Overview

HOLDINGS: [1]-An order striking class allegations in an action alleging wage and hour violations was appealable under the death knell doctrine, although the trial court gave the employee leave to amend the class allegations, because the order removed the allegations from the case and left the employee as the sole plaintiff in an individual action; [2]-Because the class claims already had been terminated, the trial court’s subsequent order striking the same class allegations from an amended complaint did not function as a death knell to the individual action and thus was not appealable, which left the appellate court without jurisdiction to review the disposition of the class allegations after the employee did not appeal the initial order; [3]-Treating the appeal as a writ petition was not appropriate because a colorable dispute about appealability did not amount to unusual circumstances. Parties’ civil litigation lawyer appeal.