Rosen v. Fidelity Fixed Income Trust

169 F.R.D. 295, 1995 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 17359, 1995 WL 694764
CourtDistrict Court, E.D. Pennsylvania
DecidedNovember 28, 1995
DocketCivil Action No. 95-2365
StatusPublished
Cited by9 cases

This text of 169 F.R.D. 295 (Rosen v. Fidelity Fixed Income Trust) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, E.D. Pennsylvania primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Rosen v. Fidelity Fixed Income Trust, 169 F.R.D. 295, 1995 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 17359, 1995 WL 694764 (E.D. Pa. 1995).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM

PADOVA, District Judge.

Plaintiff, Sarah L. Rosen, brings this securities class action alleging that Defendants, Fidelity Fixed Income Trust, Fidelity Management & Research Company, Fidelity Distributors Corporation, and FMR Corp.,1 made false, and misleading written statements, in violation of §§ 11, 12(2) and 15 of the Securities Act of 1933, 15 U.S.C.A. §§ 77k, 771(2) & 77o (West 1993 & Supp. 1995) (Counts I, II, & III) and Pennsylvania’s Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law, 73 Pa.Cons.Stat.Ann. §§ 201-1 to 201-9.2 (West 1993 & Supp.1995) (Count IV). Currently before the court is Plaintiffs motion for class certification pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 23(a), (b)(3). For the reasons that follow, I will deny the motion in part and certify the class subject to the modifications described below.

1. FACTUAL BACKGROUND

Plaintiff alleges the following material facts. On December 20, 1993, Plaintiff, a Pennsylvania resident, purchased 1,155 shares in the Fidelity Spartan Short-Intermediate Government Fund (the “Fund”).2 Before investing in the Fund, Plaintiff received written information about the Fund at the Fidelity Investment Center located in Philadelphia.3 Plaintiff alleges that Defendants stressed in written materials that the Fund’s goal was “high current income with preservation of capital,” and that the Fund sought to achieve its goal by investing “principally in securities issued or guaranteed by the U.S. Government and its agencies while maintaining an average maturity of two to five years.” Pl.’s Compl. at ¶ 2.

Plaintiff alleges that Defendants sold shares in the Fund through materially false [297]*297and misleading statements concerning the Fund’s investment goals, strategies, and risks. Although Defendants portrayed the Fund, through its name and -written materials, as a conservative, low-risk investment, the Fund’s portfolio was actually weighted heavily toward long-term securities, which exposed unsuspecting investors to substantial risks.4

Plaintiff now seeks certification of the following class pursuant to Rule 23(a) and 23(b)(3) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure:

All persons or entities who purchased shares of the Fidelity Spartan Short-Intermediate Fund pursuant to any of the Prospectuses and Registration Statements dated October 16, 1992, June 21, 1993, or June 21, 1994. Excluded from the Class are Defendants, their affiliates, their present and former officers, directors, and employees, and any trusts or entities that Defendants control.

Pl.’s Compl. at ¶ 39.

II. STANDARD OF REVIEW

A plaintiff seeking class certification “must establish that all four requisites of Rule 23(a) and at least one part of Rule 23(b) are met.” Baby Neal v. Casey, 43 F.3d 48, 55 (3d Cir.1994) (citation omitted). Rule 23(a) states:

(a) Prerequisite to a Class Action. One or more members of a class may sue or be sued as representative parties on behalf of all 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.

Fed.R.Civ.P. 23(a). Rule 23(b)(3) states:

(b) Class Action Maintainable. An action may be maintained as a class action if the prerequisites of subdivision (a) are satisfied, and in addition:
(3) the court finds that the questions of law or fact common to the members of the class predominate over any questions affecting only individual members, and that a class action is superior to other available methods for the fair and efficient adjudication of the controversy. The matters pertinent to the findings include: (A) the interest of members of the class in individually controlling the prosecution or defense of separate actions; (B) the extent and nature of any litigation concerning the controversy already commenced by or against members of the class; (C) the desirability or undesirability of concentrating the litigation of the claims in the particular forum; (D) the difficulties likely to be encountered in the management of a class action.

Fed.R.Civ.P. 23(b)(3).

A District Court ruling on a class certification motion should set forth findings of fact and conclusions of law. See In re General Motors Corp. Pick-Up Truck Fuel Tank Prod. Liab. Litig., 55 F.3d 768, 794 (3d Cir.), cert. denied, _ U.S._, 116 S.Ct. 88, 133 [298]*298L.Ed.2d 45 (1995); Eisenberg v. Gagnon, 766 F.2d 770, 785 (3d Cir.), cert. denied, 474 U.S. 946, 106 S.Ct. 342, 343, 88 L.Ed.2d 290 (1985).

III. RULE 23(a)

A. Numerosity

To satisfy the numerosity requirement, a class must be “so numerous that joinder of all members is impracticable.” Fed.R.Civ.P. 23(a). There is no hard and fast rule as to what number of class members results in joinder being impracticable. Some courts have certified relatively small classes, deeming them impracticable for joinder, while still other courts have chosen not to certify relatively large numbers of class members. See, e.g., Manning v. Princeton Consumer Discount Co., 390 F.Supp. 320 (E.D.Pa.1975) (finding group of fourteen plaintiffs impracticable for joinder); Minersville Coal Co. v. Anthracite Export Ass’n, 55 F.R.D. 426 (M.D.Pa.1971) (finding group of 330 plaintiffs not impracticable for joinder).

In the instant case, Plaintiff claims that the class consists of thousands of members. Defendants do not challenge Plaintiffs assertion and do not question the numerosity aspect of class certification. I therefore conclude that Plaintiff has met the numerosity requirement of Rule 23(a).

B. Commonality

The commonality requirement of Rule 23(a) requires that there exist questions of law or fact common to the members of the proposed class. “The commonality requirement will be satisfied if the named plaintiffs share at least one question of fact or law with the grievances of the prospective class. Because the requirement may be satisfied by a single common issue, it is easily met.” Baby Neal, 43 F.3d at 56.

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Bluebook (online)
169 F.R.D. 295, 1995 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 17359, 1995 WL 694764, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/rosen-v-fidelity-fixed-income-trust-paed-1995.