Phoenix office Managing Partner Echo Reynolds, with the assistance of San Francisco Partner Mark Wilson, successfully represented a large gym in a class action lawsuit filed in the United States District Court for the District of Arizona. The plaintiff claimed that lower-tier gym members were sneaking into premium areas, causing overcrowding and broken equipment, which supposedly deprived premium members of their perks. The plaintiff claimed our client accepted premium members’ fees without policing its premium spaces to ensure lower-tier members did not use them.
Our team filed a motion to dismiss the case, asking the court to dismiss the lawsuit. The court granted the motion, observing the plaintiff could no more sue a gym because other members snuck into premium areas than he could sue a movie theater because other moviegoers hopped between theaters. Nevertheless, the court gave the plaintiff leave to amend his complaint to state a viable cause of action.
The plaintiff then shifted tactics, arguing the membership agreement was unconscionable and unenforceable. To illustrate the overcrowding, he added a new allegation claiming he personally witnessed premium members swiping their badges to let lower-tier members into the restricted spaces.
Our team moved to dismiss this amended complaint, using the plaintiff’s own claims against him. Our team argued that the gym’s security system, which required a badge, proved the company had security and safeguards in place for premium member areas, and that the company could not be held liable if patrons actively chose to circumvent those security protocols.
The court sided with our client once again, granting the second motion to dismiss, this time with prejudice. The court found that although the plaintiff still could not state a viable claim, since he kept insisting his membership agreement promised things it simply didn’t. Our client secured a total victory, with zero dollars paid to the plaintiff and a complete dismissal of all claims.
About Our Team
Mark Wilson is a member of the Appellate Law (Strategy, Writs, & Appeals) team. Mr. Wilson has an extensive appellate background and has litigated in the California Supreme Court, California Courts of Appeal, and the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Additionally, he serves on the board of the American Constitution Society’s Bay Area Lawyer Chapter and the Amicus Committee of the Association of Defense Counsel of Northern California and Nevada.
Echo A. Reynolds is the Managing Partner of the Phoenix office and a member of the Insurance Coverage / Bad Faith team. Ms. Reynolds regularly advises insurance companies and other clients in complex commercial litigation, insurance coverage matters, and bad faith litigation in both state and federal courts. Additionally, she serves as a Judge Pro Tempore for the Maricopa County Superior Court and as the Chair of the Community Engagement Board for the Epilepsy Foundation Arizona.