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This article is part one of four related articles, addressing the requirements needed to represent a plaintiff in a class action under the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act, 29 U.S.C. Sections 2101—2109, et seq. (“WARN Act”). This article by Attorney Peter Mavrick provides a brief overview what a plaintiff needs to establish the numerosity and commonality requirements for a Rule 23, Fed. R. Civ. Proc., class action.

Rule 23(a)(1): Numerosity.

Under Rule 23(a)(1), Fed.R.Civ.Proc., the class must be “so numerous that joinder of all members is impracticable.” At least one court has noted that “the WARN Act seems particularly amenable to class litigation. By its terms, WARN is applicable only in the context of employer action which affects a large number of employees. It is only applicable to companies which employ more than 100 employees.” Finnan v. LF. Rothchild & Co., Inc., 726 F.Supp. 460, 465 (S.D.N.Y. 1989). See, e.g., Cruz v. Robert Abbey, Inc., 778 F.Supp. 605, 612 (E.D.N.Y. 1991) (holding that proposed class of at least 114 persons in a WARN action was so numerous that joinder of all members was impracticable); Cashman v. Dolce International/Hartford, Inc., 225 F.R.D. 73, 91 (D. Conn. 2004) (proposed class of 117 former employees in WARN action met numerosity requirement); Kelly v. Sabretech, Inc., 195 F.R.D. 48, 53 (S.D. Fla. 1999) (proposed class in WARN action estimated at 85 to 110 employees “is so numerous that joinder of all members is impracticable”); Carrier v. JPB Enters., Inc., 206 F.R.D. 332, 334 (E.D. Me. 2002) (numerosity requirement for class action on behalf of employees terminated due to plant closing or mass layoff was met where number of individuals with actionable claims exceeded 40, and for one claim was 123).

Although there is no “magic number” of class members required to find numerosity, a class of 40 has generally been found sufficient to satisfy Rule 23(a)(1) and plaintiff’s proposed class well exceeds this number. Consol. Rail Corp. v. Town of Hyde Park, 47 F.3d 473, 483 (2d Cir. 1995) (“numerosity is presumed at a level of 40 members”); Swanson v. American Consumer Industries, Inc., 415 F.2d 1326, 1333, n. 9 (7th Cir. 1969) (noting that 40 class members is sufficiently large to satisfy Rule 23(a)).

Rule 23(a)(2): Commonality.

Commonality refers to when there are questions of law and fact that are common to the class relating to the application of the WARN Act provisions to an alleged common course of action by defendant. Showing that the claims of the class members share “a common nucleus of operative fact” is usually sufficient to satisfy the commonality requirement of Rule 23(a)(2). Keele v. Wexler, 149 F.3d 589, 594 (7th Cir. 1998). “Common nuclei of fact are typically manifest where … the defendants have engaged in standardized conduct towards members of the proposed class ….” Id. Generally WARN Act cases arise out of a mass termination of employees that took place on a certain dates because the closure of defendant’s business. Under the case authorities, the common questions include, but are not limited to:

(1) Whether defendant is an employer within the meaning of WARN;
(2) Whether defendant’s actions triggered the sixty day notice requirement (specifically, if there was a “mass layoff” or a “plant closing”);
(3) Whether statutory excepts to the notice requirement apply;
(4) Whether defendant failed to provide notice as required; and
(5) Whether proposed class members suffered an employment loss.

Where resolution of the foregoing common questions would require class-wide proof, the commonality requirement has been satisfied. Murray v. Auslander, 244 F.3d 807, 811 (11th Cir. 2001) (Under commonality requirement, “a class action must resolve issues that are susceptible to class-wide proof”). Other courts examining WARN Act cases have concluded that the common questions present here are sufficient for the commonality requirement. See, e.g., Kelly v. Sabretech, Inc., 195 F.R.D. 48, 53 (S.D. Fla. 1999); Moreno v. DFG Foods, LLC, 2003 U.S.Dist. LEXIS 8700 at * 22 (N.D. Ill. 2003).

Attorney Peter Mavrick practices in the field of business and labor/employment litigation in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Information contained in this article is accurate as of June 2008. This article from Attorney Peter Mavrick is for general information use only, and does not substitute for specifically tailored legal advice.

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You’ve probably heard the word being used, but if you don’t understand what exactly a paralegal is or does, you aren’t alone. This article will explain everything you need to know about the profession.

Just What is a Paralegal?

