Blaszkowski et al v. Mars Inc. et al

Filing 457

Plaintiff's MOTION for Extension of Time to Amend to Add and/or Substitute Plaintiff by All Plaintiffs. Responses due by 9/11/2008 (MacIvor, Catherine)

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Blaszkowski et al v. Mars Inc. et al Doc. 457 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF FLORIDA MIAMI DIVISION CASE NO. 07-21221 CIV ALTONAGA/Turnoff RENEE BLASZKOWSKI, et al., individually and on behalf of others similarly situated, Plaintiffs/Class Representatives, vs. MARS INC., et al. Defendants. _____________________________/ PLAINTIFFS' MOTION TO ADD AND/OR SUBSTITUTE ARNA CORTAZZO AS A PLAINTIFF/CLASS REPRESENTATIVE Plaintiffs, Renee Blaszkowski, et al., respectfully request this Court to enter an Order adding and/or substituting Arna Cortazzo as a Plaintiff/Class Representative in this case, and as grounds therefor, state as follows: As this Court is aware, the Plaintiffs have consistently taken the position since early July 2008 that, as a result of the settlement reached in the case of In re Pet Food Products Liability Litigation, CIV NO.: 07-2867 (NLH/AMD), a Multi-District Litigation case in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey (the "Multi-District Case"), the claims in this pending case have been subsumed in the broad release language of that settlement. Thus, because all of the Defendants presently before this Court, with the exception of Defendant, Natura Pet Products, Inc. ("Natura") are parties to the Multi-District Case, all claims in this case will likely be void based upon the Multi-District Case settlement. As a result, the Plaintiffs have are in the process of attempting to negotiate a settlement for the dismissal of all of the Defendants except Natura, which means that only five (5) Plaintiffs will remain in this case (not MALTZMAN FOREMAN, PA, 2 South Biscayne Boulevard, Miami, FL 33131 Tel: 305-358-6555 / Fax: 305-374-9077 Dockets.Justia.com including Ms. Cortazzo) and only one (1) Defendant. Thus, only claims against Natura will be prosecuted going forward. Accordingly, counsel for the Plaintiffs will proceed with only those Plaintiffs who incurred damages as a result of using Natura's pet food products, including Ms. Cortazzo. The two Florida Plaintiffs in this case, Patricia Davis and Raul Isern, however, did not use pet food products manufactured by Natura. Conversely, Arna Cortazzo, a Florida resident, did purchase and use Natura's pet food products and experienced damages as a result of same. Accordingly, the Plaintiffs in this matter seek to add and/or substitute Ms. Cortazzo for Ms. Davis or Mr. Isern so that jurisdiction may be retained by this Court once the claims of Ms. Davis and/or Ms. Isern are dismissed.1 When requesting a modification of a Rule 16 Scheduling Order, the moving party must demonstrate "good cause" and receive leave of the Court. Fed. R. Civ. P. 16(b); Alexander v. AOL Time Warner, Inc., 132 Fed. Appx. 267, 269 (11th Cir. 2005); Murphy v. S. Energy Homes, Inc., 2007 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 52111, **1-2 (M.D. Ala. July 18, 2007). "The good cause standard for modification of a scheduling order `precludes modification unless the schedule cannot be met despite the diligence of the party seeking the extension.' Am. Gen. Life Ins. Co. v. Schoenthal Family, LLC, 2007 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 84076 (N.D. Ga. Nov. 14, 2007) (quoting Sosa v. Airprint Sys., Inc., 133 F.3d 1417, 1418 (11th Cir. 1998)) (emphasis added). In this case, at the time the January 16 deadline expired, the Plaintiffs had no way of knowing that the Multi-District Case would encompass all of the claims in this litigation, except for those against Natura. Further, the settlement agreement in the Multi-District Case was not announced until several months after the January 16, 2008 deadline, making impossible compliance with the deadline under these While the Court previously set January 18, 2008 as a deadline for adding parties [DE 257], the circumstances have changed since that time dramatically based upon the settlement that was publicly announced after the deadline to add parties. 