Gibbs Properties Corp. v. Cigna Corp.

196 F.R.D. 430, 2000 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 9811, 2000 WL 941092
CourtDistrict Court, M.D. Florida
DecidedJune 16, 2000
DocketNo. 3:98-CV-687-J-21C
StatusPublished
Cited by14 cases

This text of 196 F.R.D. 430 (Gibbs Properties Corp. v. Cigna Corp.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, M.D. Florida primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Gibbs Properties Corp. v. Cigna Corp., 196 F.R.D. 430, 2000 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 9811, 2000 WL 941092 (M.D. Fla. 2000).

Opinion

ORDER

NIMMONS, District Judge.

This cause comes before the Court on Plaintiffs’ Motion for Class Certification (Dkt. 84), Plaintiffs’ memorandum in support (Dkt. 85), Plaintiffs’ Amendment to Motion for Class Certification (Dkt. 97), Defendant’s Response (Dkt. 111) in opposition to class certification, and Plaintiffs’ Reply memorandum (Dkt. 126).

Plaintiffs Gibbs Properties Corporation (“Gibbs”), Casa Calderon, Inc. (“Casa Calderon”), and Food Service of Tallahassee, Inc. (“Food Service”) filed their original complaint on July 17,1998 (Dkt. 1). On July 27, 1999, the Court dismissed (Dkt. 70) three of the Plaintiffs’ counts. Subsequently, Plaintiffs filed their First Amended Complaint (Dkt. 72). On May 12, 2000, a hearing was held in open court on the class certification motion. (Transcript, Dkt. 134).

Plaintiffs are three Florida corporations which purchased various commercial insurance packages from Defendants Cigna Fire Underwriters Insurance Co. (“Cigna Fire”), Bankers Standard Insurance Company (“Bankers”), Insurance Company of North America (“INA”), and Pacific Employers Insurance Company (“Pacific”), insurance companies which are all owned by Defendant Cigna Corporation.1 The crux of Plaintiffs’ Complaint is that Defendants purported to sell insurance to Plaintiffs in accordance with rates and schedules filed with the Florida Department of Insurance (“FDOI”) but in fact instituted various policies and procedures whereby Defendants would illegally and improperly inflate the premiums and collect such excessive premiums. As alleged by Plaintiffs, such policies and procedures, which are in violation of the Florida Insurance Code and the FDOI regulations, included both offsetting mandatory experience-based credits, which policyholders had a legal right to receive, with arbitrary and unjustified schedule debits, resulting in an illegal increase in the premium charged by at least 8% per year, and simply increasing premiums annually without regard to whether such was permissible under Florida law, i.e., without regard to whether the policyholders’ individual risk characteristics justified the increase. By knowingly collecting as a premium or charge for insurance any sum different from the premium or charge applicable to that type of insurance as filed with the FDOI, Plaintiffs allege that Defendants violated Florida law, the Florida Insurance Code and regulations promulgated thereunder, and the Federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, 18 U.S.C. § 1961, et seq.

In Plaintiffs’ motion for class certification (Dkt. 84), as amended (Dkt. 97), Plaintiffs seek to certify a class consisting of all persons who (i) reside or do business in the State of Florida, (ii) purchased or renewed either a commercial general liability policy (monoline or package) or commercial automobile policy from any of the Defendants from January 1, 1990 through December 31, 1992, and (iii) were charged a premium inconsistent with the applicable rates, as modified by the misapplication of Defendants’ schedule rating plan, under Florida law. Excluded from the class would be the Defendants; members of the immediately family of each Defendant; any person, firm, trust, corporation, officer, director, or other individual or entity in which any Defendant has a controlling interest or which is related to or affiliated with any of the Defendants; and the legal [434]*434representatives,’ heirs, successor-in-interest or assigns of any such excluded party.

LEGAL STANDARD AND REQUIREMENTS OF RULE 23

Rule 23(a) allows an action to be maintained as a class action only if (1) the class is so numerous that joinder of all members is impracticable, (2) there are questions of law or fact common to the class, (3) the claims or defenses of the representative parties are typical of the claims or defenses of the class, and (4) the representative parties will fairly and adequately protect the interests of the class. If the Court determines that the requirements of Rule 23(a) have been met by the moving party, the Court then proceeds to determine if the requirements of Rule 23(b) have been met. Hudson, 90 F.3d at 456, n. 8. The party seeking class certification must show that his action falls into one of the three possible categories of actions under Rule 23(b). In the present case, the Plaintiffs assert their claims under rule 23(b)(3).2

When determining whether the requirements of Rule 23 are satisfied, the Court cannot consider the merits of the Plaintiffs’ claims. Eisen v. Carlisle & Jacquelin, 417 U.S. 156, 175-76, 94 S.Ct. 2140, 2153-54, 40 L.Ed.2d 732 (1974). “In determining the propriety of a class action, the question is not whether the plaintiff or plaintiffs have stated a cause of action or will prevail on the merits, but rather whether the requirements of Rule 23 are met.” 417 U.S. at 178, 94 S.Ct. at 2153 (quoting Miller v. Mackey Int'l, 452 F.2d 424, 427 (5th Cir. 1971)). Nevertheless, it is sometimes necessary to “probe behind the pleadings before coming to rest on the certification question.” Hudson, 90 F.3d at 457 (quoting General Tel. Co. of the Southwest v. Falcon, 457 U.S. 147, 160,102 S.Ct. 2364, 2372, 72 L.Ed.2d 740, 752 (1982)).

The Court may look beyond the allegations of the complaint to determine whether the requirements of Rule 23 have been met. Kirkpatrick v. J.C. Bradford & Co., 827 F.2d 718, 722-23 (11th Cir.1987). Evidence relevant to the certification question is often intertwined with the merits. Nelson v. United States Steel Corp., 709 F.2d 675, 679 (11th Cir.1983). For this reason, the Eisen principle “should not be talismanically invoked to artificially limit a trial court’s examination of the factors necessary to a reasoned determination of whether a plaintiff has met her burden of establishing each of the Rule 23 class action requirements.” Love v. Turlington, 733 F.2d 1562, 1564 (11th Cir.1984). Simply put, “[a]t the class certification stage, the Court examines evidence as to how the class proponents intend to prevail at trial, not whether the facts adduced by the class proponents are susceptible to challenges by class opponents.” In re Polypropylene Carpet Antitrust Litigation, 178 F.R.D. 603, 618 (N.D.Ga.1997).

In their memorandum in support of class certification, the Plaintiffs assert, “A court’s determination of class action certification should be based on the allegations set forth in the complaint, Shelter Realty Corp. v. Allied Maintenance Corp., 574 F.2d 656, 661 n. 15 (2nd Cir.1978), and those allegations must be accepted as true. In re Carbon Dioxide Antitrust Litig., 149 F.R.D. 229, 232 (M.D.Fla.1993) (‘For the purposes of class certification, ... the Court accepts the Plaintiffs’ substantive allegations as true.’).” (Pl. mem. at 12, n.l5)(Dkt. 85). See also Jackson v. Motel 6 Multipurposes, Inc., 175 F.R.D. 337, 340 (M.D.Fla.1997). This Court does not believe, however, that the cases [435]*435cited by Plaintiffs state a proposition contrary to the standard expounded in the preceding paragraphs. The

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196 F.R.D. 430, 2000 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 9811, 2000 WL 941092, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/gibbs-properties-corp-v-cigna-corp-flmd-2000.