FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Plaintiff is a former employee of Entity Defendants. The Action accuses Defendants of violating California labor laws by failing to pay overtime wages, minimum wages, wages due upon termination, reimbursable expenses, failing to timely pay wages during employment, failing to keep requisite payroll records, and failing to provide meal periods, rest breaks and accurate itemized wage statements. Based on the same claims, Plaintiff has also asserted a claim for civil penalties under the California Private Attorneys General Act (Lab. Code, § 2698, et seq.) (“PAGA”). Plaintiff is represented by attorneys in the Action: Lawyers for Justice, P.C., The JCL Law Firm, APC, and the Zakay Law Group, APLC (“Class Counsel”).
Defendants strongly deny violating any laws or failing to pay any wages and contends it complied with all applicable laws.
So far, the Court has made no determination whether Defendants or Plaintiff are correct on the merits. In the meantime, Plaintiff and Defendants hired an experienced, neutral mediator in an effort to resolve the Action by negotiating an to end the case by agreement (settle the case) rather than continuing the expensive and time-consuming process of litigation. The negotiations were successful. By signing a lengthy written settlement agreement (“Agreement”) and agreeing to jointly ask the Court to enter a judgment ending the Action and enforcing the Agreement, Plaintiff and Defendants have negotiated a proposed Settlement that is subject to the Court’s Final Approval. Both sides agree the proposed Settlement is a compromise of disputed claims. By agreeing to settle, Defendants do not admit any violations or concede the merit of any claims. Plaintiff and Class Counsel strongly believe the Settlement is a good deal for you because they believe that: (1) Defendants have agreed to pay a fair, reasonable, and adequate amount considering the strength of the claims and the risks and uncertainties of continued litigation; and (2) the Settlement is in the best interests of the Class Members and PAGA Members. The Court preliminarily approved the proposed Settlement as fair, reasonable, and adequate, authorized the Notice, and scheduled a hearing to determine Final Approval.
1. Defendants will Pay $1,200,000 as the Total Settlement Amount (Total Settlement). Defendants have agreed to deposit the Total Settlement into an account controlled by the Settlement Administrator of the Settlement. The Settlement Administrator will use the Total Settlement to pay the Individual Settlement Payments, Individual PAGA Payments, Enhancement Award, Class Counsel’s attorneys’ fees and expenses, the Settlement Administrator’s expenses, and penalties to be paid to the California Labor and Workforce Development Agency (“LWDA”). Assuming the Court grants Final Approval, Defendants will fund the Total Settlement in three installments of $400,000 each, over the course of three years. All Individual PAGA Payments to PAGA Members shall be distributed within 14 days after Defendants fund the first payment, which is to be made within 60 days after the Court’s order of final approval. Each Class Member’s Individual Settlement Payments shall be distributed within 14 days after Defendant funds the second installment, which is to be made 12 months after the first payment. The Judgment will be final on the date the Court enters Judgment, or a later date if Settlement Class Members object to the proposed Settlement or the Judgment is appealed.
2. Court Approved Deductions from Total Settlement Amount. At the Final Approval Hearing, Plaintiff and/or Class Counsel will ask the Court to approve the following deductions from the Total Settlement, the amounts of which will be decided by the Court at the Final Approval Hearing:
A. Up to $420,000 (35% of the Total Settlement Amount) to Class Counsel for attorneys’ fees and up to $25,000 for their litigation expenses. To date, Class Counsel have worked and incurred expenses on the Action without payment.
B. Up to $15,000 as an Enhancement Award for filing the Action, working with Class Counsel and representing the Class. An Enhancement Award will be the only monies Plaintiff will receive other than Plaintiff’s Individual Settlement Payment and any Individual PAGA Payment.
C. Up to $10,000 to the Settlement Administrator for services administering the Settlement.
D. Up to $200,000 for PAGA Penalties, allocated 75% to the LWDA Payment and 25% in Individual PAGA Payments to the PAGA Members based on their PAGA Pay Periods.
Settlement Class Members have the right to object to any of these deductions. The Court will consider all objections.
3. Net Settlement Distributed to Class Members. After making the above deductions in amounts approved by the Court, the Settlement Administrator will distribute the rest of the Total Settlement (the “Net Settlement”) by making Individual Settlement Payments to Settlement Class Members based on their Workweeks.
4. Taxes Owed on Payments to Class Members. Plaintiff and Defendants are asking the Court to approve an allocation of 20% of each Individual Settlement Payment to taxable wages (“Wage Portion”) and 80% to interest and penalties (“Non-Wage Portion”). The Wage Portion is subject to withholdings and will be reported on IRS W-2 Forms. Defendants will separately pay employer payroll taxes it owes on the Wage Portion. The Individual PAGA Payments are counted as penalties rather than wages for tax purposes. The Settlement Administrator will report the Individual PAGA Payments and the Non-Wage Portions of the Individual Settlement Payments on IRS 1099 Forms.