2 CASE NO. 07-21221 CIV ALTONAGA/Turnoff MALTZMAN FOREMAN, PA, 2 South Biscayne Boulevard, Miami, FL 33131 Tel: 305-358-6555 / Fax: 305-374-9077 1 particular circumstances. Consequently, despite the Plaintiffs' diligence throughout the entire course of this litigation, it is difficult to imagine how the Plaintiffs could have otherwise avoided these unpredictable events. Should the Court find that the Plaintiffs possess good cause to add Ms. Cortazzo, Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 21 would govern the addition of a plaintiff to this case. Rule 21 provides that "[p]arties may be dropped or added by order of the court on motion of any party or of its own initiative at any stage of the action and on such terms as are just." Fed. R. Civ. P. 21 (emphasis added). See also Rollins Burdick Hunter, Inc. v. Lemberger, 105 F.R.D. 631, 636 (E.D. Wis. 1985) (stating that Rule 21 "has long been invoked as a remedial device for the addition of parties where such is appropriate in the interest of justice[]" and "is specifically intended to permit the joinder of a person who, through inadvertence, mistake, or for some other reason, had not been made a party and is later found to be necessary or desirable."); Truncale v. Universal Pictures Co., 82 F. Supp. 576, 578 (D.N.Y. 1949) ("In so far as this rule relates to the addition of parties, it is intended to permit the bringing in of a person who, through inadvertence, mistake or for some other reason, had not been made a party and whose presence as a party is later found necessary or desirable[.]"). In explaining Rule 21, the court in Four Star Capital Corp. v. Nynex Corp., 183 F.R.D. 91, 98 (S.D.N.Y. 1997) stated: Rule 21, F.R. Civ. P grants the court "broad discretion to permit a change in the parties at any stage of a litigation." See Int'l Union of Bricklayers & Allied Craftsmen Local No. 5 v. Hudson Valley Dist. Council Bricklayers & Allied Craftsmen Joint Ben. Funds, 162 F.R.D. 17, 24 (S.D.N.Y. 1995) (Conner, J.). The court's decision to permit joinder is based on whether the claims of the additional plaintiffs arose out of the same or separate acts or occurrences, see Kahn, et al. v. Chase Manhattan Bank, N.A., 1995 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 11772, No. 90 Civ. 2824, 1995 WL 491067, at 3 (Aug. 17, 1995) (McKenna, J.); whether the party seeking joinder has unnecessarily delayed the proceedings; and whether the nonmovant would be prejudiced by the addition, see Thomas v. Mitchell-Bradford Chemical Co., 582 F. Supp. 1373, 1376 (E.D.N.Y. 1984). 3 CASE NO. 07-21221 CIV ALTONAGA/Turnoff MALTZMAN FOREMAN, PA, 2 South Biscayne Boulevard, Miami, FL 33131 Tel: 305-358-6555 / Fax: 305-374-9077 Based upon application of all three requirements set forth in Four Star Capita, the addition of Ms. Cortazzo is not only highly appropriate, but absolutely necessary so as not to deprive the Plaintiffs of whatever remedies they have left. First, Ms. Cortazzo was a victim of the same alleged acts and unlawful activity by Natura as the original Plaintiffs--namely deceptive and misleading marketing and advertising to induce purchase of Natura's pet food products. Compare with Gropp v. United Airlines, 847 F. Supp. 941, 944 (M.D. Fla. 1994) (although applying Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 20, the court found that "the addition of the five additional [plaintiffs was] proper as Plaintiffs assert that these five were victims of the same alleged acts of harassment and unlawful