Federal Appeals Court Denies Class Certification in Pet Food Litigation

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has determined that pet food mislabeling claims should not be certified as a class action because the named plaintiff failed to satisfy the predominance requirement of Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23(b)(3). Kennedy v. Natural Balance Pet Foods, Inc., No. 08-56378 (9th Cir., decided January 6, 2010) (not for publication). The plaintiff alleged that dog and cat food products labeled with “Made in the USA” were mislabeled because they contained ingredients from China and sought to certify a class of individuals from a number of states.

While the court upheld the district court’s class certification ruling because the plaintiff failed to show which consumer protection law would apply to the class claims, it reversed the court’s order dismissing the action for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction. According to the court, the case, which had been removed from state to federal court, should have been returned to the San Diego Superior Court. The Ninth Circuit ordered the lower court to remand the action.