Stephan L. Ballard v. Mistras Group, Inc. et al, No. 2:2010cv03186 - Document 71 (C.D. Cal. 2011)
Court Description: FINAL JUDGMENT AND ORDER GRANTING FINAL APPROVAL OF JOINT STIPULATION of Settlement and Release and dismissing action by Judge Philip S. Gutierrez: Terms used in this Judgment and Order of Final Approval have the meaningsassigned to them in the Settl ement. This Court has jurisdiction over the claims asserted in the Action by Plaintiffs Stephan L. Ballard and Patrick D. Quiroz ("Plaintiffs"), and over Class Members and Defendants. The Court hereby makes final the conditional class certi fication the Court granted on May 30, 2011, and thus makes final for purposes of the Settlement only, the certification of a Class whose members consist of: all persons who were employed byMistras Group, Inc. and/or its predecessor Conam Inspection a nd Engineering Services, Inc. formerly known as "Mistras Holdings Co.," in any position within the state of California, at any time between September 4, 2008 and August 29, 2010, as identified by Mistras using its employment records This ce rtification for settlement purposes shall not be construed to be an admission by Defendants or a determination as to the certifiability of any class if the merits of class certification had been litigated in the Action, or in any other action. HADSE LL STORMER KEENY RICHARDSON & RENICK, LLP and BONINI LAW GROUP are designated as Class Counsel. Class Counsel HADSELL STORMER KEENY RICHARDSON & RENICK, LLP and BONONI LAW GROUP shall continue to serve as Lead Counsel and shall oversee and perform th e duties necessary to effectuate the settlement, including the distribution of attorneys fees and costs. Defendants do not object to Plaintiffs request for Enhancement Payment in the amount of $10,000 to both of the Class Representatives. The Co urt has considered Plaintiffs request for a Enhancement Payment and, good cause appearing, hereby grantsPlaintiffs request in the amount of $10,000 each and authorizes Defendants to pay this amount from the Gross Settlement Amount in accordance with the terms of the Settlement. Defendants do not to oppose Plaintiffs motion for reasonable attorneys fees and costs. Plaintiffs submitted an updated cost bill showing costs to be $20,000.86 as of August 1, 2011. The Court has considered Plai ntiffs motion for the award of attorneys fees (of 19% of the total potential settlement amount, $722,500) and costs and, good cause appearing, hereby awards Class Counsel attorneys fees in the amount of $137,500and costs in the sum of $20,000, and authorizes Defendants to pay such amounts in addition to the Settlement Amount in accordance with the terms of the Settlement. 13. Defendants further agreed in the Settlement to pay $15,000 to Ballard and $40,000 to Quiroz to settle their individual claims of retaliation and failure to hire. These payments are in addition to the $1,000 each such individual is otherwise entitled to receive. In, exchange, Ballard and Quiroz are required to release all potential cla ims they may have against Defendantm and all such individual claims are hereby DISMISSED. The Court hereby finds, pursuant to Rules 54(a) and (b) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, that this Judgment should be entered and further finds that the re is nojust reason for delay in the entry of this Judgment, as a Final Judgment, as to the Parties to the Settlement. Accordingly, the Clerk is hereby directed to enter Judgment forthwith. (See document for further specific details) (MD JS-6, Case Terminated). (ir)
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Stephan L. Ballard v. Mistras Group, Inc. et al Doc. 71 E-FILED: 8-3-2011 1 HADSELL STORMER KEENY RICHARDSON & RENICK, LLP 2 ANNE RICHARDSON [S.B. #151541] arichardson@hskrr.com 3 DAN STORMER [S.B. #101967] dstormer@hadsellstormer.com 4 RADHIKA SAINATH [S.B. #25931] radhika@hskrr.com 5 128 N. Fair Oaks Avenue Pasadena, California 91103 6 Telephone: (626) 585-9600 Facsimile: (626) 577-7079 7 BONONI LAW GROUP, LLP 8 WILLIAM S. WALDO [S.B. #073973] wwaldo@bononilawgroup.com 9 MICHAEL J. BONONI [S.B. #130663] mbononi@bononilawgroup.com 10 915 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 1950 Los Angeles, California 90017 11 Telephone: (213) 553-9200 Facsimile: (213) 553-9215 12 Counsel for Plaintiff 13 Stephan L. Ballard JS-6 14 15 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 16 CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 17 18 STEPHAN L. BALLARD, on behalf of himself and all others similarly situated, 19 Plaintiffs, 20 v. 21 MISTRAS GROUP, INC., a Delaware Corporationl CONAM INSPECTION 22 AND ENGINEERING SERVICES, INC., a Delaware Corporation; and 23 MISTRAS HOLDING GROUP, and DOES 1 through 100, inclusive, 24 Defendants. 