STIPULATION AND ORDER TO RESET CLASS CERTIFICATION DEADLINE AND SET BRIEFING SCHEDULE AND HEARING

JOHN A. MENDEZ, District Judge.

The Parties to the above-entitled action, through their respective counsel of record, submit this Stipulation and Proposed Order to (a) re-set Plaintiff's deadline to file his Motion for Class Certification and (b) set a briefing schedule and hearing date on Motion for Class Certification. The deadline to move for class certification is presently June 14, 2016. Because FRCP 30(b)(6) depositions have commenced but have not been completed, and there is pending class certification discovery and discovery-related motions that need to be resolved prior to the filing of Plaintiff's Class Certification Motion, the Parties agree to request from the court that the deadline for Plaintiff to file his Motion for Class Certification be re-set to November 14, 2016. This is the second request by the Parties to continue the class certification deadline. There is good cause for modifying the existing deadline, and the need to do so is no fault of either party.

The Parties have diligently pursued discovery in this matter. Plaintiff has served interrogatories and document requests. Plaintiff has filed a Motion to Compel Further Discovery Responses and for Production of Documents. (Dkt. No. 23) Plaintiff contends that this motion pertains to discovery that Plaintiff is central to his moving for class certification. The Parties disagree regarding whether the documents sought are discoverable based on the causes of action that are presently set forth in Plaintiff's operative First Amended Complaint. Plaintiff also seeks to further amend the First Amended Complaint to add new claims and theories of liability. Accordingly, the Parties have agreed that Plaintiff will take off calendar his pending Motion to Compel Further Discovery Responses and for Production of Documents1 while he seeks leave from the Court to file a second amended complaint. Based upon the Court's ruling on Plaintiff's anticipated motion for leave to file a second amended complaint, the Parties will again meet and confer regarding the requests at issue in Plaintiff's pending Motion to Compel Further Discovery Responses and for Production of Documents before Plaintiff refiles his motion.

Plaintiff has also filed a Motion to Compel Further Responses to Interrogatories, seeking the contact information for putative class members. (Dkt. No. 24) Plaintiff contends that this motion pertains to discovery that Plaintiff is central to his moving for class certification. The Parties have agreed that (a) Plaintiff will withdraw his pending Motion to Compel Further Responses to Interrogatories,2 and (b) Defendant will provide the contact information for putative class members subject to (i) an appropriate protective order and (ii) an opt-out notice pursuant to the procedure set forth in Belaire-West Landscape, Inc. v. Superior Court, 149 Cal.App.4th 554, 561 (2007), that will be disseminated to the putative class. See, e.g., Aldapa v. Fowlery Packing Co., Inc., 310 F.R.D. 583, 588 (E.D. Cal. 2015) ("Federal courts have adopted the Belaire opt out procedure in employment class actions."). However, the Parties must still meet and confer regarding the language of a protective order and Belaire notice, in addition to obtaining approval from the Court regarding both issues. Thereafter, notice will be sent to the putative class members and they will have 30 to 45 days to opt out from having their contact information provided to Plaintiff's counsel. At that point, subject to the protective order, Plaintiff's counsel will be provided the contact information for putative class members who did not opt out. The amount of time this process will take further warrants continuing the class certification deadline.

Plaintiff has also completed two rounds of FRCP 30(b)(6) witness depositions and is meeting and conferring with Defendants about dates for further 30(b)(6) and fact witness depositions. However, not all anticipated depositions have been completed. The parties have agreed to notice the continued deposition of Defendants' 30(b)(6) witnesses and other additional witnesses for June and/or July 2016, or later if necessary. Defendants' counsel is presently completing discovery in another matter that is expected to go to trial on July 27, 2016, and thus the complications in scheduling the completion of Defendants' witnesses. Plaintiff intends to examine Defendants' 30(b)(6) witnesses on Rule 23 matters, and anticipates that testimony from them and other additional witnesses/supervisors on the relevant employment practices and policies will be central to class certification.

Based on the foregoing, the Parties have agreed to request that the Court continue the deadline for Plaintiff to file a Motion for Class Certification to November 14, 2016. Moreover, given the significance of this motion and anticipated need to conduct further discovery concerning certification during the briefing process, the Parties have agreed to a briefing and hearing schedule as follows:

ORDER

For good cause appearing, the deadline for Plaintiff to file a motion for class certification under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure Rule 23, and a motion to certify a collective action under the Fair Labor Standards Act, is hereby continued to November 14, 2016;

Defendants shall file their Opposition to Plaintiff's Motion for Class Certification by no later than December 19, 2016.

Plaintiff shall file his Reply to Defendants' Opposition to Motion for Class Certification by no later than January 9, 2017.

The hearing on Plaintiff's Motion for Class Certification shall be set for February 7, 2017 at 1:30 p.m.

IT IS SO ORDERED.