Szabo v. Bridgeport Machines, Inc.
United States District Court for the Northern District of Indiana
199 F.R.D. 280 (N.D. Ind. 2001)
John D. Szabo, d/b/a Zatron (plaintiff), an Indiana resident, bought a vertical machining center from Bridgeport Machines, Inc. (defendant), a Delaware corporation based in Connecticut, and claimed the machine's control unit did not match Bridgeport's promotional materials and offer letter, alleging Bridgeport knew of the defect and thus made fraudulent representations. Szabo sued for negligent misrepresentation, fraud, and breach of warranty, and moved to certify a nationwide class of everyone who bought a Bridgeport machining center or milling machine with the allegedly defective control panel within a specified period and suffered damage.
Whether, if a class satisfies the requirements of numerosity, commonality, typicality, and adequate representation, that class may be certified under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23(b)(3) where common questions predominate and a class action is the superior method for adjudicating the case.