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Silver Valley Partners, LLC v. De Motte, 400 F. Supp. Apr. If you were a lease driver for JCT and/or have questions about the lawsuit, please contact Robert S. Boulter. UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA. This language has broad reach, and because Huddleston's claims concern the relationship created by the ICOA, which created the working relationship between the parties, his claims fall within the scope of the forum-selection clause. . If at the conclusion of the 180-day void period, there are any uncashed checks, the settlement administrator will redistribute those monies to Class Participants who did cash their checks. PAGA cases "function[] as a substitute for an action brought by the government itself." You do not take home any money. Atl. The second, known as "specific jurisdiction," exists where the litigation is derived from obligations that "arise out of or are connected with the [company's] activities within the state." ICOA 23. If you have money saved in your account or money they owe you for loads you have delivered they will pay . Served on 03/24/2021. In a state which has more than one judicial district, corporate defendants "shall be deemed to reside in any district within which its contacts would be sufficient to subject it to personal jurisdiction if that district were a separate state." Huddleston I, slip. Defendant is represented by the following attorneys: Christopher J. Eckhart Angela S. Cash Karen B. Reisinger SCOPELITIS, GARVIN, LIGHT, HANSON & FEARY, P.C. John christner trucking settlement mg, sb, af, pf & yp hq bn wg ue bi ks JCT Media Center. Cal. Under the general venue statute, a civil action may be brought in: (1) a judicial district in which any defendant resides, if all defendants are residents of the state in which the district is located; (2) a judicial district in which a substantial part of the events or omissions giving rise to the claim occurred; or (3) if there is no district in which an action may otherwise be brought as provided in this section, any judicial district in which any defendant is subject to the court's personal jurisdiction with respect to such action. 2009) (called into question on other grounds by Narayan v. EGL, Inc., 616 F.3d 895, 899, 904 (9th Cir. You will if you sign a lease! approve of John M Christner's performance Founded 1986 Company size 1001 to 5,000 Revenue $100M to $500M (USD) Industry Transportation & Logistics Headquarters Sapulpa Oklahoma, United . Hirschbach acquiring John Christner Trucking, creating reefer giant. This factor does not weigh against transfer. Your written objection must state whether you will attend the Final Approval Hearing, and your written notice of your intention to appear at the Final Approval Hearing must be filed with the Court and served upon Class Counsel and Defendants counsel on or before Saturday, September 24, 2022. Two facts in the contract at issue in Ronlake, however, distinguish it from the instant case. According to the complaint, Huddleston worked as an "owner-operator" for JCT until August 2016. 8. Who are the attorneys representing Plaintiff and the Class Members? DATE RECEIVED: 03/11/2021. The court, however, "is obligated to draw all reasonable inferences in favor of the non-moving party and resolve all factual conflicts in favor of the non-moving party." 12, which he asserts is substantial enough that he "may not be able to maintain his claim if forced to do so in Oklahoma," Opp. None of the parties or attorneys makes any representations concerning the tax consequences of this Settlement or your participation in it. Cal. COMPLAINT with Jury Demand against John Christner Trucking, LLC by Thomas Huddleston. 5:20-CV-00915 | 2020-09-11, U.S. Courts Of Appeals | Civil Right | Objections shall only be considered if the Class Member has not opted out of the Settlement. 2d 1262, 1269 (W.D. Served on 03/24/2021. Served on 04/27/2021. Leaked News! John Christner Trucking was facing a driver misclassification lawsuit that was granted class action status in Feburary 2020. See 28 U.S.C. And the best part of all, documents in their CrowdSourced Library are FREE! at 298. CE [Entered: 03/24/2021 02:48 PM], [10815145] Admissions letter sent. Forum-selection clauses are also scrutinized for "fundamental fairness," and may be deemed unfair if inclusion of the clause was motivated by bad faith, or if the party had no notice of the forum provision. To do so, send a letter to the settlement administrator explaining the basis for your dispute and attach copies of the supporting evidence. This class action case was initiated by Robert