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Snyder Communications v. Magana11/27/2002
This is an interlocutory appeal from the trial court's order certifying a class and adopting a trial plan. Appellees Josefina Magaña, Maria D. Escalon, Elvira Lorena Quiroga, Maria Luz Figueroa, Maria Isabel Lopez, Donna M. Rodriguez, and Nora Linda Dominguez sued their former employer, Snyder Communications, L.P., appellant ("Snyder"), for breach of contract and fraud. Appellees charge that Snyder failed to pay compensation due them pursuant to written, contractual representations made by Snyder at the time of appellees' employment. The compensation scheme provided that Snyder sales associates would receive commissions for each valid "Letter of Authority" they obtained from residential consumers to transfer long distance carrier service to AT&T; with whom Snyder had a contractual relationship, and bonuses based on productivity.
Snyder contends on appeal that the trial court erred when it certified the class because: (1) the trial court failed to go beyond the pleadings in assessing the commonality required for a properly certified class action and in determining that common issues predominated over individual issues; (2) the trial court erroneously concluded that common issues predominated over individual issues and did not determine that a class action was a superior method for fair and efficient resolution of the claims; (3) the named plaintiffs will not fairly and adequately represent the interests of the class; and (4) the trial plan adopted by the trial court is inadequate in that it acknowledges that trial of the named plaintiffs' claims might not resolve the claims of the remaining class, it neither accounts for the defenses raised by Snyder nor includes a method of resolving Snyder's defensive issues, and it does not specify a formula or similar method for establishing proof of liability and damages. We affirm.
I. PROCEDURAL HISTORY
Appellees originally filed suit individually against Snyder on June 6, 2000. Snyder answered with a general denial on June 29, 2000. Appellees amended to assert a class action on April 3, 2001, alleging that: (1) the proposed class, consisting of persons who were employed by Snyder in the capacity of sales associate on or after April 3, 1997 and who had commissions denied in whole or in part, was so numerous as to make joinder of all members impractical ("numerosity"); (2) common questions of law or fact affected the class, including a common course of conduct by Snyder in fraudulently inducing appellees and unnamed class members to enter into employment contracts and in making material and false representations to each class member regarding commissions and bonuses ("commonality"); (3) the claims of the named plaintiffs were typical of the class in that all class members were employed as sales associates on a commission basis and all were denied their commission in whole or in part, so that the claims of the unnamed class members arose from the same course of conduct and misrepresentations as the claims of the named plaintiffs ("typicality"); (4) the named plaintiffs would fairly and adequately represent the interest of the class in that they were members of the class, they had expressed interest in representing the class, they had hired experienced litigation counsel who was willing to advance the costs of notice to the class, and they had no interests adverse to other members of the class ("adequacy of representation"); and (5) common questions of law or fact in the claimed fraudulent inducement and misrepresentations regarding commissions and bonuses predominated over any questions affecting only individual members ("predominance"), making a class action the superior method of resolving the claims ("superiority").
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