Document ID: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-caed-1_14-cv-01804/USCOURTS-caed-1_14-cv-01804-1/pdf.json

Parties Involved:
Alejandro Herrera Aguilar
Plaintiff
Sabas Medina
Plaintiff
Jesus Palacios
Plaintiff
Jose Palacios
Plaintiff
Penny Newman Grain, Inc.
Defendant
Edgar Torres
Plaintiff
Universal Ag Services, Inc.
Defendant
Juan Zavala
Defendant

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69878-00038 3510939.1 1:14-CV-01804-KJM-SAB

STIPULATION RE FURTHER CLASS NOTICE AND ORDER THEREON 

MCCORMICK, BARSTOW,

SHEPPARD, WAYTE &

CARRUTH LLP 

7647 NORTH FRESNO STREET 

FRESNO, CA 93720 

MCCORMICK, BARSTOW, SHEPPARD, 

WAYTE & CARRUTH LLP 

DAVID R. MCNAMARA, #133302 

CHRISTINA C. TILLMAN, #258627 

7647 North Fresno Street 

Fresno, California 93720 

Telephone: (559) 433-1300 

Facsimile: (559) 433-2300 

Attorneys For Defendant Penny Newman Grain Co. 

PAUL J. BAUER 

WALTER & WILHELM LAW GROUP 

205 E. River Park Circle, Suite 410 

Fresno, CA 93720 

Tel. (559) 435-9800 

Attorneys for Ag Universal, Inc. And Juan Zavala 

DELLA BARNETT, State Bar No. 88649 

CALIFORNIA RURAL LEGAL 

ASSISTANCE FOUNDATION 

2210 K Street, Suite 201 

Sacramento, CA 95816 

Telephone: (916) 446-7904, ext. 2020 

Facsimile: (916) 446-3057 

dbarnett@crlaf.org

JOHN E. HILL, State Bar No. 45338 

ENRIQUE MARTINEZ, State Bar No. 206884 

Law Offices of John E. Hill 

333 Hegenberger Road, Ste. 500 

Oakland, CA 94621 

Telephone: (510) 588-1000 

Facsimile: (510) 633-2504 

Attorneys for Plaintiffs 

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 

EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 

JESUS PALACIOS, ET AL., 

Plaintiffs, 

v. 

PENNY NEWMAN GRAIN, INC., ET AL., 

Defendants. 

 Case No. 1:14-CV-01804-KJM-SAB 

STIPULATION AND ORDER RE 

FURTHER CLASS NOTICE BY 

PUBLICATION 

Judge: Hon. Kimberly J. Mueller 

Action Filed: August 11, 2014 

Trial Date: Trial Date Has Not Been Set

Case 1:14-cv-01804-DAD-SAB Document 31 Filed 07/24/15 Page 1 of 6
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69878-00038 3510939.1 2 1:14-CV-01804-KJM-SAB

STIPULATION RE FURTHER CLASS NOTICE AND ORDER THEREON 

MCCORMICK, BARSTOW,

SHEPPARD, WAYTE &

CARRUTH LLP 

7647 NORTH FRESNO STREET 

FRESNO, CA 93720 

STIPULATION 

The parties to the above-entitled action, (1) PENNY NEWMAN GRAIN COMPANY, 

INC. (“Penny Newman”), (2) UNIVERSAL AG SERVICES and JUAN ZAVALA (“Universal 

Ag”) (collectively “Defendants”), and (2) JESUS PALACIOS, JOSE PALACIOS, ALEJANDRO 

HERRERA AGUILAR, EDGAR TORRES, and SABAS MEDINA (“Named Plaintiffs”) hereby 

agree and stipulate as follows: 

1. On July 6, 2015, the Court issued an Order granting preliminary approval to the 

parties’ class settlement agreement (“Settlement Agreement”). 

2. The Settlement Agreement and the July 6, 2015 Order both assumed, based on 

representations made throughout the settlement process by Universal Ag, that it had employment 

records showing the addresses of all identified class members. In preparing for the mailing of the 

notices to class members as provided in the Order and the Settlement Agreement, Universal Ag 

provided addresses for 62 individuals, but informed the other parties for the first time that it does 

not have addresses for 18 class members (“Missing Class Members”). Universal Ag also 

informed the parties that the Missing Class Members are Spanish-speaking and most, if not all, are 

monolingual Spanish-speakers. All of them worked a fairly short period of time. 

3. In light of these facts, the parties hereby agree and stipulate that their Settlement 

Agreement shall be, and hereby is, amended to provide that, in addition to the mailed class notice 

previously agreed-upon and ordered, notice to the Missing Class Members shall be provided by 

publication as described below. 

4. According to the Claims Administrator, Vida en el Valle is the largest Spanish 

newspaper in the Fresno area. According to its website, Vida en el Valle is published weekly, with 

separate editions in five cities: Fresno, Merced, Modesto, Sacramento and Stockton, with 

circulation throughout 11 counties in California's Central Valley: El Dorado, Fresno, Kings, 

Madera, Merced, Placer, Sacramento, San Joaquin, Stanislaus, Tulare, and Yolo. The Claims 

Administrator recommends the use of that newspaper as the most likely to be read by the Missing 

Class Members or their families and friends. The Claims Administrator has used Vida en el Valle 

in the past as the court-approved method for publishing settlement notices in class action cases 

Case 1:14-cv-01804-DAD-SAB Document 31 Filed 07/24/15 Page 2 of 6
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69878-00038 3510939.1 3 1:14-CV-01804-KJM-SAB

STIPULATION RE FURTHER CLASS NOTICE AND ORDER THEREON 

MCCORMICK, BARSTOW,

SHEPPARD, WAYTE &

CARRUTH LLP 

7647 NORTH FRESNO STREET 

FRESNO, CA 93720 

involving Spanish-speaking workers in the Central Valley. Vida en el Valle publishes once a 

week, on Wednesdays. Text must be provided no later than the previous Thursday. 

