Judge: William D. Claster, Case: 20-01174058, Date: 2022-10-14 Tentative Ruling

Plaintiff Deja Henry's Notice of Motion and Motion For Approval of Representative Action Settlement ROA 69

Plaintiff’s motion for approval of PAGA settlement is CONTINUED to November 18, 2022 at 9:00 a.m. in Department CX104 to permit the parties to respond to the following item of concern.   Any supplemental briefing shall be filed on or before November 8, 2022.  If a revised settlement agreement and/or proposed notice is submitted, a redline version showing all changes, deletions, and additions must be submitted as well.  In addition, Plaintiff must provide proof of service of any revised settlement agreement and supplemental papers on the LWDA.

Defendant IML has filed a declaration providing details about its decline in sales year-over-year and a simultaneous increase in supply prices.  But this declaration never connects these changes to IML’s financial condition, other than generically saying they have caused a “hardship.”  For the Court to fulfill its duties under Moniz v. Adecco, USA Inc. (2021) 72 Cal. App. 5^th 56, 77, the Court requires information about Defendant’s finances sufficient to support both (1) Plaintiff’s explanation of how Defendant’s finances influenced the settlement value, and (2) the decision to split the $50,000 settlement into two installments.