activity as were the original five Plaintiffs[]"). Second, the Plaintiffs are not filing this Motion for the purpose of delay, but rather to simply permit this case to proceed and eventually conclude in the same Honorable Court where it began and to allow at least some of the Plaintiffs a remedy. Moreover, this Motion could not have been filed sooner as the previously-mentioned agreement with all of the Defendants other than Natura had not been publicly announced until early June. Finally, although all of the Defendants have objected to adding another Plaintiff at this point simply because the deadline has expired, only Defendant Natura will be impacted by the addition and/or substitution of Ms. Cortazzo, a single Plaintiff. Yet, Natura will not be prejudiced if this Motion is granted as Ms. Cortazzo is in the process of preparing all of her discovery materials and has promised to deliver same to the undersigned within ten (10) days for prompt delivery to Natura. This would also occur prior to her deposition, which can be scheduled at a mutually convenient time. Moreover, Natura has not yet taken a deposition, so this will not impact any other Court deadlines because Ms. Cortazzo's can be scheduled within the remaining time period for all depositions. Accordingly, the Plaintiffs respectfully request that this Court enter an Order permitting the addition and/or 4 CASE NO. 07-21221 CIV ALTONAGA/Turnoff MALTZMAN FOREMAN, PA, 2 South Biscayne Boulevard, Miami, FL 33131 Tel: 305-358-6555 / Fax: 305-374-9077 substitution of Ms. Cortazzo as a Plaintiff so that this Court may retain jurisdiction of this case and the Plaintiffs who remain will not be deprived of whatever remedy remains. WHEREFORE, the Plaintiffs respectfully request this Court to enter an Order granting the Plaintiffs leave of Court to add and/or substitute Arna Cortazzo as a Plaintiff/Class Representative in this case for all of the reasons set forth above and for all other relief that this court deems just and proper. Dated: August 22, 2008 Miami, FL RULE 7.1 CERTIFICATE Prior to filing this Motion, Plaintiffs counsel, Catherine J. MacIvor, conferred with the Defendants about the substance of this Motion who did not agree to the relief requested herein base upon the expiration of the deadline to add parties of January 16, 2008 notwithstanding the fact that Defendant Natura will be the only Defendant remaining in the case going forward. /s Catherine J. MacIvor CATHERINE J. MACIVOR (FBN 932711) cmacivor@mflegal.com One Biscayne Tower 2 South Biscayne Boulevard -Suite 2300 Miami, Florida 33131 Tel: 305-358-6555 / Fax: 305-374-9077 PATRICK N. KEEGAN pkeegan@keeganbaker.com JASON E BAKER jbaker@keeganbaker.com KEEGAN & BAKER, LLP 4370 La Jolla Village Drive Suite 640 San Diego, CA 92122 Tel: 858-552-6750 / Fax 858-552-6749 Attorneys for Plaintiffs 5 CASE NO. 07-21221 CIV ALTONAGA/Turnoff MALTZMAN FOREMAN, PA, 2 South Biscayne Boulevard, Miami, FL 33131 Tel: 305-358-6555 / Fax: 305-374-9077 CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE WE HEREBY CERTIFY that the foregoing was electronically filed with the Clerk of the Court via CM/ECF on August 22, 2008. We also certify that the foregoing was served on all counsel or parties of record on the attached Service List either via transmission of Notices of Electronic Filing generated by CM/ECF or in some other authorized manner for those counsel or parties who are not authorized to receive electronic Notices of Filing. /s Catherine J. MacIvor Catherine J. MacIvor 6 CASE NO. 07-21221 CIV ALTONAGA/Turnoff MALTZMAN FOREMAN, PA, 2 South Biscayne Boulevard, Miami, FL 33131 Tel: 305-358-6555 / Fax: 305-374-9077 SERVICE LIST CASE NO. 07-21221 ALTONAGA/Brown CATHERINE J. MACIVOR cmacivor@mflegal.com JEFFREY B. MALTZMAN jmaltzman@mflegal.com JEFFREY E. FOREMAN jforeman@mflegal.com DARREN W. FRIEDMAN