Hernandez v. Dutton Ranch Corporation

Background

The two named plaintiffs are migrant farmworkers who harvested grapes and apples for Dutton Ranch. They sued Dutton Ranch and other defendants over alleged wage-and-hour violations, including a claim under California’s Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA). The discovery dispute concerned information about employees who were part of the PAGA group.

The plaintiffs requested the group’s contact information and employee pay records. They asked to receive the information subject to a protective order, which limits how discovery materials may be used or disclosed. Dutton Ranch instead asked the court to require a Belaire notice. Such a notice would inform employees about the lawsuit and give them an opportunity to opt out of having plaintiffs’ counsel contact them.

Court’s Analysis

The court said that courts in the Northern District of California routinely allow discovery of putative group members’ confidential contact information before certification, subject to a protective order and without requiring a Belaire notice. The court ordered Dutton Ranch to produce the requested contact information under the parties’ protective order.

The court also held that Dutton Ranch must produce employee pay records and information about management staff because the plaintiffs’ requests were relevant to their wage-and-hour claims. The court required plaintiffs’ counsel to inform employees that they did not have to speak with counsel and that, if they chose not to do so, counsel would end the contact and not contact them again.

Ruling

Magistrate Judge Laurel Beeler issued a discovery order requiring production of the contact information, pay records, and management information. The plaintiffs had requested production within seven days; the court stated that, if seven days was not reasonable for Dutton Ranch, the parties had to confer within seven days and propose a schedule to the court. The court decided the issue without oral argument.