California Class Action Defense Lawyer

What Is a Class Action Lawsuit?

A class-action lawsuit addresses a problem that many people experience with the same business. Multiple claims are collected into one large claim, and the class (all the claimants) share the award if damages are awarded.

Often, an individual claim might be too small to justify a lawsuit, but by bringing a class action against a business, the problem is solved in an efficient and cost-effective manner.

Class action lawsuits can involve millions of plaintiffs depending on the number of people affected by the issue. A class is just another name for a collective of plaintiffs. For example, if the class-action lawsuit is regarding securities, any shareholder whose shares could have been affected by the fraud is a member of the class.

What Happens During Class Action Proceedings?

The first step is the class action lawyer will draft and file the complaint against the defendants. The court will file this document and then serve the defendant by mail or courier. Once they have received the complaint, the defendant will file a denial or challenge the complaint. If they challenge the complaint, the defendant will file certain motions requiring a judge’s ruling.

Once the defendant responds to the lawsuit, there is a period of discovery. This is where lawyers gather their evidence, including requesting documents from the other party. They will also take depositions and written statements. During this time, the court may hold a conference with the lawyers to set a timetable for the discovery. The defendant may file motions to challenge the factual basis or legal sufficiency of the claim and therefore have some of the plaintiff’s claims dismissed.

After discovery, the plaintiffs’ lawyers will file a motion for class action, and the court will hold a hearing to decide if the case will be certified as a class action. If the class action seeks financial damages, then notice must be sent to people in the class. This will be done either by mail or in the newspaper to notify consumers of the class action and set deadlines for opting out or joining the class action. Additional discovery may be required after certification.

Once the discovery has finished, the case will be set for trial and settlement negotiations, and trial preparation begins.

Our Approach

We tailor our technique to each individual class action to ensure maximum effectiveness. Our attorneys work closely with clients to understand all the factors of the case before proposing a plan of action. We have had frequent success in having cases dismissed on motion, before discovery.

Should our assessment of the case lead to our client considering settlement, we will create creative settlements which will pass negotiations with the plaintiffs and receive court approval. Our settlements will always be structured to reduce the financial impact son our clients.

In class actions involving multiple federal districts and states, we have had success in coordinating counsel for a homogeneous message. We create efficiencies using the Multi-District Litigation process. Our attorneys are also highly knowledgeable in class and mass tort action and the unique procedural rules they bring. We have often used these rules to our client’s advantage.

We create unique class-action defense strategies which include the following:

• Compliance – We believe that the best defense is proactive compliance reviews. Our attorneys will review your policies and procedures to reduce the risk of future class-action lawsuits. Compliance planning can minimize exposure and increase your chances of a successful outcome.
  
  
• Early Motion Practice – A motion practice seeks to resolve a case as quickly as possible, or reduce the litigation points as much as possible. By doing this, it will reduce the financial damages and any negative effects on your company’s reputation.
  
  
• Discovery – In class-action lawsuits, discovery will deal with class certification and whether the case as merits. Because of the volume of claims, discovery may happen in multiple stages. Our class-action attorneys can structure discovery to our advantage and handle electronic discovery issues.
  
  
• Class Certification – Our attorneys will work strategically to defeat class certification where possible. We will present evidence-supported arguments to prevent certification and to limit the configuration of sub-classes and classes.
  
  
• Dispositive Motion Practice – In eligible cases, we will always try to resolve claims through summary judgement practice.
  
  
• Settlement – Our attorneys will provide based on knowledge of the situation and applicable laws. Sometimes, settlement may be the desirable outcome, and our class-action lawyers will mediate and negotiate to get the most favorable settlement. We will have a frank discussion about your business objectives, so we can negotiate with them in mind.
  
  
• Settlement Approval and Administration – In class-action claims, a judge must sign off on the negotiated settlement. This requires another specialized skillset to present the settlement as fair and overcome objections. Our attorneys can also prepare the framework for overseeing the claims process, either through your internal resources or a third-party claims administrator.
  
  
• Trial – While most class-actions are resolved through motions or settlements, our attorneys are prepared to represent you aggressively at trial.
  
  
• Appeals – Our class action lawyers are experts in appellate work, whether appealing or defending against an appeal, we will frame your stance to an appellate panel.
  
  

Our Class Action Practice

Our lawyers represent clients clients class action lawsuits alleging:

Defending Wage and Hour Class Action Lawsuits

These are the most common types of lawsuits in California, so our employment attorneys are experts at preventing and defending wage and hour class action lawsuits. In these types of cases, employers are liable to pay back pay, damages, and sometimes even punitive damages to numerous employees. Call our San Diego class action defense attorneys right away to ensure a favorable outcome. We can represent wage and hour class action lawsuits, including:

• • • Donning and taking off PPE
    • Pay rates
    • Misclassification
    • Benefits
    • Uniform issues
    • Meals
    • Rest breaks
    • Unpaid overtime

False Advertising and Unfair Competition Defense

California’s unfair competition and false advertising laws are some of the most complex in the country. We can defend your company against allegations of unfair, false advertising, or fraudulent business practices. Whether the claim is under the California Consumer Legal Remedies Act, or the California Business and Professions Code, we can assist you.

• • • Unfair competition laws
    • Violations of state and federal deceptive trade practices act
    • Labelling claims
    • Health benefit claims
    • Alleged antitrust violations
    • Alleged unfair trade practices
    • Alleged defective products
    • Automatic renewal or charges laws
    • Automotive claims
    • California’s Consumers Legal Remedies Act and Unfair Competition Law
    • Construction defects and property damage claims
    • Consumer banking and lending
    • Consumer fraud and unfair business practices
    • Consumer lending and credit practices
    • ADA claims
    • Environmental claims, including California’s “Prop 65”
    • ERISA
    • False advertising
    • Food and beverage
    • Healthcare
    • Healthcare and pharmaceuticals
    • High technology
    • Hotel, casino and hospitality
    • Illegal call recording
    • Insurance issues
    • Insurance bad faith
    • Mortgage
    • Petroleum production and sales
    • Power and energy
    • Privacy and data security
    • Product manufacturing
    • Retail, including restaurant, supermarket, pharmacy, clothing and other national chain stores
    • RICO
    • Securities fraud and shareholder actions
    • Telephone Consumer Protection Act
    • Unfair credit reporting
    • Unfair Trade Practices Acts
    • Wage and hour, discrimination and other employment matters

Directors, Officers, and Board of Director Defense

We can represent corporation, directors, and officers in class action lawsuits which challenge the legality of corporate actions. We can handle claims based on:

• • Corporate transactions
  • Criminal investigations
  • Regulatory investigations
  • Violation of privacy statutes
  • Anti-trust violations
  • Violations of ERISA
  • Violations of Employee protection statutes
  • Product liability

California Class Action Attorneys and Resources

If you want to consider other class action attorneys or need more resources, perhaps here is a good starting point:

• FTC Class Action
• SEC Class Action
• Securities Class Action at Stanford University
• Class Action Recovery Program
• Class Action Lawsuits & Settlement
• Findlaw Directory: Class Action Attorneys
• PSW Law Class Action Attorneys
• RH&R Class Action Law Firm
• BNBD Class Action Attorneys

Companion Government Investigations

Class action lawsuits often attract investigations from government entities or regulatory agencies. Our expert attorneys can assist you with navigating the minefield of a simultaneous investigation and class action litigation.

We employee consultants and attorneys who have worked with and alongside these government entities and regulatory agencies and can guide you through how best to protect your business. Many of the people we work with have, in the past, enforced the statutes that are the basis for the claims against you.