Although Plaintiff and Defendants have agreed to these allocations, neither side is giving you any advice on whether your Payments are taxable or how much you might owe in taxes. You are responsible for paying all taxes (including penalties and interest on back taxes) on any Payments received from the proposed Settlement. You should consult a tax advisor if you have any questions about the tax consequences of the proposed Settlement.
5. Need to Promptly Cash Payment Checks. The front of every check issued for Individual Settlement Payments and Individual PAGA Payments will show the date when the check expires (the void date). If you don’t cash it by the void date, your check will be automatically cancelled, and the monies will be deposited with the California Controller’s Unclaimed Property Fund in your name.
If the monies represented by your check is sent to the Controller’s Unclaimed Property, you should consult the rules of the Fund for instructions on how to retrieve your money.
6. Requests for Exclusion from the Class Settlement (Opt-Outs). You will be treated as a Settlement Class Member, participating fully in the Class Settlement, unless you notify the Settlement Administrator in writing, not later than April 7, 2025, that you wish to opt-out. The easiest way to notify the Settlement Administrator is to send a written and signed Request for Exclusion by the April 7, 2025, Response Deadline. The Request for Exclusion should be a letter from a Class Member or his/her/their representative setting forth the Class Member’s name, present address, telephone number, and a simple statement electing to be excluded from the Settlement. Excluded Class Members (i.e., Non-Participating Class Members) will not receive Individual Settlement Payments, but will preserve their rights to personally pursue wage and hour claims against Defendants.
You cannot opt-out of the PAGA portion of the Settlement. Class Members who exclude themselves from the Class Settlement (Non-Participating Class Members) remain eligible for Individual PAGA Payments and are required to give up their right to assert PAGA claims against Defendants based on the PAGA Period facts alleged in the Action.
7. The Proposed Settlement Will be Void if the Court Denies Final Approval. It is possible the Court will decline to grant Final Approval of the Settlement or decline to enter a Judgment. It is also possible the Court will enter a Judgment that is reversed on appeal. Plaintiff and Defendants have agreed that, in either case, the Settlement will be void: Defendants will not pay any money and Class Members will not release any claims against Defendants.
8. Settlement Administrator. The Court has appointed a neutral company, Atticus Administration, LLC (the “Settlement Administrator”) to send the Notice, calculate and make payments, and process Class Members’ Requests for Exclusion. The Settlement Administrator will also decide Class Member Challenges over Workweeks, mail and re-mail settlement checks and tax forms, and perform other tasks necessary to administer the Settlement. The Settlement Administrator’s contact information is contained in Section 9 of the Notice.
9. Settlement Class Members’ Release. After the Judgment is final and Entity Defendants have fully funded the Total Settlement and separately paid all employer payroll taxes, Settlement Class Members will be legally barred from asserting any of the claims released under the Settlement. This means that unless you opted out by validly excluding yourself from the Class Settlement, you cannot sue, continue to sue or be part of any other lawsuit against all Released Parties for wages based on the Class Period facts and PAGA penalties based on PAGA Period facts, as alleged in the Action and resolved by this Settlement.
The “Released Parties” are Defendants Preferred Food Service, Inc., Los Angeles Poultry Co., Inc., Dror Dahan, David Dahan, Lily Dahan, Ilana Dahan, Bar Dahan and any other entities that could be considered to have jointly employed the Class Members or PAGA Members, as well as each of their officers, directors, managers, owners, executives, partners, executive-level employees, shareholders, agents, insurers, attorneys, and any other predecessors, successors, assigns or legal representatives.
The Settlement Class Members will be bound by the following release:
All Settlement Class Members, on behalf of themselves and their respective former and present representatives, agents, attorneys, heirs, administrators, successors and assigns, release Released Parties from (i) all claims under state, federal, or local law, that were alleged, or reasonably could have been alleged, based on the Class Period facts stated in the Operative Complaint and ascertained in the course of the Action including, e.g., (1) failure to pay overtime wages under Labor Code Sec. 510, 1198; (2) failure to provide meal periods and/or pay meal period premiums under Labor Code Sec. 226.7, 512; (3) failure to provide rest periods and/or pay rest period premiums under Labor Code Sec. 226.7; (4) failure to pay minimum wages under Labor Code Sec 119, 1197, 1197.1, et seq.; (5) failure to timely pay wages upon termination under Labor Code Sec. 201-203; (6) failure to timely pay wages during employment under Labor Code Sec. 204, 210; (7) failure to provide accurate, itemized wage statements under Labor Code Sec. 226; (8) failure to keep requisite payroll records under Labor Code Sec 1174(d); (9) failure to reimburse business expenses under Labor Code Sec 2800,2802; (10) violation of California’s unfair competition law under Business and Professions Code Sec. 17200 (“Class Released Claims”). Except as set forth in Section 5.3 of the Settlement Agreement, Settlement Class Members do not release any other claims, including claims for vested benefits, wrongful termination, violation of the Fair Employment and Housing Act, unemployment insurance, disability, social security, workers’ compensation, or claims based on facts occurring outside the Class Period.
