Judge: Elaine Lu, Case: 24STCV25855, Date: 2025-02-07 Tentative Ruling
Case Number: 24STCV25855 Hearing Date: February 7, 2025 Dept: 9
Please note that
the Initial Status Conference has been advanced to 8:30 am on February 7, 2025
– not 10:00 am. The Court hereby
distributes a tentative ruling for the CMO.
The parties are welcome to provide input and propose modification(s) to
any aspect of the CMO at the February 7, 2025 Initial Status Conference. If all parties submit on the tentative CMO
prior to the commencement of the ISC, the Court will adopt the tentative CMO,
and the parties need not appear.
SUPERIOR
COURT OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA
FOR
THE COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES
Scott
Johnson v Alliance Energy Marketing, LLC,
24STCV25855
[TENTATIVE] CASE MANAGEMENT
ORDER
This action has been designated as
complex pursuant to CRC 3.400(a), and thus requires exceptional judicial
management. All provisions of this CMO are deemed necessary to carry out the
purposes of Rule 3.400(a), and to promote effective decision-making by the
Court. They are based upon individual consideration of this complex action, including
the Status Conference Reports previously filed by the parties.
1.
The
Parties are unaware of any relevant arbitration agreements and/or class action
waiver clauses.
2.
The
Parties indicate that they are amenable to participating in private mediation and
are currently in the process of scheduling mediation. The parties are ordered to file a Joint
Status Report Re: Mediation Efforts, including the identity of any mediator
they have selected and the date of any mediation they have scheduled, no later
than April 22, 2025. A Non-Appearance
Case Review Re Mediation Efforts is set for April 29, 2025 at 8:30 AM,
Department 9. If the parties agree
to a voluntary, informal exchange of discovery prior to mediating, the Court encourages
(but does not require or order) the parties to include a verification with each
production of discovery so that if the mediation is unsuccessful, the parties
will not have to duplicate or repeat this exchange of discovery.
3.
The
January 31, 2025 Joint Initial Status Conference Statement indicates that Plaintiff
will seek the Court’s permission to file an amended complaint adding a PAGA
cause of action. The Court hereby grants
leave for Plaintiff to file an amended complaint adding a PAGA cause of action. The Court hereby lifts the stay to permit Plaintiff
to file an amended complaint and amended summons. Plaintiff must file and serve an amended
complaint by no later than March 14, 2025. The Court hereby also lifts the stay to
permit Defendant to file and serve a Responsive Pleading to the amended complaint.
Defendant must file and serve a Responsive Pleading by no later than 30 days
after receipt of Plaintiff’s amended complaint.
Before filing any demurrer or other motion, the moving party must
contact the Court Staff in Department 9 to obtain a hearing date and a briefing
schedule. The Court sets a Non-Appearance
Case Review Re: Filing and Serving of Defendant’s Responsive Pleading for April
29, 2025, 8:30 AM, Department 9.
4.
Phased Discovery. Discovery
shall be phased. Discovery will be
phased with the stay lifted once Defendant files and serves an answer or, if
applicable, after the Court rules on any pleading challenge. At that time, the
Court will permit class certification discovery only. Informal discovery
is permitted. Merits-based discovery
will be allowed after a successful class certification motion. If there is a
dispute concerning whether a given discovery request is certification or
merits-based, the parties are to set up a telephonic conference with the court
pursuant to the instructions herein.
5.
Class list discovery.
The decision in In Re Insurance Installment Fee cases (2012) 211
Cal.App.4th 1395, 1426-1429, held that the notice procedure prescribed by the
trial court and followed by the defendant was necessary to protect privacy
rights under the California Constitution.
Therefore, upon the Court’s lifting of the stay on class certification
discovery, the parties shall use the procedure described in Belaire-West
Landscape v Superior Court (2008) 149 Cal.App.4th 554 to notify putative
class members, as described in the applicable paragraph of the currently
operative complaint, giving them the opportunity to opt out. The parties must share the cost of the
procedure equally.
a. Plaintiff
is to take the lead and prepare a proposed letter to be sent out by the
agreed-upon third party administrator.