Boulter and co-counsel in 2017 on behalf of driver Thomas Huddleston against Oklahoma based trucking giant John Christner Trucking (JCT) and arises out of its lease purchase program. This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. In other words, while the "in connection with" language is broad enough to encompass Huddleston's misclassification claims and bring them under the umbrella of the forum-selection clause, the ICOA provides that Oklahoma law applies only to interpretation of the ICOA itself. Served on 03/24/2021. at 582. FLSA Collective Members All current and former individuals who provide(d) transportation services for Defendant within the United States, between May 1, 2015 and June 21, 2022. More than 3,000 truck drivers were involved. 1404 And Forum-Selection Clause. 206, et seq. Opp. Lease and other payments you end up with about $1000 on 3000 mile wk. The combined revenue of both companies will exceed $1 billion and will propel Hirschbach to be one of the nation's largest refrigerated carriers. Co. v. Glasbrenner, 417 F.3d 353, 356 (2d Cir. JCT contracted with Huddleston (a California resident) to pick up and drop off cargo in California, which is enough to satisfy the test. Huddleston has presented no case law to support the idea that PAGA cases are exempt from application of forum-selection clauses and has offered no explanation why the Northern District of Oklahoma could not fairly adjudicate these claims. 10-cv-02049 (WHA), 2010 WL 4569873, at *2-3 (N. D. Cal. Gulf Ins. Arising Out Of Forum-Related Activities. 1979). Mahoney v. Depuy Orthopaedics, Inc., No. By clicking "Submit", I agree to be contacted by John Christner Trucking, or on behalf of John Christner Trucking, with the information provided above. As discussed above, JCT purposefully injected itself into California through its decision to conduct shipping in the forum. 3d 1199, 1206 n.4 (C.D. See Leroy v. Great W. United Corp., 443 U.S. 173, 180 (1979) ("The question of personal jurisdiction, which goes to the court's power to exercise control over the parties, is typically decided in advance of venue, which is primarily a matter of choosing a convenient forum."). Transcript ordered: Motion Hearing Re: Class Certification 10/24/2019 and Scheduling Conference held 12/9/2020. JCT has not made a sufficient showing that the exercise of personal jurisdiction is unreasonable. All current and former individuals who provide transportation services for John Christner Trucking within the United States, who entered into an independent contractor operator agreement with JCT and entered into a lease agreement with either JCT or Three Diamond Leasing. 2015); Robles, 2015 WL 1530510, at *4. at 581. Atlantic Marine Const. Third, JCT does not contest that the exercise of jurisdiction would conflict with the sovereignty of Oklahoma, its state of domicile, though the Court notes that the bulk of Huddleston's claims are brought under California state law, and the FLSA analysis will be the same in either California or Oklahoma. at 581 n.6 (quoting Piper Aircraft Co. v. Reyno, 454 U.S. 235, 241 n.6 (1981) (internal quotation marks omitted)). at 24. Hirschbach builds national footprint through M&A (Photo: Hirschbach) Refrigerated carrier Hirschbach announced Wednesday the acquisition of John Christner Trucking (JCT). at *4. The mediation contact form must be completed and returned to the Mediation Office within four days of the date of this notice. July 6, 2017) (citing Holliday v. Lifestyle Lift, Inc., No. C 12-03959 WHA, 2012 WL 6087399, at *4 (N.D. Cal. at 294. In sum, the Court finds that the public-interest factors do not "overwhelmingly disfavor" enforcing the forum-selection clause. Certificate of Interested Parties: Yes. John Christner Trucking has 500 employees. ; all claims for deceptive trade practices under the Oklahoma Deceptive Trade Practices Act, 78 Okla. Stat. Public-interest "factors will rarely defeat a transfer motion, [meaning that] the practical result is that forum-selection clauses should control except in unusual cases." Category: Trucking Companies. The deal will form one of the biggest temperature-controlled fleets in the nation at more than 3,000 trucks (800 at JCT), 5,000 trailers and total revenue exceeding $1 billion. CLAIRE V. EAGAN UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE OPINION AND ORDER Now before the Court is Defendants John Christner Trucking, LLC and Three Diamond Leasing, LLC's Motion to Dismiss and Brief in Support (Dkt. 2010) ("Whether the Drivers are entitled to [California Labor Code] benefits depends on whether they are employees of [the defendant], which in turn depends on the definition that the otherwise governing lawnot the partiesgives to the term 'employee.' The purposeful-direction requirement is satisfied. Current Outline Item. The touchstone for asserting specific jurisdiction over a nonresident defendant is "the relationship among the defendant, the forum, and the litigation." The case status is Pending - Other Pending. When venue is challenged, the court must determine whether the case falls within one of the three categories set out in the general venue statute, 28 U.S.C. I would still be there if I were able to still be there. 