Here’s a common scenario: After unsuccessfully moving for class certification and having a petition for review under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23(f) rebuffed, the plaintiff wants to take another shot at an appeal. Can the plaintiff simply settle his individual claims—subject to his right to appeal the denial of class certification—so that he has a… Continue Reading
Tag Archives: Class Certification
Do the Plaintiffs Lack Standing or Are Their Claims Simply Meritless—or Both?
Posted in Adequacy, Class Action Trends, Class Certification, Commonality, Predominance, TypicalityHere’s the situation: You’re facing a class action in federal court in which the plaintiffs define the putative class so broadly as to encompass many people who weren’t injured by the alleged wrongdoing. For example, consider a false-advertising class action on behalf of “all purchasers” of a product that the vast majority of purchasers would… Continue Reading
California Trial Court Rejects “Trial by Formula” Approach to False-Advertising Class Action and Sets Aside Verdict
Posted in Class Certification, Motions PracticeIn state courts, sometimes you lose even when you win. In a recent false-advertising class action, a California Superior Court entered an order concluding that the testimony of the plaintiffs’ expert—who was the linchpin of the case for class certification and on the merits—was inadmissible, which meant that the defendant was entitled to judgment as… Continue Reading
Supreme Court Reverses Certification of Antitrust Class Action Where Class Failed To Prove That Damages Could Be Determined On A Classwide Basis
Posted in Antitrust, Class Certification, Predominance, U.S. Supreme CourtAn important and recurring issue in class actions is whether a district court must consider particular merits issues when deciding whether to certify a class under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23. Today, in Comcast Corp. v. Behrend (pdf), No. 11-864, the Supreme Court reversed the certification of an antitrust class action because the district court… Continue Reading
Supreme Court Denies Review In NECA-IBEW Case
Posted in Adequacy, Class Certification, Commonality, Predominance, Securities, TypicalityWe’ve been blogging about the Second Circuit’s decision in NECA-IBEW Health & Welfare Fund v. Goldman Sachs (pdf), which held that a named plaintiff in a securities fraud suit might have standing in some situations to assert class action claims regarding securities that he or she never purchased. Yesterday, the Supreme Court denied (pdf) Goldman’s petition… Continue Reading
Securities Fraud Defendant Rebuts Fraud-on-the-Market Presumption of Reliance
Posted in Class Certification, Motions Practice, Predominance, SecuritiesWith all of the attention on last week’s Amgen decision, another interesting decision addressing the fraud-on-the-market presumption of reliance in securities fraud actions may have escaped notice. In GAMCO Investors, Inc. v. Vivendi, S.A. (S.D.N.Y. Feb. 28, 2013), Judge Scheindlin found that the defendant had rebutted the presumption of reliance as to a group of related… Continue Reading
Can Plaintiffs Evade The FDCPA’s Cap on Total Statutory Damages in a Class Action by Filing Multiple, Gerrymandered Class Actions?
Posted in Class Certification, Motions Practice, SuperiorityThe Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), which regulates the conduct of debt collectors, authorizes plaintiffs suing over violations to recover statutory damages of up to $1,000. Because these amounts can rapidly add up to exorbitant numbers in a class action for very minor, technical violations, Congress capped the total amount of statutory damages that… Continue Reading
Plaintiffs Seek to Revive Securities Fraud Class Actions Under Second Circuit’s “Class Standing” Doctrine
Posted in Class Action Trends, SecuritiesI previously blogged about the Second Circuit’s troubling decision in NECA-IBEW Health & Welfare Fund v. Goldman Sachs & Co. (pdf), 693 F.3d 145 (2d Cir. 2012), which invented a “class standing” doctrine allowing a named plaintiff in a class action to assert Securities Act claims regarding securities that he or she never purchased. In the… Continue Reading
Federal Court Grants Motion to Strike Class Allegations in TCPA Case
Posted in Ascertainability, Class Certification, Motions PracticeWe’re big fans of filing an early motion to strike class allegations when it’s apparent from the pleadings that the class definition is fatally flawed. Why should a defendant be forced to submit to the wringer of class discovery before taking a swing at defeating class certification? A recent case involving Office Depot illustrates the… Continue Reading
Class Certification Denied in Skinnygirl False-Advertising Case Because Class Representative Didn’t Rely on Label
Posted in Adequacy, Class Certification, TypicalityPlaintiff Christopher Rapczynski testified that he purchased Skinnygirl Margarita mix “because I love my wife,” she “said she liked it,” and she “has my three children and works very hard.” Those all may be good reasons for a nice Valentine’s Day present, but not for bringing a class action. As the Southern District of New… Continue Reading
Balthazor: Individualized Questions as to Consent Torpedo Attempt to Certify TCPA Class Action
Posted in Class Certification, PredominanceReaders of this blog are likely familiar with the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TPCA”), the law that prohibits certain types of calls using an automatic telephone dialing system or prerecorded message. The plaintiffs’ bar has filed numerous class actions seeking statutory damages under the TCPA. Businesses facing these actions should be alert for opportunities to… Continue Reading
Expelliarmus! Eleventh Circuit Disarms False-Advertising Class Action Against Makers of Fantasy Video Game