Another title for paralegal is “legal assistant” and this is perhaps more revealing. It usually requires two years of studying to become a paralegal and these two years allow the person to do many of the more mundane tasks that a lawyer would normally undertake. While not an actual lawyer, the assistant is legally allowed to perform some of the same work. Refer to lawyers for more information.

You’ll often see ads for this type of work, since lawyers often hire a paralegal to work in their office. Larger law firms will have several working, each one taking on the jobs from several lawyers.

What a Paralegal Does

The work that is done by a legal assistant is varied. Essentially, the assistant is helping out a lawyer, or often several lawyers, by taking over some of the repetitive jobs or things that would be a waste of time for the higher paid professional. It’s still a good way to earn money, but without all the schooling required to become an attorney.

Let’s look at what a paralegal cannot do first. They cannot do anything that would be considered practicing law, including:

Giving legal advice
Setting fees
Acting as counsel in a courtroom

That being said, there is a vast area of tasks that are legally allowed and these are where the legal assistant will focus his or her attention while working for a law firm. The majority of this involves work that a lawyer could do but simply doesn’t have time for. Go to legal advice for more information.

Investigations are the primary area of need. Finding witnesses, looking for previously decided court cases similar to the one at hand, and doing all manner of research involved in court cases is something that the attorney will not usually be involved in. So, they turn this work over to their assistants.

In addition, all the paperwork that goes along with these investigations will be taken on by the paralegal. This involves typing up reports, preparing court motions and even working on contracts and agreements that will later be approved by the lawyers.

What a Paralegal Needs to Know

While not actually a lawyer, the paralegal will be studied in court procedure since he or she will often be present during cases to provide the correct paperwork and reports for the attorney. This is a great help, since the attorney can focus on the actual presentation and the papers and reports are handed to him or her as needed, in the correct order. This requires an extensive knowledge of how everything works in the courtroom, from court motions to draft pleadings, all of which are taught during those two years.

The majority of the work that a paralegal does is paperwork. While this could be boring, it does involve some interesting cases and requires understanding most of the legal proceedings that will occur. This is the part that can be challenging and interesting and is the main reason people choose this profession.

Paralegals are a very important part of the legal system. Without them, lawyers would be required to do all the grunt work themselves and this would leave very little time for taking statements and prepping witnesses for the actual court cases. It’s a job that requires skill, training and the ability to work hard and accurately. It’s not for the faint of heart, but many people enjoy the challenge. Visit legal insurance for further information.

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The divorce rate in America for first marriage is over 40% percent, 67% of second and 74% of third marriages end in divorce, according to the Forest Institute of Professional Psychology in Springfield, Missouri. But the statistics show that divorce rates are actually reducing.

Did you know that a fast and legal divorce in SC can be obtained in just a year. Couples who have lived separate and apart for more than one year without cohabitation or sexual relations can obtain what is commonly known as a “no fault” divorce. The duration of the case depends on the complexity, the number of cases on the family court docket, the attitude of your spouse. But in general an uncontested fast and legal divorce in SC can be obtained in less than a year. Divorce duration differs from state to state. A fast and legal divorce in SC would differ from a quick Virginia divorce.

An uncontested fast and legal divorce in SC is one in which the parties involved have, by themselves, that is without the help of the court, worked out the important issues pertaining to the divorce; for example, division of property, child custody and child support issues.

Anyone has the right to and therefore may file a divorce complaint without the help of a divorce attorney. However, you should be aware that there are very important legal ramifications to any particular situation and that the advice of competent attorney is always the wisest choice. In any case, it is always advisable that you seek legal advice from an attorney for the Drafting of Orders and/or your Final Judgment of Divorce if you are looking for a fast and legal divorce in SC.

Divorce is never easy and should only be filed once all avenues to save the marriage have been exhausted. Divorce can be hard on finances and may be emotionally scaring to some. A survey conducted shows that women usually come off worse after a divorce. A divorced woman with children is up to four times more likely than a married woman to have an income that is under the poverty line. A single mother is nine times more likely than a married woman to have an income that is less than half the official poverty line. Although 10% of families in the U.S. are headed by a woman, 40% of poor families have a female head of household. Of course, divorce also results in a higher cost to society as a whole as it can cost the state and federal government more than $30,000 to process a single divorce.

Please remember to consult a specialist child custody attorney who is an expert in SC child custody laws if there is a child custody conflict. Please refrain from hiring a non specialist or an attorney from another state, a Florida child custody lawyer, for example.

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