U.S. District Judge Jeffrey S. White has dismissed all claims based on California law from a pending lawsuit, which had sought to bring these claims as a state-wide class action. The court's order, dated on December 22, 2009, is a major development that could impact many planned and pending class actions throughout California. Judge White based his ruling on the court's lack of "subject matter" jurisdiction, noting that the plaintiffs sought damages based on practices that had already been approved by the California Public Utilities Commission ("CPUC").

"We are very pleased with Judge White's decision. SuperShuttle's franchise-based business in California was established years ago in response to CPUC actions that specifically permitted independent contractor business models, in order to ensure the availability of safe services at the lowest cost to consumers in California," said SuperShuttle Chief Financial Officer Tom LaVoy.

Judge White dismissed all ten California law-based claims asserting violations of California's Labor Code and unfair competition law from an action brought on behalf of drivers for a nationwide airport shuttle system. The order strips the litigation of all claims other than those based on the federal Fair Labor Standards Act ("FLSA"). Because the federal law requires plaintiffs to specifically consent to the action in writing, and provides plaintiffs with shorter limitations periods, fewer claims and less favorable methods of calculating damages, the number of claimants is greatly reduced.
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