10 West Market Street, Suite 1400 Indianapolis, IN 46204 Telephone: (317) 637-1777 Facsimile: (317) 687-2414 2011). at 8. Reply at 3. Line, Inc. v. Wartsila N. b. at 6-7 (N.D. Cal. Join Our Community Today! ECF No. Huddleston argues that just as the EEOC was not bound by an agreement to which it was not a party, the PAGA claims here belong to the state of California and therefore fall outside the ambit of the forum-selection clause. Jag Trucking Inc. Revenue. at 1125. Phone: 8003241900. DECLARATION OF KAREN BUTLER REISINGER RE DEFENDANT'S CLASS ACTION FAIRNESS ACT SETTLEMENT NOTICE by John Christner Trucking, LLC (With attachments) (Reisinger, Karen) Va. Apr. It also leases "drop yards" in locations throughout the United States, which are used for parking and staging trailers. In support of its motion to dismiss, JCT submits, inter alia, a declaration from Shannon Crowley, Vice President of Risk Management. [21-5023, 21-5025] [Entered: 04/30/2021 02:26 PM], [10825414] Cross-appeal schedule set. [21-5023, 21-5025] [Entered: 03/25/2021 08:56 AM], [10817559] Entry of appearance filed by Adam Carl Smedstad, James Anthony Eckhart, Mrs. Angela Stemle Cashand Christopher Eckhart for John Christner Trucking, LLC. The California Supreme Court has likened PAGA actions to qui tam actions in that a representative plaintiff brings an action "as the proxy or agent of the state's labor enforcement agencies, representing the same legal right and interest as those agencies and seeking statutory civil penalties that otherwise would be sought by those agencies." Id. Indeed, the list of pick-ups and drop-offs appended as Exhibit B to the Crowley Declaration shows that twelve of the twenty-five loads that JCT assigned to Huddleston had origin or destination points within the state of California. If you were a lease driver for JCT and/or have questions about the lawsuit, please contact Robert S. Boulter. For Plaintiff and the FLSA Collective Members (i.e., individuals who previously completed a valid Opt-In Consent Form to join this case), the Released Claims also include any and all claims, known or unknown, under the FLSA, 29 U.S.C. 5). First brief on cross-appeal and appendix due 06/07/2021 for John Christner Trucking, LLC. Docketing statement, transcript order form and notice of appearance due on 03/25/2021 for Thomas Huddleston; notice of appearance due on 03-25-2021 for John Christner Trucking, LLC. R. Civ. at 8. "We are impressed with the customized technical . (10/24/19 Mot hrng & 12/09/20 Sched conf.). . We can transport your goods at temperatures ranging anywhere from minus 20 degrees Fahrenheit to plus 90 degrees Fahrenheit and hold them at the temperature you specify. at 319. See Narayan v. EGL, Inc., 616 F.3d 895, 899 (9th Cir. Pros. He testifies in his declaration that litigating in Oklahoma would impose substantial travel costs, including airfare, rental cars, and hotel stays; that if he were to miss "any significant time away from work," his employer may withhold work or terminate his position entirely; and that being the primary wage-earner means that missed wages may threaten his ability to support his family. Certificate of Interested Parties: No. 5 ("Mot."). 11-cv-2009 (LJO)(MJS), 2012 WL 393614, at *4 (E. D. Cal. Mot. JCT's contacts with California are not mere happenstance resulting from Huddleston's incidental residence in the state independent of JCT's conduct. JCT argues that neither general nor specific personal jurisdiction exists here. Where a forum-selection clause uses the phrases "arising under," "arising out of," or similar language, the clause is construed narrowly to cover only disputes "relating to the interpretation and performance of the contract itself." A forum-selection clause may be deemed unreasonable under the following circumstances: (1) if the inclusion of the clause in the agreement was the product of fraud or overreaching; (2) if the party wishing to repudiate the clause would effectively be deprived of his day in court were the clause enforced; and (3) if enforcement would contravene a strong public