5. Pursuant to the Court’s July 6, 2015 Order, the class notice to class members for 

whom addresses are known will be mailed on July 20, 2015. The parties hereby stipulate and 

agree that the full notice will also be published in Spanish, in Vida en el Valle, August 5, with a 

headline in Spanish reading, “Did you work for Universal Ag at Penny Newman Grain Co. 

between August 11, 2010 and July 6, 2015? If so, please read this Notice.” 

6. The cost to publish the full notice is $5,388. The costs of the publication will be 

advanced by the Claims Administrator. According to the Claims Administrator, even with this 

additional cost, the total cost of claims administration will not exceed the amount approved in the 

Court’s July 6, 2015 Order. 

IT IS SO STIPULATED. 

Dated: July 17, 2015 CALIFORNIA RURAL LEGAL ASSISTANCE 

FOUNDATION 

LAW OFFICE OF JOHN E. HILL 

By: /s/ Della Barnett 

 Della Barnett 

Attorneys for Plaintiffs JESUS PALACIOS, JOSE 

PALACIOS, ALEJANDRO HERRERA 

AGUILAR, EDGAR TORRES and SABAS 

MEDINA 

Case 1:14-cv-01804-DAD-SAB Document 31 Filed 07/24/15 Page 3 of 6
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69878-00038 3510939.1 4 1:14-CV-01804-KJM-SAB

STIPULATION RE FURTHER CLASS NOTICE AND ORDER THEREON 

MCCORMICK, BARSTOW,

SHEPPARD, WAYTE &

CARRUTH LLP 

7647 NORTH FRESNO STREET 

FRESNO, CA 93720 

Dated: July 17, 2015 McCORMICK, BARSTOW, SHEPPARD, 

WAYTE & CARRUTH LLP 

By: /s/ Christina C. Tillman 

 David R. McNamara 

Christina C. Tillman 

Attorneys for Defendant PENNY NEWMAN 

GRAIN CO. 

Dated: July 17, 2015 

WALTER & WILHELM LAW GROUP 

By: /s/ Paul Bauer 

 Paul Bauer 

Attorneys for Defendants UNIVERSAL AG 

SERVICES, INC. and JUAN ZAVALA 

ORDER 

This Court’s July 6, 2015 Order granting preliminary approval of the parties’ Settlement 

Agreement in this case requires notice by mailing to all class members. Universal Ag, Inc. has 

discovered, and recently informed the other parties, that it does not have any address information for 

18 class members, all of whom are Spanish-speaking former employees who worked a relatively short 

period of time. The notice by mail provided in the parties’ Settlement Agreement and preliminarily 

approved by the Court was based on the assumption that addresses for all identified class members 

would be provided by Universal Ag. 

Given these unanticipated facts, and out of concern that notice consistent with due process be 

provided to the class members whose addresses are unknown, the Court hereby APPROVES the 

foregoing Stipulation amending the Settlement Agreement and ORDERS that the additional forms of 

notice to those class members set forth in that Stipulation will be provided. The Court finds that, 

under the circumstances, notice by publication as provided in the Stipulation will provide the best 

form of notice to the missing class members. See Silber v. Mabon, 18 F.3d 1449, 1454-55 (9th Cir. 

Case 1:14-cv-01804-DAD-SAB Document 31 Filed 07/24/15 Page 4 of 6
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69878-00038 3510939.1 5 1:14-CV-01804-KJM-SAB

STIPULATION RE FURTHER CLASS NOTICE AND ORDER THEREON 

MCCORMICK, BARSTOW,

SHEPPARD, WAYTE &

CARRUTH LLP 

7647 NORTH FRESNO STREET 

FRESNO, CA 93720 

1994) (affirming that notice by publication can satisfy due process; actual notice of class settlement 

not required); see also Manual for Complex Litigation 4th §§ 21.31; 21.312 (2004)). Specifically, in 

addition to the mailing class notice of the proposed settlement to all class members whose addresses 

are known, notice by publication to the remaining class members will be provided in accordance with 

the parties’ Stipulation. The cost of these additional measures will be advanced by Gilardi & Co. and 

paid out of the $30,000 maximum allocated to the costs of claims administration in the Proposed 

Settlement Agreement and preliminarily approved by the Court in its July 6, 2015 Order. 

 IT IS SO ORDERED. 

DATED: July 24, 2015.

Case 1:14-cv-01804-DAD-SAB Document 31 Filed 07/24/15 Page 5 of 6
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69878-00038 3510939.1 1:14-CV-01804-KJM-SAB

STIPULATION RE FURTHER CLASS NOTICE AND [PROPOSED] ORDER THEREON 

MCCORMICK, BARSTOW,

SHEPPARD, WAYTE &

CARRUTH LLP 

7647 NORTH FRESNO STREET 

FRESNO, CA 93720 

Case 1:14-cv-01804-DAD-SAB Document 31 Filed 07/24/15 Page 6 of 6