10. PAGA Members’ PAGA Release. After the Court’s judgment is final, and Defendants has paid the Total Settlement (and separately paid the employer-side payroll taxes), all PAGA Members will be barred from asserting PAGA claims against all Released Parties (as defined above) during the PAGA Period, whether or not they exclude themselves from the Settlement. This means that all PAGA Members , including those who are Settlement Class Members and those who opt-out of the Class Settlement, cannot sue, continue to sue or participate in any other PAGA claim against Defendants or its related entities based on the PAGA Period facts alleged in the Action and resolved by this Settlement.
The PAGA Members’ Releases are as follows:
All PAGA Members are deemed to release, on behalf of themselves and their respective former and present representatives, agents, attorneys, heirs, administrators, successors, and assigns, the Released Parties, from all claims for PAGA penalties that were alleged, or reasonably could have been alleged, based on the PAGA Period facts stated in the Operative Complaint, and the PAGA Notices and ascertained in the course of the Action including, e.g., (1) failure to pay overtime wages under Labor Code Sec. 510, 1198; (2) failure to provide meal periods and/or pay meal period premiums under Labor Code Sec. 226.7, 512; (3) failure to provide rest periods and/or pay rest period premiums under Labor Code Sec. 226.7; (4) failure to pay minimum wages under Labor Code Sec 119, 1197, 1197.1, et seq.; (5) failure to timely pay wages upon termination under Labor Code Sec. 201-203; (6) failure to timely pay wages during employment under Labor Code Sec. 204, 210; (7) failure to provide accurate, itemized wage statements under Labor Code Sec. 226; (8) failure to keep requisite payroll records under Labor Code Sec 1174(d); and (9) failure to reimburse business expenses under Labor Code Sec 2800,2802.
1. Individual Settlement Payments. The Settlement Administrator will calculate Individual Settlement Payments by (a) dividing the Net Settlement Amount by the total number of Workweeks worked by all Settlement Class Members, and (b) multiplying the result by the number of Workweeks worked by each individual Settlement Class Member.
2. Individual PAGA Payments. The Settlement Administrator will calculate Individual PAGA Payments by (a) dividing $50,000.00 by the total number of PAGA Pay Periods worked by all PAGA Members and (b) multiplying the result by the number of PAGA Pay Periods worked by each individual PAGA Member.
3. Workweek/PAGA Pay Period Challenges. The number of Workweeks you worked during the Class Period and the number of PAGA Pay Periods you worked during the PAGA Period, as recorded in Entity Defendants’ records, are stated in the first page of your Notice. You have until April 7, 2025, to challenge the number of Workweeks and/or PAGA Pay Periods credited to you. You can submit your challenge by signing and sending a letter to the Settlement Administrator via mail, email or fax. Section 9 of the Notice has the Settlement Administrator’s contact information.
You need to support your challenge by sending copies of pay stubs or other records. The Settlement Administrator will accept Entity Defendants’ calculation of Workweeks and/or Pay Periods based on Entity Defendants’ records as accurate unless you send copies of records containing contrary information. You should send copies rather than originals because the documents will not be returned to you. The Settlement Administrator will resolve Workweek and/or Pay Period challenges based on your submission and on input from Class Counsel (who will advocate on behalf of Participating Class Members) and Entity Defendants’ Counsel. The Settlement Administrator’s decision is final. You can’t appeal or otherwise challenge its final decision.
1. Settlement Class Members. The Settlement Administrator will send, by U.S. mail, checks to every Settlement Class Member (i.e., every Class Member who doesn’t opt-out), and separately, to all individuals who qualify as PAGA Members.
2. Non-Participating Class Members. The Settlement Administrator will send, by U.S. mail, a single Individual PAGA Payment check to every PAGA Member who opts out of the Class Settlement (i.e., every Non-Participating Class Member).
Your check will be sent to the same address as the Notice. If you change your address, be sure to notify the Settlement Administrator as soon as possible. Section 9 of the Notice has the Settlement Administrator’s contact information.
