IN THE IOWA DISTRICT COURT IN AND FOR DUBUQUE COUNTY QUINTON DURUJI, on Behalf of Himself and all Others Similarly Situated; vs. Plaintiffs, Case No: PLATINUM SERVICES, INC. n/k/a PLATINUM SUPPLEMENTAL INSURANCE, INC. Defendant. PETITION COMES NOW Plaintiffs, and for cause of action against Defendant states as follows: THE PARTIES 1. Defendant Platinum Services, Inc., n/k/a Platinum Supplemental Insurance, Inc., (hereinafter Platinum ) is an Iowa corporation having its general headquarters located in Dubuque, Dubuque County, Iowa. 2. Platinum is engaged in the sales and service of certain supplemental insurance products generally in various Midwestern states. 3. Plaintiff Quinton Duruji is a resident of the State of Minnesota. 4. Other persons similarly situated (the Putative Class or Putative Class Members ) are residents of various other states within the continental United States. VENUE AND JURISDICTION 5. Jurisdiction and Venue are proper as the Defendant is found in Dubuque County, Iowa and many of the acts complained of occurred in Dubuque County, Iowa. GENERAL ALLEGATIONS 6. Plaintiff and Putative Class Members are former agents of Platinum.
8. Plaintiff and Putative Class Members executed various Agent Agreements, which purport to govern the relationship between agent and Platinum; specifically providing that Platinum will pay agents commission for selling its insurance products. 9. Under the Agent Agreements, agents receive a relatively larger percentage of commission on premiums paid by customers in the first year of the insurance policy. 10. Under the Agent Agreements, agents receive a relatively smaller percentage of commission on premiums paid by customers in subsequent years of an insurance policy, called renewal commissions. 11. Under the Agent Agreements, Platinum remains obligated to pay renewal commissions after termination of the Agent Agreement, subject to the terms of the Agent Agreements. COUNT I - BREACH OF ORAL CONTRACT 12. The allegations of paragraphs 1-11 are incorporated as though fully set forth herein. 13. On several occasions while Plaintiff and Putative Class Members were actively selling insurance for Platinum, Platinum promised Plaintiffs that if another agent of Platinum sold a replacement policy to a customer of the Plaintiff or Putative Class Member, Platinum would make Plaintiff or Putative Class Member whole by continuing to pay the commission he or she would have earned had the policy not been replaced. 14. Platinum was capable of contracting with Plaintiff and Putative Class Members. 15. Plaintiff and Putative Class members continued selling insurance policies for Platinum in consideration of the promise to be made whole in the event customer policies were replaced by other Platinum agents. 16. Agents of Platinum have solicited customers of Plaintiff and Putative Class Members and encouraged them to replace the insurance policies sold to them by Plaintiff and Putative Class Members. 17. Platinum has not continued to pay commissions to Plaintiff and Putative Class Members for policies that were replaced by other Platinum agents. 18. Platinum s breach of its oral contracts with Plaintiffs in failing to continue paying commission for policies replaced by other Platinum agents has damaged Plaintiffs by depriving them of such commissions. COUNT II - PROMISSORY ESTOPPEL 19. The allegations of paragraphs 1-18 are incorporated as though fully set forth herein. 20. Defendant Platinum knew that its promises to Plaintiff and Putative Class Members to continue paying commissions on policies replaced by other Platinum agents would
induce Plaintiff and Putative Class Members to continue selling policies for Platinum. 21. Plaintiff and Putative Class Members were in fact induced to continue selling policies for Platinum by Defendant s promises that they would continue receiving commissions if policies they had sold were replaced by other agents. 22. Justice requires that Defendant Platinum s promise to continue paying commissions for policies replaced by other Platinum agents be enforced by ordering Platinum to pay such commissions. CLASS ACTION ALLEGATIONS 21. Plaintiff, on behalf of himself and as a representative of the Putative Class, pursuant to the Iowa Rules of Civil Procedure 1.261(1) and (2); Rule 1.262(2) and Rule 1.263(2) describe the Putative Class as follows: All former agents of Platinum who were promised by Platinum that they would continue receiving commissions from customers who were sold a replacement policy by other Platinum agents, and who have not received the promised commissions. 22. Plaintiff is informed and believes that the Putative Class Members number in the hundreds and reside throughout the United States and their joinder is therefore impracticable. 23. There exist in this action questions of law and fact common to all Putative Class Members and the separate adjudication of these issues by each of the Putative Class Members would be impracticable and inefficient and would create a risk of inconsistent judgments. Therefore, a class action should be permitted for the fair and efficient adjudication of the controversy. Common questions of law and fact include, but are not limited to: a. Whether Plaintiff and Putative Class Members were agents for Defendant Platinum pursuant to Agent Agreements; b. Whether Platinum adopted a policy of promising agents that they would continue to make commissions on a policy of another agent sold a replacement policy to one of their customers; d. Whether Platinum did in fact make such promises to Plaintiff and Putative Class Members e. Whether Platinum did in fact continue to pay commissions to Plaintiff and Putative Class Members after other Platinum agents sold a replacement policy to customers of Plaintiff and Putative Class Members.
24. The answers to the questions of law and fact common to Plaintiff and Putative Class Members will be discernible from the same sources of evidence, including but not limited to: a. The testimony of current and former agents of Platinum regarding the Agent Agreements, the terms thereof, and the commission payments received pursuant to the Agent Agreements; b. The testimony of current and former agents, employees, officers, and directors of Platinum regarding any and all promises that were made by Platinum to its agents to continue paying commissions on policies that were replaced by other Platinum agents; c. Records relating to customers of Plaintiff and Putative Class Members, including but not limited to a history of their policies and premiums paid and a history of any replacements of such policies solicited by other Platinum agents; d. Records relating to customers who have policies through Platinum and through the Plaintiff and Putative Class Members, including but not limited to the time period such policies were in effect and the premiums paid; e. The commission statements issued to Plaintiff and Putative Class Members. 25. There is nothing regarding this Class which would pose unusual difficulties in the case management and there are no conflicts of law issues. 26. Plaintiff and his counsel will thoroughly and adequately represent the interests of the Putative Class and they do not have a conflict of interest in the maintenance of this class action. Plaintiff and his counsel have adequate resources, pursuant to Iowa R. Civ. Pr. 1.276, to prosecute this action. 27. The common questions of law and fact involved in this action predominate over any questions affecting only individual Putative Class Members, and a class action is superior to other available methods for the fair and efficient adjudication of the matters alleged herein. PRAYER FOR RELIEF WHEREFORE Plaintiff and the Putative Class pray for an Order and Judgment against Defendants for actual damages caused by Platinum s breach of contract in amounts to be determined at trial; for actual damages in an amount sufficient to compensate Plaintiff and Putative Class Members as though Platinum s promises to continue paying commissions on replaced policies were enforced; and such other relief as this Court deems appropriate and just.
JURY DEMAND COME NOW Plaintiff and the Putative Class, and hereby request trial by jury of the above-captioned matter. QUINTON DURUJI, on behalf of himself and all others similarly situated, Plaintiff By /s/ Flint Drake D. Flint Drake By /s/ Samuel M. DeGree Samuel M. DeGree Drake Law Firm, P.C. 300 Main Street, Suite 323 Dubuque, Iowa 52001 Telephone: (563) 582-2000 Facsimile: (563) 583-5225 E-mail: fdrake@drakelawpc.com ATTORNEYS FOR PLAINTIFF