 28, 2011 e-mail RE: Declaration in Support of Motion Opposing a Transfer
of this Case to New Jersey;
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April 29, 2011 e-mail RE: Declaration in Support of Motion Opposing a Transfer
of this Case to New Jersey;
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May 15, 2011 e-mail RE: Case Update;
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August 9, 2011 e-mail RE: Case Update;
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August 28, 2011 e-mail RE: Case Update;
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August 31, 2011 e-mail RE: Law 360 Article on Nutella Case;
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September 9, 2011 e-mail RE: Deposition Date;
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September 14, 2011 e-mail RE: Deposition Date;
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September 15, 2011 e-mail RE: Documents Requested by Defendant;
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September 22, 2011 e-mail RE: Deposition;
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September 23, 2011 e-mail RE: First Amended Consolidated Complaint;
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September 27, 2011 e-mail RE: Defendant’s Request for Documents;
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In re Ferrero Litigation, Case No. 3:11-CV-00205-H-CAB
DECLARATION OF ATHENA HOHENBERG
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October 12, 2011 e-mail RE: Early Neutral Evaluation Conference;
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November 21, 2011 e-mail RE: Case Management Conference and Mandatory
Settlement Conference;
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April 26, 2012 e-mail RE: ABC News Article on Nutella Case;
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April 27, 2012 e-mail RE: Google Article on Nutella Case; and
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April 29, 2012 e-mail RE: News Article on Nutella.
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During the course of this lawsuit I have received and reviewed the following letters from
8 Class Counsel, although this is not an exhaustive list:
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August 11, 2011 Letter regarding Ferrero’s First Set of Interrogatories;
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September 15, 2011 Letter regarding Early Neutral Evaluation Conference and
Deposition;
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November 21, 2011 Letter regarding Case Management Conference and
Mandatory Settlement Conference; and
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December 20, 2011 Letter regarding withdrawal of Margarita Salazar as my
attorney.
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In addition to regularly communicating with my attorneys about the lawsuit, I was also
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16 involved in assisting with discovery and case filings. For example, through telephone conversations and
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17 an in-person meeting, I assisted my counsel in responding to Ferrero’s document requests and
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18 interrogatories, including providing full substantive responses to 75% of Ferrero’s interrogatories and
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19 searching for and producing documents I had that were responsive to Ferrero’s requests.
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Responding to Ferrero’s requests for documentation and information was time
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21 consuming, but I took the time to make sure I understood the question that was being asked. If I did not
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22 understand the question, which was often the case, I discussed with my attorneys before answering.
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23 Once I answered questions to the best of my ability, I reviewed my responses with counsel. After
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24 giving my responses to my lawyers, they prepared formal written responses, which I reviewed before
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25 they were served.
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In re Ferrero Litigation, Case No. 3:11-CV-00205-H-CAB
DECLARATION OF ATHENA HOHENBERG
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I also helped my attorneys prepare and signed my Declaration in Support of Plaintiffs’
2 Opposition to Ferrero’s Motion to Transfer of this Case to New Jersey, which was filed on May 2,
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3 2011.
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My deposition was taken on September 29, 2011, which lasted five hours. This was a
5 difficult experience requiring lengthy pre-deposition preparation and interview sessions with my
6 attorneys, and generating anxiety over the deposition itself because of my lack of familiarity with the
7 procedure. During the course of the deposition questioning, I took care to answer the questions clearly
8 and precisely so as not to be misconstrued and to keep an accurate record.
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Finally, I attended two settlement conferences with Ferrero, on October 19 and
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10 November 28, 2011, both in front of Judge Bencivengo. In each instance, I took time off work and time
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11 away from my children to attend.
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I estimate my total involvement in this lawsuit amounts to approximately 60 hours.
Hardships I Experienced Because of My Participation in this Lawsuit
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I work in Imperial Beach, California, in San Diego County, in a conservative property
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15 management firm. My work hours are not flexible and I often find myself working over 40 hours per
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16 week completing various tasks including supporting real estate agents, brokers, managing properties,
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17 and interacting with property owners and contractors.
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I am also a single mother and live with my 4 year old daughter and 19 year old step
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19 daughter. At the outset of this litigation, my then 3 year old daughter had (has) a medical condition and
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20 was under-going medical testing, diagnostics and evaluation to determine the cause of an apparent
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21 disability (I do not care to be more specific so as to protect my daughter’s privacy). In addition, she was
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22 (is) undergoing speech therapy. I arrange for her appointments and care with various health care
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23 providers and her speech therapist, and attend 9 out of every 10 appointments or, if I cannot get time
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24 off from work, ensure she has transportation for her appointment.
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Dkt. No. 33-1.
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In re Ferrero Litigation, Case No. 3:11-CV-00205-H-CAB
DECLARATION OF ATHENA HOHENBERG
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