policy of the forum in which suit is brought. Huddleston argues that his claims brought pursuant to the Private Attorney General Act ("PAGA") are of such a strong local nature that they should be litigated in California. He testifies in his declaration that "[m]uch" of his JCT-related work took place in California and that he drove "all over" the state, including making a "significant portion" of his pick-ups and drop-offs in the cities within this District listed in paragraph 18 of the Complaint. Opp. Web: www.johnchristner.com. [21-5025] [Entered: 03/15/2021 11:58 AM], [10814928] Entry of appearance filed by Michael J Blaschke, Mr. Robert S. Boulter, Ms. Carolyn H. Cottrell, Mr. David C. Leimbach, Ms. Michelle S. Lim and Ms. Rachel Lawrence Mor for Thomas Huddleston. Id. RLM [Entered: 03/12/2021 04:57 PM], [10814509] Civil case docketed. Served on 03/12/2021. Enforceability Of Forum-Selection Clause. C. 28 U.S.C. Los Angeles, LLC, 59 Cal. ; all claims for deceptive and unfair trade practices under the Oklahoma Consumer Protection Act, 15 Okla. Stat. Indeed, courts have found the requirements of specific personal jurisdiction satisfied where a shipping company contracts to ship goods from one state to a second state and a cause of action arises in a third state through which the goods were passing. Manetti-Farrow, Inc. v. Gucci Am., Inc., 858 F.2d 509, 513 (9th Cir. He further testifies that litigating this case in Oklahoma would impose a prohibitive economic hardship on him due to the cost of travel and time away from work, problems that he would not experience if the case were to remain in California. The settlement administrator will total the number of settlement shares for all Class Participants; the resulting sum will be divided into the Net Settlement Amount to reach a per share dollar figure. 4:17-CV-06257 | 2017-10-29, U.S. District Courts | Personal Injury | The ICOA states that the ICOA itself "shall be interpreted in accordance with, and governed by, the laws of the United States and, of the State of Oklahoma," without applying a choice-of law analysis. Adjust the GREEN FIELDS below. . Plaintiff Thomas Huddleston brings this wage-and-hour putative class action lawsuit against defendant John Christner Trucking, LLC ("JCT"). Issued on 04/27/2021. [21-5025] [Entered: 04/14/2021 04:43 PM], Docket[10822463] Attorney Mr. David C. Leimbach for Thomas Huddleston admitted to the bar of this court. You pay about $1000 week for lease with good miles. See also Kia Motors Am., Inc. v. MPA Autoworks, No. Id. Manner of Service: email. Marine Const. Thread Status: Not open for further replies. Served on 03/25/2021. Personal Jurisdiction. Dubuque, Iowa-based Hirschbach Motor Lines announced the acquisition of Sapulpa, Oklahoma-based refrigerated carrier John Christner Trucking. JCT does not target any advertising specifically to California and, since at least 2013, only 10- 12% of its total nationwide miles have been logged in California. Why is this public record being published online? LaCross, 95 F. Supp. John Christner Trucking, LLC, N.D. Oklahoma (Case No. A review of the distirct court docket shows transcripts ordered were already on file. Marcotte, 2014 WL 4477349, at *8 (quoting Besag v. Custom Decorators, Inc., No. In contract cases, courts generally apply the purposeful availment test, while in tort cases they use the purposeful direction analysis. The Court held that an arbitration agreement to which the EEOC was not a party could not limit the remedies otherwise granted to the EEOC by statute, which not only had the authority to pursue independent actions in court for Title VII violations but, in the context of the suit, also had "exclusive authority over the choice of forum and the prayer for relief once a charge has been filed." Huddleston alleges in the Complaint that he "would regularly engage in JCT's business in various locations within this judicial district, including but not limited to Fresno, Stockton, Tulare, Newman, Turlock, Modesto, Merced, Madera, and Livingston." JCT leases facilities in Phoenix, Arizona, and Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. 4:20-CV-00638 | 2020-12-07, U.S. District Courts | Contract | This lawsuit also alleges Defendant misled Class Members into joining its lease operator program. "Public-interest factors may include 'the administrative difficulties flowing from court congestion; the local interest in having localized controversies decided at home; [and] the interest in having the trial of a diversity case in a forum that is at home with the law.'" Manner of Service: email. Richards v. Lloyd's of London, 135 F.3d 1289, 1297 (9th Cir.