"Too Much Information?"

Monday's Daily Journal had another article (subscription) on Pioneer Electronics (USA), Inc. v. Superior Court, ___ Cal.4th ___ (Jan. 25, 2007). The first paragraph of the (rather oddly-titled) article reads:

Has the California Supreme Court changed the balance between the right to discovery and privacy rights in class actions? The answer is probably "no," but reasonable minds may differ. The court has now spoken on the issue, but did it really change anything? And what about class actions that are not about consumer products, such as employment and health care actions? A very good argument could be made that the court's opinion does not address privacy issues in those areas.

The article goes on to argue that Pioneer Electronics should have no impact on non-consumer cases.