Posted in Ascertainability, Class Certification, PredominancePlaintiffs who wish to bring product-liability and consumer-fraud class actions against businesses often overreach when defining the proposed class in order to raise the stakes—and hence the settlement pressure—on the defendant. A recent unpublished decision by the Eleventh Circuit, Walewski v. Zenimax Media, Inc. (pdf), No. 12-11843, is yet another example of the growing consensus rejecting… Continue Reading
Class Action Plaintiffs Can’t Have It Both Ways When Opposing Motions to Compel Arbitration
Posted in Arbitration, Class Certification, Motions Practice, Numerosity, Predominance, TypicalityIn litigation—as in war—it is natural to focus on winning today’s skirmish and to defer planning for battles that might not happen for weeks or months. But that shortsightedness can lead to strategic blunders—as one class action plaintiff suing Capital One Bank and credit counseling agency InCharge Debt Solutions recently learned the hard way. In King… Continue Reading
New Jersey Federal Court OKs Nationwide Class Under NJ Consumer Law
Posted in Class CertificationA New Jersey district judge has certified a nationwide class to pursue claims under the New Jersey Consumer Fraud Act (NJCFA) (pdf), in conflict with the decisions of other courts that have refused to permit nationwide classes to proceed under the law of a single state. The plaintiffs in Kalow & Springut, LLP v. Commence… Continue Reading
Supreme Court Roundup: The Oral Arguments in Comcast and Amgen
Posted in Class Certification, U.S. Supreme CourtThe Supreme Court’s 2012-13 term is shaping up to be an important one for class action law. Last month, the Court heard argument on the same day in two potentially significant cases. Comcast Corp. v. Behrend concerns whether plaintiffs may obtain class certification without introducing admissible evidence (including expert testimony) that damages can be proven… Continue Reading
Is The Second Circuit Placing A Thumb On The Scale When It Reviews Orders Granting Class Certification?
Posted in Class CertificationOne oddity of the law in the Second Circuit is the unbalanced standard of review that the court sometimes applies to class certification decisions. On a dozen or so occasions over the last twenty years, the Second Circuit has proclaimed that it is “noticeably less deferential when the district court has denied class status than… Continue Reading
Supreme Court Hears Oral Argument On Whether Materiality Must Be Proven At The Class Certification Stage In Securities Class Actions
Posted in Class Certification, Securities, U.S. Supreme CourtThe Supreme Court recently heard oral argument in a case that may have a significant impact on how district courts resolve class certification fights in securities fraud cases. The issue in Amgen Inc. v. Connecticut Retirement Plans and Trust Funds is whether a class can be certified if the alleged misrepresentations constituting the fraud are… Continue Reading
Comcast Corp. v. Behrend: Upcoming Supreme Court Case Is Critical to Antitrust Class Actions
Posted in Class Certification, U.S. Supreme CourtAlthough the class action bar in general is eagerly awaiting the Supreme Court argument in Comcast Corp. v. Behrend (No. 11-864)—which will be argued November 5th—antitrust practitioners in particular have a keen interest in the case. The issue presented is whether a district court may certify a class action without first resolving whether an expert… Continue Reading
Do Class Counsel Owe Fiduciary Duties to Absent Class Members Before Class Certification (and Should Defendants Care)?
Posted in Adequacy, Class Action Trends, Class CertificationAccording to an interesting student note that will soon be published in the Stanford Law Review, the answer to both questions is “yes.” Specifically, the would-be class counsel must “protect[] the substantive legal rights of putative class members . . . from prejudice” “resulting from the actions of class counsel.” The implications for defendants opposing… Continue Reading
Tenth Circuit: Motion for Reconsideration Restarts 14-Day Clock for Filing 23(f) Petition
Posted in Appeals, Class CertificationLest there was any uncertainty on the topic, in Gelder v. Coxcom Inc. (pdf), the Tenth Circuit has now made clear that when a party moves for reconsideration of an order granting or denying class certification, the time for filing a petition for permission to appeal under Rule 23(f) runs from the date of the order… Continue Reading
Seventh Circuit: Order Partially Decertifying a Class Is Appealable Under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23(f)
Posted in Appeals, Class CertificationFederal Rule of Civil Procedure 23(f) gives federal courts of appeals authority to permit interlocutory appeals from orders granting or denying motions to certify a class. The rule leaves it murky, however, whether an order partially decertifying a class is appealable under Rule 23(f). In a brief opinion by Judge Posner, the Seventh Circuit has… Continue Reading
Lawyer-Driven Class Action Challenging ATM Fee Notices Flunks Superiority Requirement
Posted in Class Certification, SuperiorityWe recently reported on a class settlement in which no members of the class submitted claims. The plaintiffs in that case contended that the defendant violated the Electronic Funds Transfer Act (EFTA) by failing to post a notice on its ATMs that consumers would be charged a fee for using the machines. More recently, in… Continue Reading
Class Action Attacking Product Defect Declared Moot When Company Voluntarily Recalled Challenged Product
Posted in Adequacy, Class Action Trends, Class Certification, Motions Practice, SuperiorityShould a class action go forward when the company voluntarily has provided all the relief plaintiffs have sought? At least in some circumstances, the answer is “no,” according to the Tenth Circuit. Here’s some background. Many product manufacturers—and especially auto makers—are targeted by the class action bar when they announce voluntary recalls. The lawsuits typically… Continue Reading