Llamas v. Everon

Background

This is a proposed class action removed from state court. Everon opposed Llamas’s pending motion to remand, which seeks to return the case to state court. Everon relied on alleged diversity jurisdiction, a basis for federal jurisdiction involving the amount at stake and the parties’ asserted diversity.

Amount in Controversy

Everon argued that a reasonable estimate of Llamas’s actual damages was $64,773.36 and that the total attorney fees at stake could reasonably be estimated at $198,655. Together, those figures would exceed the $75,000 amount-in-controversy threshold for removal based on diversity jurisdiction.

The court observed that neither the complaint nor the remand briefing established the number of proposed class members. Assuming a class of 20 members, the court calculated attorney fees attributable to each member at $9,932.75. Adding that amount to the estimated damages of $64,773.36 produced an amount in controversy of no more than $74,706.11. The court stated that this figure was below the jurisdictional minimum even while crediting Everon’s assumptions about actual damages and using a conservative estimate of the class size.

Order

Judge Richard Seeborg vacated the December 4, 2025 hearing. Everon may file a supplemental opposition brief of no more than 10 pages within one week of the order, and Llamas may file a supplemental reply brief of no more than 10 pages within one week after that. Unless the court orders otherwise, the matter will then be submitted for decision without oral argument.

The court directed the parties to address the analysis and holding in Green v. Flowers Bakeries Sales of Norcal, LLC, which stated that cases estimating future attorney fees above $75,000 were unpersuasive when they failed to divide those fees among all class members as required by Ninth Circuit law. This order requested further briefing and did not state a final ruling granting or denying the motion to remand.