Submit a written and signed letter with your name, present address, telephone number and a simple statement that you do not want to participate in the Settlement. The Settlement Administrator will exclude you based on any writing communicating your request be excluded. Be sure to personally sign your request, identify the Action as Gonzalo Rojas v. Preferred Food Service, Co., Inc. et al., and include your identifying information (full name, address, telephone number, approximate dates of employment and social security number for verification purposes). You must make the request yourself. If someone else makes the request for you, it will not be valid. The Settlement Administrator must be sent your request to be excluded by April 7, 2025, or it will be invalid. Section 9 of the Notice has the Settlement Administrator’s contact information.
Only Settlement Class Members have the right to object to the Settlement. Before deciding whether to object, you may wish to see what Plaintiff and Defendants are asking the Court to approve. At least 28 days before the May 7, 2025 Final Approval Hearing, Class Counsel and/or Plaintiff will file in Court (1) a Motion for Final Approval that includes, among other things, the reasons why the proposed Settlement is fair, and (2) a Motion for Fees, Litigation Expenses and Service Award stating (i) the amount Class Counsel is requesting for attorneys’ fees and litigation expenses; and (ii) the amount Plaintiff is requesting as an Enhancement Award. Upon reasonable request, Class Counsel (whose contact information is in Section 9 of the Notice) will send you copies of these documents at no cost to you. You can also view them HERE or the Court’s website www.lacourt.org/lacc.
A Settlement Class Member who disagrees with any aspect of the Agreement, the Motion for Final Approval and/or Motion for Fees, Litigation Expenses and Enhancement Award may wish to object, for example, that the proposed Settlement is unfair, or that the amounts requested by Class Counsel or Plaintiff are too high or too low. The deadline for sending written objections to the Settlement Administrator is April 7, 2025. Be sure to tell the Settlement Administrator what you object to, why you object and any facts that support your objection. Make sure you identify the Action Gonzalo Rojas v. Preferred Food Service, Co., Inc. et al., and include your name, current address, telephone number and approximate dates of employment for Entity Defendants and sign the objection. Section 9 of the Notice has the Settlement Administrator’s contact information.
Alternatively, a Settlement Class Member can object (or personally retain a lawyer to object at your own cost) by attending the Final Approval Hearing. You (or your attorney) should be ready to tell the Court what you object to, why you object, and any facts that support your objection. See Section 8 of the Notice (immediately below) for specifics regarding the Final Approval Hearing.
You can, but don’t have to, attend the Final Approval Hearing on May 7, 2025 at 9:00 a.m. in Department 6 of the Los Angeles Superior Court, located at 312 North Spring Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012. At the Hearing, the judge will decide whether to grant Final Approval of the Settlement and how much of the Total Settlement will be paid to Class Counsel, Plaintiff and the Settlement Administrator. The Court will invite comment from objectors, Class Counsel and Defense Counsel before making a decision. You can attend (or hire a lawyer to attend) either personally or virtually via LACourtConnect (https://www.lacourt.org/lacc/). Check the Court’s website for the most current information. It’s possible the Court will reschedule the Final Approval Hearing. You should check the Settlement Administrator’s website www.PreferredFoodServiceSettlement.com beforehand or contact Class Counsel to verify the date and time of the Final Approval Hearing.
The Agreement sets forth everything Defendants and Plaintiff have promised to do under the proposed Settlement. The easiest way to read the Agreement, the Judgment or any other Settlement documents is to go HERE. You can also telephone or send an email to Class Counsel or the Settlement Administrator using the contact information listed below, or consult the Superior Court website by going to (http://www.lacourt.org/casesummary/ui/index.aspx) and entering the Case Number for the Action, Case No. 21STCV08225. You can also make an appointment to personally review court documents in the Clerk’s Office at the Stanley Mosk Courthouse by calling (213) 830-0800.
DO NOT TELEPHONE THE SUPERIOR COURT TO OBTAIN INFORMATION ABOUT THE SETTLEMENT.
Class Counsel:
JCL LAW FIRM, APC
Jean-Claude Lapuyade
5440 Morehouse Drive, Suite 3600
T: 619-599-8292
ZAKAY LAW GROUP, APLC
Shani Zakay
5440 Morehouse Drive, Suite 3600
San Diego, CA 92121
T: 619-892-7095
LAWYERS FOR JUSTICE, PC
410 West Arden Avenue, Suite 203
Glendale, California 91203
T: 818-265-1020
Settlement Administrator:
ATTICUS ADMINISTRATION
c/o Rojas v Preferred Food Service Settlement
PO Box 64053
Saint Paul, MN 55164
T: 1-800-960-0328
If you lose or misplace your settlement check before cashing it, the Settlement Administrator will replace it as long as you request a replacement before the void date on the face of the original check. If your check is already void you should consult the Unclaimed Property Fund for instructions on how to retrieve the funds.
To receive your check, you should immediately notify the Settlement Administrator if you move or otherwise change your mailing address.