Regus Rental Fee Class Action Lawsuit Survives Dismissal Bid

Regus plc, a company that rents out office space worldwide, will have to continue fighting a rental fee class action lawsuit, a federal judge recently decided.

A small company in California alleged that Regus Management Group LLC and other Regus entities charged additional fees such as for wear and tear kitchen amenities and the others that were not included in the terms and conditions of the of the contract. They argued that Regus violated state consumer protection laws through the breach of the contract they signed.

However, Regus plc fought back, noting that it is incorporated in Jersey in the United Kingdom and has operations in Luxembourg. The company argued that it would put an undue burden on officials to litigate here in the United States. U.S. District Judge Sam Conti, using Ninth Circuit precedent, examined a number of tests for the validity of the claim.

First, he started by noting that while there are differences between the various companies, the website and other materials make no distinction between the different Regus entities. That’s important because the motion to dismiss the class action lawsuit argued that Regus Media Group operated the website, where the terms and conditions at issue are published.

However, Judge Conti noted that Jersey and Luxembourg do not have strong consumer protection statutes as California and that the place of the event was also in the Golden State. Further, the company had a significant presence in California advertising numerous properties. As a result, it should have been aware during the process of the alleged illegal activities what statutes and laws they would need to be mindful of while operating in the state.

Finally, the company would not be as burdened by the venue switch as the small California company would be as it makes tens of millions of dollars off of its properties in that state alone and has numerous locations worldwide, according to the other. Judge Conti finally noted that the plaintiffs had passed the other conditions required by the Ninth Circuit including “(5) the most efficient judicial resolution of the controversy; (6) the importance of the forum to the plaintiff’s interest in convenient and effective relief; and (7) the existence of an alternative forum.”

The plaintiffs are represented by Ali A. Aelaei of Ari Law PC.

The Regus Rental Fee Class Action Lawsuit is Circle Click Media LLC, et al. v. Regus Management Group LLC, et al., Case No. 12-cv-04000, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.