Merrill Lynch Settles Discrimination Suit for $160m - Aberration or New Normal?
Seyfarth Synopsis: The second key trend from our 16th Annual Workplace Class Action Litigation Report involves rulings by the U.S. Supreme Court. Over the past few years, the Supreme Court has issued a number of rulings that...more
Expert testimony plays a critical role in nearly all putative class actions, including at the class certification stage where parties rely on expert evidence to address the requirements of Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23....more
Last month, in Arkansas Teachers Retirement System v. Goldman Sachs Group, Inc., the Second Circuit vacated the Southern District of New York’s order certifying a class in a Rule 10b-5 securities fraud class action. At issue...more
In the third post of our series on workplace class action issues, this blog posting focuses on the statistical study of class certification rulings throughout the Unites States in 2016. Not unlike real estate, location – in...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: As profiled in our recent publication of the 13th Annual Workplace Class Action Litigation Report, the U.S. Supreme Court’s rulings have a profound impact on employers and the tools they may utilize to...more
Rule 23(c)(4) has been been placed under a microscope in the past few years, largely because of the judicial response to the Supreme Court’s Comcast Corp. v. Behrend opinion, and the Rules Advisory Committee’s subsequent...more
There is no doubt that the death of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia will have major repercussions on Supreme Court jurisprudence. A 30-year veteran of the Court, Justice Scalia was known for his originalist positions and...more
In a highly anticipated decision, the Supreme Court last week affirmed a $5.8 million judgment against Tyson Foods and held that damages in a class action can be established by “statistical sampling” – a phrase that may now...more
The plaintiffs in three actions against entities and individuals involved in the Full Tilt Poker Internet gambling operation dismissed their claims without prejudice in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New...more
Last week, the Supreme Court granted a writ of certiorari to Tyson Foods in an appeal of a class and collective action filed under the FLSA and a similar Iowa state law. Hourly workers at Tyson’s Storm Lake, Iowa pork...more
Last week, the Ohio Supreme Court denied class certification in Cullen v. State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company, Slip Opinion No. 2013-Ohio-4733 (Nov. 5 , 2013). In a 5-2 decision, the Court overruled the trial and...more
On November 5, 2013, BakerHostetler's class action litigation team secured a major victory for Ohio class action defendants when the Supreme Court of Ohio adopted the class certification principles announced in the United...more
In a very pro-employer/business opinion crafted by Justice Scalia, the U.S. Supreme Court rejected class certification for 2 million Comcast subscribers in an antitrust class action in Comcast Corp. v. Behrend, 516 U.S. ___...more
In a significant class action decision for employers, Comcast Corp. et al v. Behrend et al, No. 11-864 (March 27, 2013), the U.S. Supreme Court held that the ability to establish classwide damages is essential to a favorable...more
As many readers of this blog know by now, last week the Supreme Court issued yet another anti-class certification decision in Comcast Corp. v. Behrend (“Comcast”). While the full scope and meaning of the Court’s holding is...more
The United States Supreme Court’s recent ruling in Comcast Corp. v. Behrend, Case No. 11-864 (March 27, 2013) reinforces class certification requirements as spelled out in Wal-Mart v. Dukes. However, the closely divided court...more
Individualized Proof of Damages Can Block Class Certification Under Rule 23(b)(3) - The United States Supreme Court in Comcast v. Behrend continued its trend of disfavoring class certification of cases involving...more
Comcast v Behrend is the latest in a series of United States Supreme Court cases in recent years that have restricted the ability of plaintiffs to certify federal class actions. In so doing, it has expanded the scope of the...more
On March 27, 2013, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its decision in Comcast Corp. v. Behrend, 569 U.S. ___, No. 11-864, 2013 WL 1222646 (Mar. 27, 2013). In a 5-4 decision, the Court reemphasized its recent precedent in Wal-Mart...more
Key Points - - Comcast Corp. v. Behrend clarifies that the Court's 2011 decision in Wal-Mart v. Dukes, which requires an inquiry into the merits to the extent necessary to resolve Rule 23 issues, extends to antitrust...more
While the ripples from the United States Supreme Court’s 2011 decision in Wal-Mart v. Dukes are still being felt, the Court may make further class action waves this term with its pending decision in Comcast v. Behrend. This...more