In re Wells Fargo Fraudulent Account Opening Litig.
| Citation | 282 F.Supp.3d 1360 |
| Decision Date | 05 April 2017 |
| Docket Number | MDL No. 2766 |
| Parties | IN RE: WELLS FARGO FRAUDULENT ACCOUNT OPENING LITIGATION |
| Court | United States Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation |
SARAH S. VANCE, ChairBefore the Panel:* Plaintiffs in the District of Utah Mitchell action move under 28 U.S.C. § 1407 to centralize pretrial proceedings in this litigation in the District of Utah. Plaintiffs in the Northern District of California Jabbari action oppose centralization or, alternatively, support centralization in the Northern District of California. All other plaintiffs support centralization and variously support the District of Utah, the District of New Jersey, the Northern District of California, the Northern District of Alabama, the Middle District of Florida, or the Central District of California as transferee district. Defendants Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., and Wells Fargo & Company (together, Wells Fargo) ask the Panel to defer ruling on the motion until the Panel's May 2017 hearing session or, alternatively, to deny the motion. This litigation consists of eight actions pending in six districts.1
On the basis of the papers filed and hearing session held, we conclude that centralization is not necessary at this time for the convenience of the parties and witnesses or to further the just and efficient conduct of the litigation. These actions share allegations that Wells Fargo employees used confidential information to open fraudulent accounts in customers' names to meet sales goals, and that Wells Fargo encouraged, knew of, or should have known of this practice. All actions allege overlapping putative nationwide or statewide putative class claims, and all cases will involve overlapping pretrial motions regarding class certification and arbitration. But the parties in the Northern District of California Jabbari action recently reached a nationwide class settlement in principle, a motion for preliminary approval of their proposed settlement is due in less than a month, and a hearing on the motion is set to take place in less than two months. At oral argument, counsel for the Jabbari plaintiffs represented that all interested parties will have the opportunity to object to or otherwise raise issues as to the adequacy of the proposed settlement in the Northern District of California. Centralization at this time could delay a class-wide settlement with little or no benefit to the parties and putative class members. See, e.g., In re:JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., Mortg. Corp. Force–Placed Hazard Ins. Litig. , 959 F.Supp.2d 1372, 1373 (J.P.M.L. 2013).
IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED that the motion for centralization of these actions is denied.
MDL No. 2766 — IN RE: WELLS FARGO FRAUDULENT ACCOUNT OPENING LITIGATION
JEFFRIES, ET AL. v. WELLS FARGO & COMPANY, ET AL., C.A. No. 2:16–01987
Central District...
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Mitchell v. Wells Fargo Bank
...similar allegations against Wells Fargo, and have filed suit in other districts. See In re Wells Fargo Fraudulent Account Opening Litig. , 282 F.Supp.3d 1360, 1361 (U.S. Jud. Pan. Mult. Lit. 2017).1 Of those actions filed in other districts, Jabbari v. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. , No. 3:15-cv-2......
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Mitchell v. Wells Fargo Bank, Case 2:16–cv–00966–CW–DBP
..., No. 3:15–cv–2159–VC, 2015 WL 3485066 (N.D. Cal., filed May 13, 2015).11 See In re Wells Fargo Fraudulent Account Opening Litig. , 282 F.Supp.3d 1360, 1384–85, 2017 WL 1283679, at *1 (J.P.M.L. Apr. 5, 2017). Plaintiffs then moved to lift the stay in this case. (ECF No. 55.) On April 13, 20......
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In re Hyundai & KIA GDI Engine Mktg., Sales Practices, & Prods. Liab. Litig.
...if and when the parties there move for court approval of the proposed class settlement. See In re Wells Fargo Fraudulent Account Opening Litig. , 282 F. Supp. 3d 1360, 1361 (J.P.M.L. 2017) (denying centralization, in part, because the parties would have the opportunity to object to the adeq......
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In re Wells Fargo Mortg. Modification Litig.
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