25 26 27 ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) Case No. CV10-3186 PSG (SSx) [Consolidated with Case Nos. CV 097146 PSG (SSx) and CV 10-6312 PSG (SSx)] [PROPOSED] FINAL JUDGMENT AND ORDER GRANTING FINAL APPROVAL OF JOINT STIPULATION OF SETTLEMENT AND RELEASE AND DISMISSING ACTION DATE: TIME: CTRM: August 1, 2011 1:30 p.m. 880 Date Action Filed: March 29, 2010 Trial Date: NONE 28 [PROP] FINAL JUDG & ORD GRANT FINAL APPR OF JT STIP OF SETTLE & RELEASE & DISMIS ACTION 1 Dockets.Justia.com The Court, having considered whether to order final approval of the settlement of 1 2 the above-captioned action pursuant to the Joint Stipulation of Settlement ("Settlement") 3 filed on or about January 31, 2011, having read and considered all of the papers and 4 argument of the parties and their counsel, having granted preliminary approval on May 5 30, 2011, having received Plaintiffs Motion for Attorneys’ Fees and Costs and the 6 Confidential Memoranda of both Parties and having directed that notice be given to all 7 Class Members of preliminary approval of the Settlement and the final approval hearing 8 and the right to be excluded from the Settlement, and having received no objections and 9 good cause appearing, 10 IT IS HEREBY ORDERED AS FOLLOWS: 11 1. Terms used in this Judgment and Order of Final Approval have the meanings 12 assigned to them in the Settlement. 13 2. This Court has jurisdiction over the claims asserted in the Action by Plaintiffs 14 Stephan L. Ballard and Patrick D. Quiroz ("Plaintiffs"), and over Class Members and 15 Defendants. 16 3. The Court hereby makes final the conditional class certification the Court granted 17 on May 30, 2011, and thus makes final for purposes of the Settlement only, the 18 certification of a Class whose members consist of: all persons who were employed by 19 Mistras Group, Inc. and/or its predecessor Conam Inspection and Engineering Services, 20 Inc. formerly known as "Mistras Holdings Co.," in any position within the state of 21 California, at any time between September 4, 2008 and August 29, 2010, as identified by 22 Mistras using its employment records This certification for settlement purposes shall not 23 be construed to be an admission by Defendants or a determination as to the certifiability 24 of any class if the merits of class certification had been litigated in the Action, or in any 25 other action. 26 4. The Court hereby finds that the Notice of Settlement, as mailed to all Class 27 Members by April 19, 2011 fairly and adequately described the proposed Settlement, the 28 manner in which Class Members could object to or participate in the Settlement, and the [PROP] FINAL JUDG & ORD GRANT FINAL APPR OF JT STIP OF SETTLE & RELEASE & DISMIS ACTION 2 1 manner in which Class Members could opt out of the Settlement Class; was the best 2 notice practicable under the circumstances; was valid, due and sufficient notice to all 3 Class Members; and complied fully with the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, due 4 process, and all other applicable laws. The Court further finds that a full and fair 5 opportunity has been afforded to Class Members to participate in the proceedings 6 convened to determine whether the proposed Settlement should be given final approval. 7 Accordingly, the Court hereby determines that all Class Members who did not file a 8 timely and proper request to be excluded from the Settlement are bound by this Judgment 9 and Order of Final Approval. 10 5. The Court hereby finds that the Settlement, including the Gross Settlement 11 Amount, is fair, reasonable, and adequate as to the Class, Plaintiffs and Defendants, and 12 is the product of good faith, arms-length negotiations between the Parties, and further, 13 that the Settlement is consistent with public policy, and fully complies with all 14 applicable provisions of law. The Court makes this finding based on a weighing of the 15 strength of Plaintiffs’ claims and Defendants’ defenses with the risk, expense, 16 complexity, and duration of further litigation. The Court also finds that the Settlement is 17 the result of non-collusive arms-length negotiations between experienced counsel 18 representing the interests of the Class and Defendants, after thorough factual and legal 19 investigation. In granting final approval of the Settlement, the Court considered the 20 nature of the claims, the amounts paid in settlement, the allocation of settlement 21 proceeds among the Class Members, and the fact that the Settlement represents a 22 compromise of the Parties’ respective positions rather than the result of a finding of 23 liability at trial. Additionally, the Court finds that