Drew Hansen Discusses Denial of Class Certification Win for Cardinal Logistics, Impact on Trucking Industry

Drew Hansen was quoted in the Daily Journal article, "Truck Drivers Wage Claims Have To Be Adjudicated Separately" (subscription required). The article recounts how a Nossaman team, led by Drew and including Seth Goldstein and Pavneet Mac, obtained a significant victory for Cardinal Logistics Management Corp. in the Central District of California when Judge Percy Anderson denied class certification under Rule 23 in the matter of Timothy Pavloff et al. v. Cardinal Logistics Management Corp.

The matter involved a number of causes of action, including alleged claims for unpaid sleeper berth time under California law, rest break violations, failure to reimburse for cell phone expenses, wage statement violations and more. The court denied class certification for numerous reasons, and the ruling will have tremendously positive implications for trucking companies.

Commenting to the Daily Journal, Drew said that Judge Anderson “made the right call denying certification.” He added, “[O]ver the last few years, truck drivers have filed a growing number of lawsuits against trucking companies based on the sleeper berth theory. This is an important ruling because the court concluded that these sleeper berth claims cannot proceed on a class-wide basis…Given the increasing frequency at which these claims are being filed, I believe this decision will be helpful for the trucking industry going forward.”

In addition to this win, Drew, Seth and Pavneet also obtained another victory in the same case in the same week. Specifically, Judge Anderson granted Cardinal Logistics’ motion to dismiss an FLSA claim and denied a motion for conditional certification of a collective action as moot. Together these two wins will shield Cardinal from facing claims from a large number of potential drivers and enable the company to focus on opposing the claims of just 16 individuals.