Cruz v. Unilock Chicago

              No. 2--07--1031 Filed: 6-25-08
______________________________________________________________________________
IN THE
APPELLATE COURT OF ILLINOIS
SECOND DISTRICT
______________________________________________________________________________
WILFREDO CRUZ, MATTHEW ALLBEE, ) Appeal from the Circuit Court
GUADALUPE VARELA, RAUL TORRES, ) of Kane County.
and KENNETH JOSEPH, Individually and )
on Behalf of a Class of Similarly Situated )
Persons, ))
Plaintiffs-Appellants, ))
v. ) No. 05--CH--259
)
UNILOCK CHICAGO, INC., ) Honorable
) Michael J. Colwell,
Defendant-Appellee. ) Judge, Presiding.
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JUSTICE O'MALLEY delivered the opinion of the court:
Plaintiffs, Wilfredo Cruz, Matthew Allbee, Guadalupe Varela, Raul Torres, and Kenneth
Joseph, timely filed a petition for leave to appeal pursuant to Supreme Court Rule 306(a)(8) (210
Ill. 2d R. 306(a)(8)), seeking to appeal the order of the circuit court of Kane County denying
plaintiffs' motion for class certification. We granted plaintiffs leave to appeal. On appeal, plaintiffs
contend that the trial court abused its discretion and relied on improper legal standards in denying
their motion for class certification. We reverse and remand the cause with instructions.
The following summary of facts is taken from the allegations of plaintiffs' complaint as well
as the evidence compiled and presented by the parties in support of their positions on the class
certification. In our factual recitation, we also seek to present the purported factual issues identified