Luna v. Hansen & Adkins Auto Transp., Inc.

313 F. Supp. 3d 1151
District Court, C.D. California·Decided June 13, 2018·No. Case No.: SA CV 17–0990–DOC (KESx)·Published·Cited by 1 cases

Opinion

DAVID O. CARTER, UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

Before the Court are Plaintiff Leonard Luna's ("Plaintiff") Motion for Summary Adjudication as to Liability under the FCRA ("Pl. MSJ") (Dkt. 48), and Defendant Hansen and Adkins Auto Transport, Inc.'s ("Defendant") Motion for Summary Judgment as to Plaintiff's one cause of action for willful violation of the Fair Credit *1152Reporting Act ("Df. MSJ") (Dkt. 51). The Court heard oral argument on June 11, 2018.

I. FACTS1

This case arises out of Defendant's employment application process-specifically the forms that Defendant uses to disclose to, and obtain authorization from, its job applicants for its practice of running background checks on all job applicants. Defendant Hansen & Adkins is a motor carrier licensed by the U.S. Department of Transportation ("DOT"). Plaintiff's Statement of Uncontroverted Facts ("Pl. SUF") (Dkt. 49) No. 1. Defendant operates throughout the United States and is engaged in transporting cars on car-carriers hauled by commercial motor vehicles commonly referred to as "big rigs." Id. As part of its business operations, Defendant employs commercial truck drivers and support staff, including dispatchers, mechanics, and other office and administrative employees. Id. ; Defendant's Statement of Uncontroverted Facts ("Df. SUF") (Dkt. 51-2) No. 1. Defendant maintains 30 terminals throughout the United States and employs over 1,100 drivers nationwide, with a significant number in California. Pl. SUF No. 2. Defendant has confirmed that during the liability period, it had approximately 3,000 job applicants and hired 2,101 employees. Id.

A. Defendant's Job Application Forms

As part of the hiring process, all of Defendant's employees-from the executive level managers down to its drivers-had to complete an application form, one for drivers and one for non-drivers.2 Id. No. 7. Defendant required all prospective drivers, including Plaintiff, to complete a multi-page uniform Commercial Driver Employment Application ("Driver Application"), which contained a Fair Credit Reporting Act ("FCRA") authorization at the end. Id. No. 3; Declaration of Aashish Y. Desai ("Desai Decl.") (Dkt. 48-2) Ex. M.3 The Driver Application page that contains the FCRA authorization also includes the following additional language and information: (i) Defendant's "at will" employment; (ii) warns applicants about acts of "dishonesty" on the application; (iii) sets limitations on the time in which to bring certain legal claims; and (iv) requests an agreement to pay the Company's costs and attorney's *1153fees in the event of a failed legal action against the Company. Pl. SUF No. 4; Desai Decl. Ex. M. The Driver Application notes that, by signing, the prospective employee is not only "authorizing" Hansen & Adkins "to investigate" work histories and the like, but it also notes that the applicant will "release my former employers from all liability for any damages resulting from their furnishing information." Pl. SUF No. 4. An example of this portion of the Driver Application is reproduced below:

Desai Decl. Ex. M. at H & A 000064. Likewise, non-drivers were required to complete a similar application called the Non-Driver Employment Application ("Non-Driver Application") that contained, for these purposes, nearly identical provisions to those in the Driver Application. Pl. SUF No. 5.

In addition to the employment applications, it has been Defendant's practice, since at least a far back as 2007, to give all prospective applicants an FCRA Disclosure Form prior to running any form of background check on the applicant. Df. SUF Nos. 11, 12. Specifically, if a hiring manager wants to submit an Application that has been filled out by a candidate to management for approval, the FCRA Disclosure Form is given to the applicant in paper format, along with a Background Check Form and, if the applicant is a truck driver, a Pre-employment Screening Program Disclosure Form. Df. SUF No. 28. An example of the FRCA Disclosure Form Defendant provides to applicants is shown below:

*1154Desai Decl. Ex. C (Dkt. 48-5) at H & A 000377. Upon completion, the background check forms are sent to the corporate office in Los Alamitos, California for review. Df. SUF No. 29. If approved by management, Hansen's Human Resources department will commence the background screening. Id.

B. Defendant's Background Checks

Before being hired, all of Defendant's employees are subjected to a uniform background check, which includes gathering information on their previous employment history and on any criminal or civil activity, including whether applicants are sex offenders. Pl. SUF No. 11; see also Df. SUF No. 2. Under Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration regulations, Defendant is required to conduct background checks for all applicant truck drivers before they are hired. Df. SUF No. 2; Pl. SUF No. 1 (citing 49 C.F.R. § 391.23 ). Defendant also runs motor vehicle reports on its driver applicants, and conducts a DMV check annually for its employed drivers. Pl. SUF Nos. 11, 12.

C. Whether Plaintiff Luna Signed Defendant's Disclosure Form

Defendant asserts that, while the FCRA Disclosure Form signed by Plaintiff Luna has been misplaced, it is a "near certainty" that Luna also signed that form, "because otherwise, [Defendant] would not have run the background reports necessary for him to have been hired." Df. SUF No. 36. Defendant's supporting evidence is a declaration made by Ellen Wrobel, Defendant's Director of Human Resources, that states the following:

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Luna v. Hansen & Adkins Auto Transp., Inc., 313 F. Supp. 3d 1151 (C.D. Cal. 2018).

313 F. Supp. 3d 1151 (Luna v. Hansen & Adkins Auto Transp., Inc.) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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