the terms of the Settlement have no 24 obvious deficiencies and do not improperly grant preferential treatment to any individual 25 Class Member. The Court further finds that the response of the Class to the Settlement 26 supports final approval of the Settlement. Specifically, no Class Member objects to the 27 Settlement, and only nine (9) Class Members (i.e., less than 2% of the Class) have opted 28 out of the Settlement. A large percentage of Class Members have submitted claims. [PROP] FINAL JUDG & ORD GRANT FINAL APPR OF JT STIP OF SETTLE & RELEASE & DISMIS ACTION 3 1 Accordingly, pursuant to Rule 23(e), the Court finds that the terms of the Settlement are 2 fair, reasonable, and adequate to the Class and to each Class Member. Staton v. Boeing, 3 327 F.3d 938, 960 (9th Cir. 2003). The Court also hereby finds that Plaintiffs have 4 satisfied the standards and applicable requirements for final approval of this class action 5 settlement under Rule 23, for the reasons stated in the Motion for Final Approval. 6 Accordingly, the Court hereby finally and unconditionally approves the Settlement and 7 authorizes Defendants to pay the individual Settlement Payments in accordance with the 8 terms of the Settlement. 9 6. The persons identified on Exhibit B to the Declaration of Bernie Lenhart, filed 10 August 2, 2011, have timely and validly requested exclusion from the Class and, 11 therefore, are excluded. Such persons are not included in or bound by this Judgment and 12 Order of Final Approval, and they are not entitled to any recovery from the settlement 13 proceeds obtained through the Settlement. Those persons are: Diego Centeno, Douglas 14 Crowder, Jason Degula, Alberto Goint, Enda John Halpin, Fernando Llamas, Michael 15 William Price, Sean D. Tahirali and Jon E. Ward. 16 7. The Court orders the Parties to implement, and comply with, the terms of the 17 Settlement. 18 8. The Court approves the settlement of the Released Claims as defined in the 19 Settlement. As of the Effective Date of the Settlement, as defined in the Settlement, all 20 of the Released Claims of each Class Member who did not timely opt out, as well as the 21 Class Representatives’ Released Claims, are and shall be deemed to be conclusively 22 released as against the Released Parties (as defined by the Settlement). As of the date of 23 this Judgment and Order of Final Approval, all Class Members who did not timely opt 24 out are bound by the instant Judgment and Order of Final Approval, and the Settlement. 25 Except as to such rights or claims that may be created by the Settlement, all Class 26 Members as of the date of this Judgment and Order of Final Approval who did not timely 27 opt out are hereby forever barred and enjoined from commencing or prosecuting any of 28 the Released Claims, either directly, representatively or in any other capacity, against [PROP] FINAL JUDG & ORD GRANT FINAL APPR OF JT STIP OF SETTLE & RELEASE & DISMIS ACTION 4 1 any of the Released Parties. 2 9. HADSELL STORMER KEENY RICHARDSON & RENICK, LLP and BONINI 3 LAW GROUP are designated as Class Counsel. Class Counsel HADSELL STORMER 4 KEENY RICHARDSON & RENICK, LLP and BONONI LAW GROUP shall continue 5 to serve as Lead Counsel and shall oversee and perform the duties necessary to effectuate 6 the settlement, including the distribution of attorneys’ fees and costs. 7 10. Defendants shall make available to the Class Administrator for payment to the 8 Participating Class Members, the Net Settlement Amount no later than fifteen business 9 days after the Final Effective Date. Each Participating Class Member shall receive 10 $1,000, in addition toe the percentage of the funds provided in ¶ 15, infra. 11 11. Defendants do not object to Plaintiffs’ request for Enhancement Payment in the 12 amount of $10,000 to both of the Class Representatives. The Court has considered 13 Plaintiffs’ request for a Enhancement Payment and, good cause appearing, hereby grants 14 Plaintiffs’ request in the amount of $10,000 each and authorizes Defendants to pay this 15 amount from the Gross Settlement Amount in accordance with the terms of the 16 Settlement. 17 12. Defendants do not to oppose Plaintiffs’ motion for reasonable attorneys’ fees and 18 costs. Plaintiffs submitted an updated cost bill showing costs to be $20,000.86 as of 19 August 1, 2011. The Court has considered Plaintiffs’ motion for the award of attorneys’ 20 fees (of 19% of the total potential settlement amount, $722,500) and costs and, good 21 cause appearing, hereby awards Class Counsel attorneys’ fees in the amount of $137,500 22 and costs in the sum of $20,000, and authorizes Defendants to pay such amounts in 23 addition to the Settlement Amount in accordance with the terms of the Settlement. 