Suppose that the central issue in a putative class action is a legal issue pending before the Supreme Court. Depending on how the Supreme Court rules, the plaintiffs will recover either nothing or up to $600 million. But...more
5/16/2024
/ Attorney's Fees ,
Auto-Dialed Calls ,
CAFA ,
Class Action ,
Class Members ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Settlement ,
Statutory Violations ,
TCPA ,
Text Messages
Think twice about whether the Class Action Fairness Act’s “local controversy” exception applies to your case. Even if more than two-thirds of the proposed class members are citizens of the forum state, there is a significant...more
A recent Ninth Circuit decision illustrates how defendants can use evidence on an individualized defense to potentially defeat class certification.
In Van v. LLR, Inc., — F.4th –, 2023 WL 2469909 (9th Cir. Mar. 13, 2023),...more
One of the first significant class certification-related decisions of 2023 comes from the Fifth Circuit. While some trial courts hesitate to strike class action allegations on the pleadings, the district court here concluded...more
The Fifth Circuit recently addressed the scope of appellate jurisdiction under the Class Action Fairness Act (CAFA). CAFA allows federal courts of appeals to hear, on a discretionary basis, appeals from “an order of a...more
A recent Sixth Circuit decision caught my eye because it addressed an important issue on which I have not seen any other appellate decisions (and none were cited in the opinion). The plaintiff argued that the Class Action...more
A recent Seventh Circuit decision makes an important point about how the principle that a court generally need not resolve the merits to decide class certification is bilateral – it applies to both affirmative claims and...more
A recent Seventh Circuit decision made two rulings on issues arising under the Class Action Fairness Act (CAFA) that defendants may find useful in other cases. First, potential punitive damages exceeding a single-digit ratio...more
The legal media have been inundated with articles by lawyers who represent policyholders and insurance companies discussing business interruption claims arising from the COVID-19 pandemic. Some of this discussion has carried...more
A recent decision by the Eighth Circuit in a Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) class action provides an important pointer for defendants and their counsel with respect to strategy in defending a putative class action....more
With Judge Brett Kavanaugh’s nomination to the Supreme Court, one question to ask is whether, if he is confirmed, that will move the Court to any degree in class action cases. ...more
Discovery disputes in class actions often focus on plaintiffs’ requests for computer data regarding putative class members’ claims, and how far defendants need to go in providing such data. ...more
Here are my highlights from the second day of DRI’s 2017 Class Action Seminar:
Class Action Waivers in Employment Agreements (Neal Katyal of Hogan Lovells) -
Neal Katyal is a leading Supreme Court advocate and is litigating...more
8/3/2017
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Class Action ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Collective Actions ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Ethics ,
FRCP 23 ,
Mandatory Arbitration Clauses ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Settlement ,
TCPA
I recently had the privilege of serving as vice chair for this year’s Defense Research Institute (DRI) Class Action Seminar. As I’ve done in years past, here are some highlights from the first day’s programming...more
8/1/2017
/ American Pipe & Construction Co. v. Utah ,
Ascertainable Class ,
Canada ,
Class Action ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employment Litigation ,
FACTA ,
FDCPA ,
Microsoft v Baker ,
Privacy Concerns ,
Supreme Court of Canada ,
Trump Administration
Justice Scalia made major contributions to class action law, writing the Supreme Court’s opinions in Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. v. Dukes and Comcast Corp. v. Behrend, two of the Court’s most significant class action decisions in...more
2/3/2017
/ Abuse of Discretion ,
BP ,
CAFA ,
Class Action ,
Class Certification ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Judicial Appointments ,
Neil Gorsuch ,
Nominations ,
SCOTUS ,
Trump Administration
I thought readers might find helpful some broader observations on strategies for defending class actions in 2016...
Dig in Deep Early: Some defense counsel are accustomed to the practice of filing a motion to dismiss...more
I have had a busy summer and am overdue in updating readers on recent decisions in class actions against insurers involving the “labor depreciation” issue. The issue involves whether, when insurers estimate the “actual cash...more
Yesterday the Minnesota Supreme Court issued its opinion in Wilcox v. State Farm Fire & Casualty Company, a putative class action alleging that State Farm, in estimating the “actual cash value” of property damage under...more
A recent decision by a Florida appellate court highlights an important point that defendants can effectively raise in other jurisdictions as well – a named plaintiff’s failure to timely seek certification can, by itself, be...more
It’s been a while since I updated you on the status of class action litigation regarding the application of depreciation to labor costs on property insurance claims. There have been three decisions since my last update, with...more
Judge Posner of the Seventh Circuit continues to be prolific in authoring class action-related opinions. I enjoy blogging about these decisions because they are entertaining to read and usually relatively short and to the...more