Taylor v. Housing Authority of New Haven

257 F.R.D. 23, 72 Fed. R. Serv. 3d 1359, 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 18344, 2009 WL 650381
CourtDistrict Court, D. Connecticut
DecidedMarch 10, 2009
DocketCivil No. 3:08cv557 (JBA)
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 257 F.R.D. 23 (Taylor v. Housing Authority of New Haven) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Connecticut primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Taylor v. Housing Authority of New Haven, 257 F.R.D. 23, 72 Fed. R. Serv. 3d 1359, 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 18344, 2009 WL 650381 (D. Conn. 2009).

Opinion

RULING ON PLAINTIFFS’ MOTION FOR CLASS CERTIFICATION [Doc. #46], GRADY REYNOLDS AND PLAINTIFFS’ MOTION TO INTERVENE [Doc. # 83], and PLAINTIFFS’ MOTION TO APPOINT CLASS COUNSEL [Doc. # 101]

JANET BOND ARTERTON, District Judge.

Plaintiffs Rebecca Taylor and Karl Hunter allege that the Housing Authority of New Haven (“HANH”)1 discriminates against them and other disabled Section 8 tenants by failing to afford them certain accommodations to which they claim entitlement under the statutes and regulations governing HANH’s implementation in New Haven of the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program (the “Section 8 Program”) of the U.S. [26]*26Department of Housing and Urban Development (“HUD”). Plaintiffs now move for class certification on two of their claims, which Defendants oppose.

1. Background

HANH operates HUD’s Section 8 Program within the area of New Haven.2 Among the participants in HANH’s Section 8 Program are the named plaintiffs in this suit: Ms. Taylor, who suffers from spina bifida and uses a wheelchair, and Mr. Hunter, who has used a wheelchair since 1989 when he became permanently disabled after breaking his neck. (2d Am. Compl. [Doc. #81] at page 1 (Taylor); Affidavit of Karl Hunter, Ex. 2 to Hunter’s Mot. Intervene [Doc. # 45] (“Hunter Aff.”), at ¶ 2.) At the time suit was brought, both had sought to move from the apartments in which they lived, and both claim that HANH did not help them locate accessible residences and/or help them to move in the ways and to the extent to which it was obligated under federal law. Specifically, Plaintiffs assert that HANH failed to provide them with a listing of apartments that are both available and accessible to them (the “Accessible Unit List” or “AUL”) and failed to inform them of the availability of, or provide them with, “mobility counseling” (a service which includes helping them identify apartments accommodating their needs, transporting them during their apartment search, helping them complete and submit rental applications, physically moving them and their belongings to their new apartments, and providing other forms of support). Plaintiffs allege that HANH has a policy and/or practice of failing to maintain and provide an AUL, and of failing to offer or provide mobility counseling, to households including at least one disabled member to which HANH has issued a Housing Certificate or Housing Voucher (“Disabled Section 8 Household”). In Counts I and III of their complaint,3 they allege that Defendants’ failure to provide the AUL and offer and provide mobility counseling constitutes discrimination on the basis of their disability4 *in violation of the Pair Housing Act, 42 U.S.C. § 3604(f), violates Defendants’ duty to provide Plaintiffs with “reasonable accommodations” under 24 C.F.R. § 100.204, and violates 24 C.F.R. § 8.28(a)(3). (2d Am. Compl. [Doc. # 81] at ¶¶ 34-39 & 45-50.)

At oral argument, the Court proposed5 a class definition which the parties agreed encapsulated Plaintiffs’ claims and should be the basis for analyzing whether Plaintiffs’ Motion for Class Certification should be granted under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23(b)(2):

All households including at least one handicapped person to which the Housing Authority of New Haven has issued a Housing Certificate or Housing Voucher, and:
(a) that did not receive a list of available, accessible apartments, as required under 42 U.S.C. § 3604(f), 24 C.F.R. § 100.204, and/or 24 C.F.R. § 8.28(a)(3); and/or
(b) that did not receive Mobility Counseling services, or offer thereof, as required under 42 U.S.C. § 3604(f), 24 [27]*27C.F.R. § 100.204, and/or 24 C.F.R. § 8.28(a)(3).

For the reasons that follow, Plaintiffs’ motion for class certification will be granted.

II. Standards for Class Certification

“It would seem to be beyond dispute that a district court may not grant class certification without making a determination that all of the Rule 23 requirements are met.” In re Initial Public Offerings Sec. Litig., 471 F.3d 24, 40 (2d Cir.2006) (“In re IPO ”).

Plaintiffs moving for class certification must demonstrate that their proposed class meets the requirements of Rule 23(a) and (b). Rule 23(a) outlines “four familiar features” that must be present if a class is to be certified: numerosity, commonality, typicality, and adequacy of representation. McLaughlin v. Am. Tobacco Co., 522 F.3d 215, 222 (2d Cir.2008); see also Fed.R.Civ.P. 23(a). In addition to these four express criteria, there is an implicit but “fundamental” requirement under Rule 23(a) that a certified class be ascertainable, i.e., “[t]he class that plaintiffs seek to certify must be readily identifiable so that the court can determine who is in the class, and thus, who is bound by the ruling. A class is ascertainable when defined by objective criteria that are administratively feasible, without a subjective determination.” McBean v. City of New York, 228 F.R.D. 487, 492 (S.D.N.Y.2005). Plaintiffs seek certification under Rule 23(b)(2), under which their action must allege that “the party opposing the class has acted or refused to act on grounds that apply generally to the class, so that final injunctive relief or corresponding declaratory relief is appropriate respecting the class as a whole.” Fed.R.Civ.P. 23(b)(2).

In the Second Circuit, although a court considering a motion for class certification must “assess all of the relevant evidence admitted at the class certification stage and determine whether each Rule 23 requirement has been met,” In re IPO, 471 F.3d at 42, it should avoid holding “a protracted mini-trial of substantial portions of the underlying litigation,” id. 41, as it seeks to obtain this evidence. It must consider the merits of the lawsuit to the extent necessary to determine whether the Rule 23 requirements have been met, but is precluded from considering any dispute about the suit’s merits unrelated to these requirements. Id.

III. Discussion

A.

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257 F.R.D. 23, 72 Fed. R. Serv. 3d 1359, 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 18344, 2009 WL 650381, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/taylor-v-housing-authority-of-new-haven-ctd-2009.