In Grande v. Eisenhower Medical Center, FlexCare, LLC (“FlexCare”), a temporary staffing agency, assigned Plaintiff to work as a nurse at Eisenhower Medical Center (“Eisenhower”). The plaintiff alleged that during her employment at Eisenhower, FlexCare and Eisenhower failed to ensure she received the required meal and rest periods, wages for certain periods she worked, and overtime wages. She then filed a class-action lawsuit on behalf of FlexCare employees assigned to hospitals throughout California. Plaintiff’s claims were based solely on her work on assignment to Eisenhower.
FlexCare settled with the class and the plaintiff executed a release of claims. The trial court entered a judgment incorporating the settlement agreement. Eisenhower was not named as a released party in the settlement.
A year later, Plaintiff brought a second class-action suit against Eisenhower. FlexCare intervened in the action asserting Plaintiff could not bring the separate lawsuit against Eisenhower because she had settled her claims in the prior class action.
The trial court held a limited trial on the issue of the propriety of the lawsuit and ruled that Eisenhower was not a released party under the settlement agreement.
Accordingly, Eisenhower could not avail itself of the doctrine of res judicata or claim preclusion because the hospital was neither a party to the prior litigation nor in privity with FlexCare. The Court of Appeals agreed with the trial court.
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