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Boyd v. Allied Signal12/30/2004
all members of the defined class, with one exception, detailed below.
We agree with defendants that the claims of the class representative, Chastity LeJeune, cannot be considered "typical" of the class members' claims, for the simple reason that by her own sworn testimony, she does not meet the criteria for class membership established by the trial court. Ms. LeJeune, a secretary employed by the attorneys filing the initial action, testified by deposition that she was at her office most of the workday, from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., except for lunch. She testified that she learned of the release at issue from a radio announcement she heard while at her office, and that her office complied with the "shelter in place" warning, turning off the office air conditioning. She claimed that she began to experience burning in her nostrils and a headache after lunch. Defendants point out, and plaintiffs concede, that at no time during the course of the incident was Ms. Lejeune ever present within the geographic area selected by the trial court to define the class, which encompassed the actual "shelter in place" zone. As the evidence plainly established that she was not a class member, it only stands to reason that she does not possess that threshold qualification of a class representative. The defendants' objection to her designation as class representative by the trial court is clearly well-taken. We therefore reverse the trial court's judgment in part, insofar as it adopted the special master's recommendation as to Ms. LeJeune and confirmed her as a class representative, and amend it to remove her name from the list of class representatives.
The test for determining the existence of adequate representation under La. C.C.P. art. 591(A)(4) consists of three elements: (1) the claims of the chosen class representatives cannot be antagonistic or conflict with those of other class members; (2) the chosen representatives must have a sufficient interest in the outcome to ensure vigorous advocacy; and (3) counsel for the closen representatives must be competent, experienced, qualified, and generally able to conduct the litigation vigorously. Mire v. EatelCorp, Inc., 02-1705 at p. 9, 849 So.2d at 615-16; Singleton, 01-0447 at p. 13, 826 So.2d at 64. The trial court accepted the choices of the special master regarding the class representatives, but only after its own independent review of their deposition testimony and consideration of the class counsel's qualifications. Our review of the record reveals no error in the trial court's decision on the requirement of adequate representation.
In conclusion, we emphatically agree with defendants, as did the trial court, that fraud is a legitimate and serious concern as to many of the claims at issue. But identification of members of the class based upon their claims of physical presence in its geographic and temporal limits is an issue separate from proof of the veracity of such claims. It is not essential that every member of the class be identified before a class action can be certified. McCastle, 456 So.2d at 620. It thus stands to reason that it is likewise unnecessary for every claimant to establish a legally probable or even prima facie case on the issue of his membership criteria before such certification can be made. That some of the class members may present exaggerated, spurious, or fraudulent claims should not defeat certification as long as the requisite elements for certification are present. That serious concern can best be addressed if and when class action certification is sought on any further issue, such as causation, or at some later stage of proceedings in the class action or the presentation of individual members' claims. We find that the tri
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