Compliance Hearing
the basic contentions or denials of the parties; [P.] (2) A statement that the court will exclude the member from the class if the member so requests by a specified date; [P.] (3) A procedure for the member to follow in requesting exclusion from the class; [P.] (4) A statement that the judgment, whether favorable or not, will bind all members who do not request exclusion; and [P.] (5) A statement that any member who does not request exclusion may, if the member so desires, enter an appearance through counsel." (Cal. Rules of Court, rule 3.766, subd. (d).)
"In determining the manner of the notice, the court must consider: [P.] (1) The interests of the class; [P.] (2) The type of relief requested; [P.] (3) The stake of the individual class members; [P.] (4) The cost of notifying class members; [P.] (5) The resources of the parties; [P.] (6) The possible prejudice to class members who do not receive notice; and [P.] (7) The res judicata effect on class members." (Cal. Rules of Court, rule 3.766, subd. (e).)
ILYM Group, Inc. (ILYM), will act as settlement administrator. (Melmed Decl., P. 53, Exs. D, E.)
The Settlement Agreement contains detailed notice procedures. (Melmed Decl., Ex. at P. 7.1-7.5.)
Within 14 days after preliminary approval, Big Green will provide the class data to ILYM. (Id. at P. 7.2.)
Within 28 days after preliminary approval, ILYM will mail the class notice. (Ibid.)
If a notice is returned as undeliverable, ILYM will perform a skip trace search and seek an address correction for such class members, and a second notice packet will be sent to any new or different address obtained by the skip trace process. (Id. at P. 7.3.)
The proposed notice is attached as exhibit 1 (class notice) and exhibit 2 (workweek calculation) to the Settlement Agreement. (Melmed Decl., Ex. A, at Exs. 1-2.)
The class notice contains a brief explanation of the case (Melmed Decl., Ex. A at Ex. 1, pp. 2-3), a statement that the court will exclude a member if the request is submitted by a specified date (id. at pp. 9-10), a procedure for the member to follow in requesting exclusion from the class (ibid.), a statement that the settlement if approved will bind all members who do not request exclusion and that certain claims will be released (id. at pp. 7-8), and a statement that a party who wishes to participate may object and appear through separate counsel (id. at p. 10).
Looking for case law or statutes not cited here? Search published authorities
Examples: “Why did the court rule this way?” · “What were the procedural grounds?” · “Is appearance required?”
The proposed notice packet contains a separate document explaining the workweek calculation and the resulting share of the settlement for a class member. (Melmed Decl., Ex. A, at Ex. 2.)
The court finds the notice easy to understand, sufficient to apprise the members of their rights and obligations in connection with the proposed settlement, and sufficient to notify those members of their right and opportunity to opt out of or present objections to the settlement.
For these reasons, the court finds that the proposed class notice complies with due process. (See Martorana v. Marlin & Saltzman (2009) 175 Cal.App.4th 685, 694-695.)
The cost of the notice and administration appears reasonable under the circumstances.
The proposed notice appears to meet the statutory requirements. (See Cal. Rules of Court, rule 3.766, subds. (d)-(f).)
For all the foregoing reasons, the court will grant Plaintiffs' motion for preliminary approval.
Tentative Ruling: Francisco Javier Mendoza vs Duncan Family Farms LLC Tentative Ruling: Francisco Javier Mendoza vs Duncan Family Farms LLC Case Number
Case Type Civil Law & Motion Hearing Date / Time Fri, 07/31/2026 - 10:00 Nature of Proceedings Compliance Hearing Tentative Ruling -