dfriedman@mflegal.com MALTZMAN FOREMAN, PA One Biscayne Tower 2 South Biscayne Boulevard -Suite 2300 Miami, Florida 33131 Tel: 305-358-6555 / Fax: 305-374-9077 Attorneys for Plaintiffs ROLANDO ANDRES DIAZ E-Mail: rd@kubickdraper.com MARIA KAYANAN E-Mail: mek@kubickidraper.com KUBICKI DRAPER 25 W. Flagler Street Penthouse Miami, Florida 33130-1712 Telephone: (305) 982-6708 Facsimile: (305) 374-7846 Attorneys for Defendant Pet Supermarket, Inc. ALEXANDER SHAKNES E-Mail: Alex.Shaknes@dlapiper.com AMY W. SCHULMAN E-Mail: Amy.schulman@dlapiper.com LONNIE L. SIMPSON E-Mail: Lonnie.Simpson@dlapiper.com S. DOUGLAS KNOX E-Mail: Douglas.knox@dlapiper.com DLA PIPER RUDNICK GRAY CARY US LLP 1251 Avenue of the Americas New York, New York 10020 Telephone: (212) 335-4829 Attorneys for Defendants Menu Foods, Inc. and Menu Foods Income Fund JOHN B.T. MURRAY, JR. E-Mail: jbmurray@ssd.com ROBIN L. HANGER E-Mail: rlhanger@ssd.com SQUIRE, SANDERS & DEMPSEY LLP 1900 Phillips Point West 777 South Flagler Drive West Palm Beach, Florida 33401-6198 Telephone: (561) 650-7200 Facsimile: (561) 655-1509 Attorneys for Defendants PETCO Animal Supplies Stores Inc., PetSmart, Inc., Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. and Target Corporation 7 CASE NO. 07-21221 CIV ALTONAGA/Turnoff MALTZMAN FOREMAN, PA, 2 South Biscayne Boulevard, Miami, FL 33131 Tel: 305-358-6555 / Fax: 305-374-9077 WILLIAM C. MARTIN E-Mail: william.martin@dlapiper.com DLA PIPER RUDNICK GRAY CARY US LLP 203 North LaSalle Street Suite 1900 Chicago, Illinois 60601-1293 Attorneys for Defendants Menu Foods, Inc. and Menu Foods Income Fund JEFFREY S. YORK E-Mail: jyork@mcguirewoods.com MICHAEL GIEL E-Mail: mgiel@mcguirewoods.com McGUIRE WOODS LLP 50 N. Laura Street, Suite 3300 Jacksonville, FL 32202 Telephone: (904) 798-2680 Facsimile: (904) 360-6330 Attorneys for Defendant Natura Pet Products, Inc. OMAR ORTEGA Email: ortegalaw@bellsouth.net DORTA & ORTEGA, P.A. Douglas Entrance 800 S. Douglas Road, Suite 149 Coral Gables, Florida 33134 Telephone: (305) 461-5454 Facsimile: (305) 461-5226 Attorneys for Defendant Mars, Inc. and Mars Petcare U.S. and Nutro Products, Inc. HUGH J. TURNER, JR. E-Mail: hugh.turner@akerman.com AKERMAN SENTERFITT & EDISON 350 E. Las Olas Boulevard Suite 1600 Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33301-2229 Telephone: (954)463-2700 Facsimile: (954)463-2224 Attorneys for Defendant Publix Super Markets, Inc. KRISTEN E. CAVERLY E-Mail: kcaverly@hcesq.com TONY F. FARMANI tfarmani@hcesq.com HENDERSON & CAVERLY LLP 16236 San Dieguito Road, Suite 4-13 P.O. Box 9144 (all US Mail) Rancho Santa Fe, CA 92067-9144 Telephone: 858-756-6342 x)101 Facsimile: 858-756-4732 Attorneys for Natura Pet Products, Inc. DANE H. BUTSWINKAS E-Mail: dbutswinkas@wc.com PHILIP A. SECHLER E-Mail: psechler@wc.com THOMAS G. HENTOFF E-Mail: thentoff@wc.com PATRICK J. HOULIHAN E-Mail: phoulihan@wc.com AMY R. DAVIS adavis@wc.com JULI ANN LUND jlund@wc.com WILLIAMS & CONNOLLY LLP 725 12th Street, N.W. Washington, DC 20005 Telephone: (202)434-5000 Attorneys for Defendants Nutro Products, Inc. Mars, Incorporated and Mars Petcare U.S. 8 CASE NO. 07-21221 CIV ALTONAGA/Turnoff MALTZMAN FOREMAN, PA, 2 South Biscayne Boulevard, Miami, FL 33131 Tel: 305-358-6555 / Fax: 305-374-9077 BENJAMIN REID E-Mail: bried@carltonfields.com ANA CRAIG E-Mail: acraig@carltonfields.com CARLTON FIELDS, P.A. 100 S.E. Second Street, Suite 4000 Miami, Florida 33131-0050 Telephone: (305)530-0050 Facsimile: (305) 530-0050 Attorneys for Defendants Hill's Pet Nutrition, Inc. KARA L. McCALL kmccall@sidley.com SIDLEY AUSTIN LLP One S. Dearborn Street Chicago, ILL 60633 Telephone: (312) 853-2666 Attorneys for Defendants Hill's Pet Nutrition, Inc. JOHN J. KUSTER jkuster@sidley.com JAMES D. ARDEN jarden@sidley.com SIDLEY AUSTIN LLP 787 Seventh Avenue New York, New York 10019-6018 Telephone: (212) 839-5300 Attorneys for Defendants Hill's Pet Nutrition, Inc. RICHARD FAMA E-Mail: rfama@cozen.com JOHN J. McDONOUGH E-Mail: jmcdonough@cozen.com COZEN O'CONNOR 45 Broadway New York, New York 10006 Telephone: (212) 509-9400 Facsimile: (212) 509-9492 Attorneys for Defendant Del Monte Foods SHERRIL M. COLOMBO E-Mail: scolombo@cozen.com COZEN O'CONNOR 200 South Biscayne Boulevard Suite 4410 Miami, Florida 33131 Telephone: (305) 704-5945 Facsimile: (305) 704-5955 Attorneys for Defendant Del Monte Foods Co. C. RICHARD FULMER, JR. E-Mail: rfulmer@Fulmer.LeRoy.com FULMER, LEROY, ALBEE, BAUMANN, & GLASS 2866 East Oakland Park Boulevard Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33306 Telephone: (954) 707-4430 Facsimile: (954) 707-4431 Attorneys for Defendant The Kroger Co. of Ohio 9 CASE NO. 07-21221 CIV ALTONAGA/Turnoff MALTZMAN FOREMAN, PA, 2 South Biscayne Boulevard, Miami, FL 33131 Tel: 305-358-6555 / Fax: 305-374-9077 JOHN F. MULLEN E-Mail: jmullen@cozen.com COZEN O'CONNOR 1900 Market Street Philadelphia, PA 19103 Telephone: (215) 665-2179 Facsimile: (215) 665-2013 Attorneys for Defendant Del Monte Foods, Co. CAROL A. LICKO E-Mail: calicko@hhlaw.com HOGAN & HARTSON Mellon Financial Center 1111 Brickell Avenue, Suite 1900 Miami, Florida 33131 Telephone (305) 459-6500 Facsimile (305) 459-6550 Attorneys for Defendants Nestle Purina Petcare Co. ROBERT C. TROYER E-Mail: rctroyer@hhlaw.com HOGAN & HARTSON 1200 17th Street One Tabor Center, Suite 1500 Denver, Colorado 80202 Telephone: (303) 899-7300 Facsimile: (303) 899-7333 Attorneys for Defendants Nestle Purina Petcare Co. JAMES K. REUSS E-Mail: jreuss@lanealton.com LANE ALTON & HORST Two Miranova Place Suite 500 Columbus, Ohio 43215 Telephone: (614) 233-4719 Attorneys for Defendant The Kroger Co. of Ohio CRAIG A. HOOVER E-Mail: cahoover@hhlaw.com MIRANDA L. BERGE E-Mail: mlberge@hhlaw.com HOGAN & HARTSON L.L.P. 555 13th Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20004 Telephone: (202) 637-5600 Facsimile: (202) 637-5910 Attorneys for Defendants Nestle Purina Petcare Co. ALAN G. GREER agreer@richmangreer.com RICHMAN GREER WEIL BRUMBAUGH MIRABITO & CHRISTENSEN 201 South Biscayne Boulevard Suite 1000 Miami, Florida 33131 Telephone: (305) 373-4000 Facsimile: (305) 373-4099 Attorneys for Defendants The Iams Co. 10 CASE NO. 07-21221 CIV ALTONAGA/Turnoff MALTZMAN FOREMAN, PA, 2 South Biscayne Boulevard, Miami, FL 33131 Tel: 305-358-6555 / Fax: 305-374-9077 D. JEFFREY IRELAND E-Mail: djireland@ficlaw.com BRIAN D. WRIGHT E-Mail: bwright@ficlaw.com LAURA A. SANOM E-Mail: lsanom@ficlaw.com FARUKI IRELAND & COX 500 Courthouse Plaza, S.W. 10 North Ludlow Street Dayton, Ohio 45402 Attorneys for Defendant The Iams Co. RALPH G. PATINO E-Mail: rpatino@patinolaw.com DOMINICK V. TAMARAZZO E-Mail: dtamarazzo@patinolaw.com CARLOS B. SALUP E-Mail: csalup@patinolaw.com PATINO & ASSOCIATES, P.A. 225 Alcazar Avenue Coral Gables, Florida 33134 Telephone: (305) 443-6163 Facsimile: (305) 443-5635 Attorneys for Defendants Pet Supplies "Plus" and Pet Supplies Plus/USA, Inc. CRAIG P. KALIL E-Mail: ckalil@aballi.com JOSHUA D. POYER E-Mail: jpoyer@abailli.com ABALLI MILNE KALIL & ESCAGEDO 2250 Sun Trust International Center One S.E. Third Avenue Miami, Florida 33131 Telephone: (303) 373-6600 Facsimile: (305) 373-7929 Attorneys for New Albertson's Inc. and Albertson's LLC W. RANDOLPH TESLIK E-Mail: rteslik@akingump.com ANDREW J. DOBER E-Mail: adober@akingump.com AKIN GUMP STRAUSS HAUER & FELD LLP 1333 New Hampshire Avenue, NW Washington, D.C. 20036 Telephone: (202) 887-4000 Facsimile: (202) 887-4288 Attorneys for Defendants New Albertson's Inc. and Albertson's LLC 11 CASE NO. 07-21221 CIV ALTONAGA/Turnoff MALTZMAN FOREMAN, PA, 2 South Biscayne Boulevard, Miami, FL 33131 Tel: 305-358-6555 / Fax: 305-374-9077

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