ROSENBLUTH INTERN, INC. v. Superior Court

Law Office of Jonathan Weiss, Beverly Hills, for Real Party in Interest.

Under California's Unfair Competition Law (UCL) (Bus. & Prof.Code, § 17200 et seq.), [1] a private plaintiff who has itself suffered no injury may file an action for restitution and/or injunctive relief against a person or business entity alleged to be engaged in any "unlawful, unfair or fraudulent business act or practice...." (§ 17200.) As our courts have liberally construed the UCL, virtually the only limitation on such actions is that the plaintiff must be acting on behalf of "itself, its members or the general public." (§ 17204.) In this proceeding, we hold that the purported victims in this case, all large Fortune 1000 corporations that have individually negotiated written contracts with the defendant, are not the "general public" for purposes of the UCL.

Plaintiff, Jose Serrano, filed this action on August 23, 2001. Purporting to act on his own behalf and "for the interests of the general public under the Unfair Competition Law," Serrano alleges that Rosenbluth, a travel agency serving large corporate clients, uses fraudulent accounting methods in order to understate significantly the…