Highlights from this issue include:

• Affirmative Defenses. The Second Circuit held the district court erred in certifying a class alleging ERISA violations because it did not consider Defendant’s affirmative defenses in its predominance analysis.
• Ascertainability. The Eastern District of Pennsylvania denied certification of a class alleging IKEA was negligent and deceptive in how it planned and implemented a recall. The court found the class failed the ascertainability requirement because it proposed to identify class members through self-identification after email notification, but email notification was not sufficient because they could have been notified of the recall in other ways.
• Securities. The Northern District of California granted preliminary approval to a $25,000,000 settlement in which the class alleged Lyft violated securities laws by failing to disclose in its Initial Public Offering Statement: (1) the potential for reputational damage and legal liability due to sexual assault allegations against drivers; (2) that Lyft’s market share was shrinking because of a price war with a competitor; and (3) safety issues with Lyft’s bike sharing program.