24 13. Defendants further agreed in the Settlement to pay $15,000 to Ballard and $40,000 25 to Quiroz to settle their individual claims of retaliation and failure to hire. These 26 payments are in addition to the $1,000 each such individual is otherwise entitled to 27 receive. In, exchange, Ballard and Quiroz are required to release all potential claims 28 they may have against Defendantm and all such individual claims are hereby [PROP] FINAL JUDG & ORD GRANT FINAL APPR OF JT STIP OF SETTLE & RELEASE & DISMIS ACTION 5 1 DISMISSED. 2 14. Defendants are to pay the reasonable costs of the Claims Administrator associated 3 with notices to the Class and the administration of the Settlement and all costs associated 4 with distribution of individual Settlement Payment to Class Members in accordance with 5 the terms of the Settlement. The estimate of the Claims Administrations Costs is 6 $15,000, but in the event that the amount is larger, the expenses will be born exclusively 7 by Defendants. 8 15. Defendants further agreed in the Settlement to pay from the Gross Settlement 9 Amount the amount of $10,000 to be split among the California Labor and Workforce 10 Development Agency ("LWDA") and class members pursuant to California Labor Code 11 section 2699, et seq. (i.e., the California Private Attorneys General Act of 2004). Good 12 cause appearing, the Court hereby authorizes Defendants to pay to the LWDA and class 13 members the sum of $10,000 from the Gross Settlement Amount, in accordance with the 14 terms of the Settlement. 15 16. Defendants shall have no further liability for costs, expenses, interest, attorneys’ 16 fees, or for any other charge, expense, or liability, in connection with the 17 above-captioned action except as provided in the Settlement. 18 17. Neither the Settlement nor any of the terms set forth in the Settlement constitute an 19 admission by the Defendant of liability to the Plaintiffs or any Class Member; nor does 20 this Judgment and Order of Final Approval constitute a finding by the Court of the 21 validity of any of the claims alleged in the Action, or of any liability of Defendant. 22 Neither the making of nor entering into the Settlement constitutes an admission by 23 Defendant nor is this Judgment and Order of Final Approval a finding of the validity of 24 any claims in the Action or of any other wrongdoing. Evidence of the making or 25 entering into the Settlement shall not be offered or received into evidence in any action 26 or proceeding against any party hereto in any Court, or other tribunal for any purpose, 27 other than to enforce the instant Order of Final Approval, the instant Judgment, or the 28 Settlement. [PROP] FINAL JUDG & ORD GRANT FINAL APPR OF JT STIP OF SETTLE & RELEASE & DISMIS ACTION 6 1 18. The Court hereby grants final approval of the Settlement and, in accordance with 2 the terms of the Settlement, hereby enters judgment approving the terms of the 3 Settlement and ordering that all the above-captions Actions be dismissed in accordance 4 with the Settlement. The Actions are dismissed on the merits with prejudice on a 5 class-wide basis. The Class Representatives’ Released Claims, as set forth in the 6 Settlement, are dismissed on the merits with prejudice. 7 19. Without affecting the finality of this Judgment and Order of Final Approval, the 8 Court retains exclusive and continuing jurisdiction over the Actions, Plaintiffs, all Class 9 Members and Defendants for purposes of supervising, implementing, interpreting and 10 enforcing this Judgment and Order of Final Approval and the Settlement. Nothing in 11 this Judgment and Order of Final Approval precludes any action to enforce the Parties’ 12 obligations under the Settlement or under this Judgment and Order of Final Approval. 13 20. If the Settlement does not become final and effective in accordance with the terms 14 of the Settlement, this Judgment and Order of Final Approval and all orders entered in 15 connection herewith shall be vacated and shall have no further force or effect. 16 21. The Court hereby finds, pursuant to Rules 54(a) and (b) of the Federal Rules of 17 Civil Procedure, that this Judgment should be entered and further finds that there is no 18 just reason for delay in the entry of this Judgment, as a Final Judgment, as to the Parties 19 to the Settlement. Accordingly, the Clerk is hereby directed to enter Judgment forthwith. 20 21 IT IS SO ORDERED. 22 August 3 23 Dated:_________________, 2011 _______________________________ Hon. Philip S. Gutierrez United States District Judge 24 25 26 27 28 [PROP] FINAL JUDG & ORD GRANT FINAL APPR OF JT STIP OF SETTLE & RELEASE & DISMIS ACTION 7
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