Class action procedures vary greatly among jurisdictions. These differences include how developed the procedures are; the types of claims parties can bring; the parties that can represent classes; whether classes are...more
In a recent decision from the Southern District of Florida, U.S. District Judge Robert N. Scola, Jr. denied class certification of a proposed class of paid Univision NOW subscribers who assert that Univision NOW’s use of the...more
The English High Court offers limited routes to bring “opt-out” group claims but, in recent years, funded claimants have attempted to bring representative actions under CPR 19.8 at a notable rate. The rule has been available,...more
The efficiency of the US class action regime hinges upon a core procedural mechanism: the class representative. By permitting a large group of plaintiffs with typically modest claims to rely on a small subset of...more
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit recently dismissed an appeal in the case of Lewis v. Becerra, Secretary of the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The appellants sought...more
The Roundup covers notable class action decisions each month from federal appellate courts, as well as notable Supreme Court class action cert petitions....more
Appellate Rights. The Eleventh Circuit held that if a putative class member intervenes in a case after class certification is denied and after a Rule 23(f) petition is denied, that class member cannot appeal the denial of...more
Welcome to the inaugural edition of Classified Monthly: A Roundup of Class Action Decisions from Federal Appellate Courts. The Roundup normally will arrive in your inbox the first week of each month and will cover the...more
In the realm of TCPA class actions, the Central District of California’s decision in Wiley v. Am. Fin. Network, Inc. serves as a noteworthy (and positive) development. And it offers a blueprint for corporate defendants...more
To bring a collective competition action in the Competition Appeal Tribunal (“CAT”), a proposed class representative first has to have their claim certified by the CAT. The CAT’s approach to certification is therefore an...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: A recent decision from the Eastern District of Michigan serves as a reminder that—while courts are often quick to certify classes in ERISA cases—plaintiffs must satisfy the requirements of Rule 23 and that...more
For decades, Plaintiffs and defendants have fought bitterly over most aspects of class-action law. One issue, however, had managed to escape serious contention: the propriety of paying “incentive awards” (also known as...more
A 10-Point Response Plan - The company was just sued in a putative class action. Now what? The following 10-point response plan broadly outlines the initial steps to implementing a comprehensive class action defense,...more
The TCPA has long been a breeding ground for innovative and aggressive plaintiffs and the attorneys who represent them. A recent federal district court decision highlights an important limitation on claims under the...more
Takeaway: The individual claims asserted by a class representative – as well as the defenses that apply to those claims – form the foundation of any effort to certify a class under Rule 23. If the claims of the class...more
A federal district court judge refused to certify a class led by a serial plaintiff who prolonged unsolicited calls in order to create a cause of action under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). The decision is a...more
Can a former employee serve as a class representative for ERISA claims when she has signed a general release agreement and has waived her right to participate in class actions? According to a recent decision by the District...more
Motions To Strike Class Allegations: Here To Stay or Going out of Style? By their nature, class actions, given the prospect of classwide liability and potentially millions (if not billions) in aggregated damages, are...more
Time and time again this scenario repeats itself and necessarily begs the question: Who is supposed to be protecting the interests of the absent class members in these settlements—class counsel who is taking more than 30% of...more
One tactic to defeat a class action is to assert that the named plaintiff is not an appropriate or proper representative for the class. These initiatives are not often successful, but defense counsel should always be looking...more
Eleventh Circuit Rejects Administrative Feasibility Requirement: What Does the Future Hold for Ascertainability? As we discussed in our Spring 2017 issue of The Class Action Chronicle, courts have struggled to define the...more
In a scathing decision by the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, the Court denied class certification of the Allergan securities class action (“Allergan”). See In re Allergan PLC Sec. Litig.,...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: Incentive awards for class representatives are impermissible, according to a ground-breaking decision last week by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit. Though not an employment case, the...more
It is not atypical for class actions to be brought seeking damages that can be characterized as nominal in nature. An oftentimes powerful incentive for potential class representatives to put their names on a putative class...more
On July 23, the Ninth Circuit vacated the district court’s judgment in favor of the plaintiff in Bahamas Surgery Center LLC v. Kimberly-Clark Corporation, a class action that was tried to a $454 million verdict in April 2017....more