Archives: Rule 23 Requirements

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Southern District of New York Applies Daubert and Denies Class Certification in Securities Case

Continuing the trend in the Second Circuit since the IPO decision for courts to “rigorously” determine whether class certification is appropriate, on March 27, 2012, Judge Miriam Cederbaum of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York denied plaintiff’s motion for class certification in the putative class action brought against Freddie … Continue Reading

Thoughts on Class Actions After Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. v. Dukes

By Katayoun Donnelly on February 25, 2012 Posted in Rule 23 Requirements

After the Supreme Court’s decision in Wal–Mart Stores, Inc. v. Dukes, 131 S.Ct. 2541 (2011) was announced, many believed class certification of employment classes or Rule 23b(2) classes would be a thing of the past. Developments after Dukes, however, demonstrate that, to the contrary, courts have found ways to avoid the impact of Dukes. Dukes … Continue Reading

Ninth Circuit Affirms That One State’s Laws Cannot Apply to a Nationwide Class and That a Presumption of Reliance Was Improper

By Rodger Eckelberry on February 2, 2012 Posted in Consumer Fraud, Rule 23 Requirements

In Mazza v. American Honda Motor Company, Inc., 666 F.3d 581 (9th Cir. 2012), the Ninth Circuit reversed certification of a nationwide class of automobile consumers, rejecting the district court’s choice of law and predominance analyses. Though a split-decision, the Mazza majority reinforced states’ individual interests and ability to regulate consumer transactions occurring within their … Continue Reading

Supreme Court Limits Use of Injunctions to Thwart Relitigation of Denial of Certification

By Jennifer Vessells on January 22, 2012 Posted in Anti-Injunction Act, Injunctions, Rule 23 Requirements

In an opinion written by Justice Kagan, the Supreme Court’s recent decision in Smith v. Bayer, 131 S. Ct. 2368 (2011) leaves class action plaintiffs with a way in which to potentially relitigate adverse certification decisions. Holding that a federal court could not enjoin a state court from determining a motion for certification similar to … Continue Reading

Supreme Court’s Wal-Mart Decision Holds Title VII Class Not Certifiable for Lack of Commonality and Rejects Rule 23(b)(2) Certification

By Matthew J. Moody on January 21, 2012 Posted in Rule 23 Requirements

In Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. v. Dukes, 564 U.S. __, 131 S.Ct. 2541, 180 L.Ed.2d 374 (2011), the Supreme Court held that a Title VII discrimination claim could not be determined on a casewide basis where employment decisions were made locally with no corporate direction. The Court also determined that claims for backpay could not certified … Continue Reading

Daubert Revisited

By Mark Johnson on January 2, 2012 Posted in Expert Testimony, Rule 23 Requirements

After the Supreme Court’s decision in Wal-Mart v. Dukes, 131 S. Ct. 2541 (2011), the application of Daubert at the class certification stage has been one of recent confusion. Although not all circuits have addressed whether a full Daubert analysis is necessary at the class certification stage, the Eighth Circuit announced its approach in In … Continue Reading

Fraud-on-the-Market Allowed by Third Circuit to Certify Class in a Ruling That Differs Sharply From Fifth Circuit

By Michael Matthias on January 2, 2012 Posted in Rule 23 Requirements, Securities

In In re DVI, Inc. Securities Litigation, 639 F.3d 623 (3d Cir. 2011), the Third Circuit affirmed the district court’s holding that common class issues predominated over individual issues. The Third Circuit found that the district court had correctly invoked the fraud-on-the-market presumption of reliance to partially grant plaintiffs’ certification motion. Investors of DVI, a … Continue Reading

Colorado Supreme Court Asks: Where’s the Beef?

By Casie Collignon on January 2, 2012 Posted in Colorado, Rule 23 Requirements, State Class Action Law

Plaintiffs repeatedly, and sometimes successfully, urge class certification after painting a pretty picture of liability with little or no attention whatsoever to the details of the actual evidence that both sides will present at trial. However, the Colorado Supreme Court recently issued four cases on the same day that asked both parties: where’s the evidence? Here … Continue Reading

Second Circuit Holds Separate Class Representatives With Separate Counsel Required Under Amchem and Ortiz

By Deborah Renner on January 2, 2012 Posted in Adequacy of Representation, Rule 23 Requirements

In a recent decision, the Second Circuit determined that in a class action settlement that capped total compensation, separate categories of claims must each have separate class representatives and separate counsel. In In re Literary Works in Electronic Databases Copyright Litigation, 654 F.3d 242 (2d Cir. 2011), the Second Circuit found representation in a class … Continue Reading