The parties must discuss and settle upon a final version.
b. The
letter must be written using the administrator’s letterhead, not that of any
party.
c. The
defense must turn over the contact information consisting of name, address,
phone number, and email address (if available) to the third-party
administrator.
d. In the
event the putative class list is greater than 400 people, the administrator
must randomly select a sample of no more than 400. The contact information for those persons
who did not opt out must be turned over to the plaintiff.
6.
Payroll Records Discovery. Responses to any
payroll record discovery requests must be uniquely numbered and redacted so
that putative class member’s identifying information, i.e., name, social
security numbers, etc. are not revealed.
7.
Protective Order.
Parties are alerted that model protective orders may be found at Los
Angeles Superior Court website at http://www.lacourt.org/division/civil/CI0043.aspx. The parties are encouraged to use these model
orders as shown, or if modified, as a template for the modified order. A redlined courtesy copy must be posted on
the e-service bulletin board and lodged with the court at the time of filing.
The parties must use the redlined version to identify any changes proposed to
the model order.
8.
E-service & E-filing. Electronic service is not the same as
electronic filing. The parties have
agreed, and the Court has signed an order authorizing Case Anywhere as the
e-service to be used in this case.
Argument must not be posted on the bulletin board. For information on electronic filing in the
Complex Courts, please refer to https://www.lacourt.org/division/efiling/efiling2.aspx and http://www.lacourt.org/division/efiling/pdf/ComplexefilingFAQs.pdf.
9.
Class Certification Motion. Class
Certification Motion filing and serving deadline is April 2, 2026. The
plaintiff is reminded that the plaintiff’s brief must contain a trial
plan. The trial plan MUST be
filed as a separate brief. As with all
other motions, Counsel must call the Court to obtain a hearing date and
briefing schedule PRIOR to filing and serving the motion for Class
Certification. The Court sets a Non-Appearance
Case Review for April 9, 2026, 8:30 AM, Department 9.
10.
Telephonic conferences. The Court handles discovery motions
informally, using telephonic conferences and LA CourtConnect. Counsel must post
a message via their Electronic Service Provider to request any informal
discovery conference or other conference. The Court will either reply to the
message or issue a Minute Order setting the conference. The telephonic conference will automatically
be taken off calendar if all relevant parties have not scheduled the telephonic
conference with LA CourtConnect. Parties
must file and serve a 5-page joint brief two days before the conference. Since
these conferences are informal, no court reporter or audio recording is
permitted.
11.
Potential Related Cases. Counsel are ordered to file and serve a
Notice of Related Case for any potentially related cases pursuant California
Rule of court Rule 3.300, including any PAGA case involving the same representative
plaintiff. This is a continuing
obligation on both plaintiffs and defendants while this case is pending.
12.
Settlement.
File a Notice of Settlement on Judicial Council form CM-200, a mandatory
form.
a. Consider using the form wage and hour
settlement agreements now available on the court’s website at https://www.lacourt.org/forms/all – “Civil Forms” section.
With input and unanimous consensus from an Ad Hoc Wage and Hour
Committee, the court posted: (1) a form class action settlement
agreement, (2) a form class action/PAGA settlement
agreement, (3) and a form PAGA settlement agreement. Using these
forms should cut down on attorney negotiation time and reduce the lag time
between a successful mediation and execution of a long form agreement. Filing a motion that is based on a form
agreement and includes a redlined copy identifying modifications will also
expedite the court’s review process and help reduce the current backlog on
hearings.
b. If settlement includes dismissal of
class action claims (such as a PAGA only settlement or an individual settlement), then Plaintiff
must comply with CRC 3.769 and 3.770 in order to obtain dismissal of class
claims. Do NOT use Judicial
Council Form Civ-110, Request for Dismissal.
Plaintiff
is ordered to download the instant signed order from the Court’s website,
to give formal notice to all other parties, and to file proof of service of
such within five (5) days.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
DATED: February 7, 2025
__________________________
ELAINE
LU
Judge
of the Superior Court