Raquel Chavez v. Constant Staffing, LLC

Raquel Chavez v. Constant Staffing, LLC

Plaintiff’s Motion for Preliminary Approval of Class and Representative Action Settlement

Hearing Date: May 22, 2026

The hearing on Plaintiff Raquel Chavez’s (“Plaintiff”) unopposed Motion for Preliminary Approval of the Class and Representative Action Settlement is CONTINUED to August 14, 2026, at 8:30 a.m. in Department 14. Preliminarily, the Court finds that the settlement is fair, adequate, and reasonable. [See Dunk v. Ford Motor Co. (1996) 48 Cal.App.4th 1794, 1801- 1802.] Also, the Settlement Class meets all of the requirements for class certification [Code Civ. Proc. § 382] and the threshold for conditionally certifying the class has been met. However, a continuance is warranted to allow Plaintiff to submit supplemental documents by July 31, 2026, that address the issues raised below.

Reversionary Provision.

Under the Settlement Agreement, the Settlement Administrator shall send funds from “uncashed and cancelled” checks to the California Controller’s Unclaimed Property Fund in the name of the Class Member. [Settlement Agreement, Exh. B to Otkupman Decl. at ¶ 4.3.3.] This Court has previously determined that the California Controller’s Unclaimed Property Fund is not an appropriate cy pres beneficiary. [See Code Civ. Proc. § 384, subd. (b).] Therefore, before the Court rules on this motion, the parties must meet, confer, and ideally agree on an appropriate cy pres beneficiary.

After identifying the beneficiary, Plaintiff shall amend the Settlement Agreement (see Exh. B to Otkupman Decl. at ¶ 4.3.3) and Class Notice (see Exh. C to Otkupman Decl. at p. 5, ¶ 5, and p. 10, ¶ 10) accordingly so that all references to the transmission of any uncashed Class Member Settlement Checks (and PAGA checks at the parties’ option) to the California Controller’s Unclaimed Property Fund are deleted. The Settlement Agreement should be amended to reference distribution to the designated cy pres beneficiary.

The parties may also, but are not required to, do the same for abandoned or unclaimed PAGA distributions.

Class Notice.

The Class Notice appears reasonable and advises potential Class Members of their rights under the action. [Settlement Agreement, Exh. B to Otkupman Decl. at ¶ 1.11; Class Notice, Exh. C to Oktupman Decl.] Although clear, the Class Notice still has the following issues:

1. Cy Pres Beneficiary.

As noted above, the Class Notice currently informs potential Class Members and Aggrieved Employees that uncashed checks will be transmitted to the California Controller’s

Unclaimed Property Fund. [Settlement Agreement, Exh. B to Otkupman Decl. at ¶ 4.3.3.] The Class Notice shall be amended to identify the cy pres beneficiary for uncashed Individual Class Settlement checks (and PAGA checks, at the option of the parties). [Id. at ¶ 1.11; Class Notice, Exh. C to Otkupman Decl. at p. 5, ¶ 5, and p. 10, ¶ 10.]

2. Spanish Version of the Class Notice.

A settlement notice meets due process requirements if it is “reasonably calculated, under all the circumstances, to apprise interested parties of the pendency of the action and affords them an opportunity to present their objections.” [Martorana v. Marlin & Saltzman (2009) 175 Cal.App.4th 685, 694-695.] “[P]rovided that the settlement notice satisfies due process, the trial court has broad discretion to determine the specific form and content of the notice and to decide whether notice by first class mail, without any further follow-up by [class counsel], [i]s legally sufficient.” [Ibid.]

Here, the Settlement Agreement states that the Class Notice shall be sent to Class Members in Spanish and English. [Settlement Agreement, Exh. B to Otkupman Decl. at ¶ 7.2.2.] However, only the English version of the Class Notice accompanies the motion. [Id. at ¶ 1.11; Class Notice, Exh. C to Otkupman Decl.] Further, paragraph 1.11 of the Settlement Agreement is inconsistent with paragraph 7.2.2 in that the Class Notice will only be mailed to Class Members in English. The Court expects that English- and Spanish-language versions of the Class Notice will be disseminated to Class Members as required by the Settlement Agreement. Plaintiff shall amend the Settlement Agreement accordingly and provide a copy of the Spanish Class Notice to the Court before the continued hearing.

3. Right to Withdraw.

The Class Notice does not advise the putative Class Members of the defendants’ right to withdraw as provided in paragraph 9 of the Settlement Agreement, if the Exclusion List exceeds 10% of the total of all Class Members. Plaintiff shall amend the English- and Spanish-language versions of the Class Notice accordingly.

Representative Service Fee.

Plaintiff requests the Court to approve a payment to the Class Representative of $10,000. Plaintiff states that she has actively participated in this litigation by providing supporting documents and information, as well as assisting counsel in preparing for mediation. [Plaintiff’s Decl. at ¶¶ 7-8.] The amount requested is approximately 27 times the average award of $368.22. [See, e.g., Munoz v. BCI Coca-Cola Bottling Co. of Los Angeles (2010) 186 Cal.App.4th 399, 412 (stating that awards that were 30 or 44 times the amount of average recovery awards were an abuse of discretion).]

At this stage of the proceedings, the Court does not need to make a final determination on the reasonableness of the requested enhancement award to assess its appropriateness. By the time of the Final Approval, the Court can make a final decision on whether an award of $10,000 is justified and whether the request should be granted.

NOTE RE TENTATIVE RULING

This tentative ruling becomes the court’s order, and no hearing shall be held unless one of the parties contests it by following Rule 3.1308 of the California Rules of Court and Monterey County Local Rule 7.9. Those parties wishing to present an oral argument must notify all other parties and the Court no later than 4:00 p.m. on the court day before the hearing; otherwise, NO ORAL ARGUMENT WILL BE PERMITTED, AND THE TENTATIVE RULING WILL BECOME THE ORDER OF THE COURT AND THE HEARING VACATED. You must notify the court by email or by calling the Calendar Department at 831-647-5800, extension 3040, before 4:00 p.m. on the court day before the hearing.

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