Detroit (Cason-Merenda et al v. Detroit Medical Center et al)

Keller Rohrback is acting as co-lead counsel in this matter proceeding before Chief Judge Gerald Rosen of the Eastern District of Michigan. A copy of the complaint is available by clicking below.

Third Amended Complaint

Settlements.

The Court has preliminary approved settlements with three defendants, St. John Health, Oakwood Healthcare Corp., and Bon Secours Cottage Health Services. Further details of these settlements can be found at www.detroitnursewages.com.

As required by the Court's Preliminary Approval Order, Plaintiffs filed a motion for final approval of the settlements with St. John Health, Oakwood Healthcare Corp., and Bon Secours Cottage Health Services on July 19, 2010. A Copy of the Motion for Final Approval is available below:

Plaintiffs' Motion For Final Approval Of Settlements With St. John Health, Oakwood Healtcare Inc., And Bon Secours Cottage Health Services

Class Counsel have determined not to seek any award of attorney fees at this time from any of these three settlements.

However, Plaintiffs have filed a Motion seeking reimbursement of the out-of-pocket costs that have been advanced by Plaintiffs' attorneys in litigating this case to date. A Copy of the Motion For Reimbursement of Expenses and for Payment of Incentive Award to Named Plaintiffs, as well as copies of all accompanying Exhibits and Declarations filed in support of that Motion, is available below:

Plaintiffs' Motion For Reimbursement Of Expenses And Payment Of Incentive Awards To Named Plaintiffs

Declaration of Mark A. Griffin In Support Of Motion For Final Approval Of Settlements And In Support Of Plaintiffs' Counsel's Application For Reimbursement Of Expenses

Declaration Of David P. Dean In Support Of James & Hoffman, P.C.'s Application For Reimbursement Of Detroit-Specific Expenses

Declaration Of Daniel A. Small In Support Of Plaintiffs' Application For Reimbursement And Payment Of Expenses

Declaration Of Charles E. Schaffer, Esquire In Support Of Levin, Fishbein, Sedran & Berman's Application For Reimbursement Of Detroit-Specific Expenses

Declaration Of Stephen Wasinger In Support Of Application For Reimbursement Of Detroit-Specific Expenses

Declaration Of Daniel Cohen In Support Of Cuneo, Gilbert & Laduca, LLP's Application For Reimbursement Of Expenses

While the Court-ordered deadline for filing objections to Plaintiffs' Motion seeking approval of the settlements has now passed, pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23(h), any class member may still make known to the Court any objection they may have to Plaintiffs' Motion For Reimbursement of Costs.

Class members may file an objection to the Motion For Reimbursement of Costs with the Court or appear and be heard as to their objections to the Motion For Reimbursement of Costs at the hearing scheduled to consider that motion which is scheduled for Thursday, September 2, 2010 at 2.00 p.m., to be held at the Theodore Levin US Courthouse, Room 733, 231 W. Lafayette Blvd., Detroit, MI 48226.

The Ongoing Litigation.

Litigation continues against the remaining five defendants, Henry Ford Health Services, William Beaumont Hospitals, Mount Clemens General Hospital, Detroit Medical Center and Trinity Health, Corp. Judge Rosen has denied a motion to dismiss filed by defendant Trinity Health and a motion for summary judgment filed by defendant Mt. Clemens General Hospital. A copy of both the Court’s rulings are available by clicking below.

Order Denying Trinity’s Motion to Dismiss

Order Denying Mt. Clemens’ Motion to Dismiss

Pending before the Court at this time are a number of separate motions. Plaintiffs have moved for certification of a class consisting of all staff nurses employed by the defendant hospitals since December 12, 2002. Copies of redacted public versions of Plaintiffs’ motion, Certain Defendants’ Opposition, and Plaintiffs’ Reply are available below:

Plaintiffs’ Motion for Class Certification

Defendants’ Opposition Class Certification

Plaintiffs’ Reply Supporting Class Certification

Various Defendants have filed a variety of motions for summary judgment. Public, redacted versions of those motions, Plaintiffs’ oppositions, and the Replies are available below:

Certain Defendants’ Motion for Summary Judgment

Defendant Detroit Medical Center’s Motion for Summary Judgment

Defendant Mt. Clemens’ Renewed Motion for Summary Judgment

Plaintiffs’ Consolidated Opposition to Certain Defendants’ and DMC’s Motions for Summary Judgment

Plaintiffs’ Opposition to Mt Clemens’ Renewed Motion for Summary Judgment

Certain Defendants’ Reply Supporting Motion for Summary Judgment

Defendant Detroit Medical Center’s Reply Supporting Motion for Summary Judgment

Defendant Mt. Clemens’ Reply Supporting Renewed Motion for Summary Judgment

In support of these various motions, the parties have submitted analysis conducted by various economic experts and other proposed witnesses. Links to public copies of these reports can be found below:

Orley Ashenfelter Expert Report for Plaintiffs

Daniel Rubinfeld Expert Report for Defendants

Edward Snyer Expert Report for Defendants

Joseph Caracci Report for Defendants

Orley Ashenfelter Rebuttal Report for Plaintiffs

Gregory Vistnes Expert Rebuttal Report for Plaintiffs

Various Defendants have filed motions to disqualify Plaintiffs’ expert witnesses, Prof. Orley Ashenfelter and Dr. Gregory Vistnes, from offering their testimony, and Plaintiffs have moved to disqualify Defendants’ experts, Prof. Daniel Rubinfeld and Dean Edward Snyder from offering certain testimony, as well as to exclude Mr. Caracci from offering any testimony. Those motions can be found here:

Certain Defendants’ Motion to Exclude Plaintiffs’ Expert Ashenfelter

Plaintiffs’ Opposition to Motion to Exclude Expert Ashenfelter

Certain Defendants’ Reply Supporting Motion to Exclude Expert Ashenfelter

Defendants’ Motion to Exclude Expert Vistnes

Plaintiffs’ Opposition to Motion to Exclude Expert Vistnes

Certain Defendants’ Reply Supporting Motion to Exclude Expert Vistnes

Plaintiffs’ Motion to Exclude Rubinfeld

Certain Defendants’ Opposition to Exclude Rubinfeld

Plaintiffs’ Reply Supporting Motion to Exclude Rubinfeld

Plaintiffs’ Motion to Exclude Snyder

Certain Defendants’ Opposition to Motion to Exclude Snyder

Plaintiffs’ Reply Supporting Motion to Exclude Snyder

Plaintiffs’ Motion to Exclude Caracci

Certain Defendants’ Opposition to Motion to Exclude Caracci

Plaintiffs’ Reply Supporting Motion to Exclude Caracci

Also pending before the Court is Plaintiffs’ objection to an order issued by the Magistrate Judge holding that a document produced by Henry Ford Health Services during the course of this litigation was protected from disclosure by the attorney client privilege. The Magistrate Judge’s Order is attached here:

Order on Henry Ford Attorney Client Privilege Claims

And the briefing on Plaintiffs’ objection to this Order is here:

Plaintiffs’ Objection to Order on Henry Ford Client Privilege Claims

Henry Ford’s Response to Plaintiffs’ Objection to Order on Henry Ford Privilege Claims

Plaintiffs’ Reply in Support of Objection to Order on Henry Ford Privilege Claims

No trial date has been set.

 
San Antonio (Maderazo et al v. VHS San Antonio Partners d.b.a. Methodist Hospitals et al)

Keller Rohrback is acting as co-lead counsel in this matter proceeding in the Western District of Texas before Judge Orlando Garcia. The plaintiffs have moved for certification of a class of nurses employed by the defendant hospitals and await a ruling from Judge Garcia on that motion. The matter is stayed pending this ruling.

A copy of the complaint is available by clicking here.

Second Amended Complaint 

Albany (Fleischman et al v. Albany Medical Center et al)

This matter is proceeding before Judge Thomas McAvoy of the Northern District of New York. Judge McAvoy has certified a class of nurses employed by the defendant hospitals for certain aspects of their claims. A copy of Judge McAvoy’s ruling is available by clicking below.

Decision and Order Granting Class Certification

On July 21, 2010, the court issued its Decision and Order denying the Renewed Motion for Summary Judgment by defendant Ellis Hospital, a motion based on Ellis’s unique status as the lone defendant in this action whose nurses are unionized. The court repeated its previous conclusion that “any alleged anticompetitive agreements with non-unionized hospitals to depress nurse wages are not protected by … [t]he fact that … wage rates for Ellis RNs during the class period were established exclusively through federally mandated collective bargaining [with NYSNA]”

Decision and Order

On July, 22, 2010, the Court denied a Joint Motion for Summary Judgment filed by the remaining non-settling defendants, finding that as to all elements of the Plaintiffs’ claims, Plaintiffs had produced sufficient evidence for the matter to go to a jury for evaluation of that evidence and a ruling on those claims. In that same Order, the court denied several motions to exclude or to limit portions of the Plaintiffs’ expert witness reports and testimony. Finally, that Decision and Order also granted in part a motion by the Plaintiffs’ to exclude a portion of the Defendants’ expert testimony.

Decision and Order 

Judge McAvoy has also approved settlements with defendants Seton Health, Northeast Health, and St. Peter’s Health Care.

Seton Health Settlement Agreement

Northeast Health Settlement Agreement

St. Peter’s Settlement Agreement

Order Approving Settlements

In total, these settlements have recovered approximately $4.8 million for Albany area nurses.

On August 27, 2010, the plaintiffs filed their Motion for Preliminary Approval of Class Action Settlement with Albany Medical Center. That settlement provides for a payment of approximately $4.25 million to staff nurses employed by the defendant hospitals in Albany. The Court has scheduled a hearing for October 12, 2010, to consider this motion.

Litigation continues against the only remaining defendant, Ellis Hospital.

A copy of the complaint is available by clicking here.

Class Action Complaint