Lin v. Everyday Beauty is an Eastern District of New York decision addressing an issue that has divided district courts in the Second Circuit and elsewhere: Whether a federal court may consider inadmissible evidence when deciding a class certification motion. This district court found that it could not do so. The plaintiffs, former retail sales employees of the defendants, moved to certify a class of essentially everyone employed by the defendants, beauty supply ... Keep Reading »
Certification Class Action Articles
The latest class action developments and trends in certification, including news, key cases, and strategies.
Objectors to Class Settlement Concerning Alleged Misrepresentations of Fuel Efficiency Run out of Gas in Ninth Circuit by Waiving Arguments
The Ninth Circuit recently addressed the propriety of applying California law to a nationwide settlement class. The Central District of California had hosted a consolidated multidistrict litigation of individuals who bought Hyundai and Kia automobiles and claimed to have been misled by the companies' allegedly inaccurate fuel efficiency estimates. The trial court originally denied certification of a litigation class, citing "material differences" in state law. ... Keep Reading »
A Unicorn Sighting? Fourth Circuit Affirms Certification of Defendant Class
Bell v. Brockett is an unusual case in several respects. Most notably, the Fourth Circuit affirmed certification of a defendant class, despite acknowledging that defendant class actions are "so rare they have been compared to unicorns." The court not only acknowledged the rarity of defendant class actions but also commented on their "inherent risks." Indeed, in a delightful footnote the court explained that although both unicorns and defendant class actions are rare, the ... Keep Reading »
Question of Consent Turns Putative TCPA Fax Class Action Into Junk
A recent decision by a Connecticut district court reiterates that the issue of consent may foreclose class certification in Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) junk fax cases. The action was one of several putative class actions brought by Gorss Motels Inc. against suppliers to Wyndham hotels and its various franchisees. Gorss was a former corporate owner of a Wyndham franchise hotel. Defendant Otis Elevator Co. had a contract with a subsidiary of Wyndham as an ... Keep Reading »
Split Over Impact of Bristol-Myers Squibb on Class Actions Deepens
Bakov v. Consolidated World Travel, Inc. is the latest salvo in the conflict over whether the Supreme Court’s personal jurisdiction decision in Bristol-Myers Squibb applies in the class action context. As we have blogged in the past, Bristol-Myers concerned claims in California state court made by non-California residents, claims that were not sufficiently connected to California to qualify for specific personal jurisdiction on their own. The Court held that California ... Keep Reading »
Ninth Circuit Says Local Rule 90-Day Deadline to File Class Certification Motion Incompatible With Federal Rule 23
In a case with potentially nationwide ramifications, the Ninth Circuit reversed a California district court’s decision striking a motion for class certification as untimely, finding the district court’s local rule requiring class certification motions be filed within 90 days of the complaint was inconsistent with Federal Rule of Civil Procedure Rule 23. Several other districts, including the Northern District of Georgia, the Northern District of Texas, and the Middle ... Keep Reading »
Belch! Ocean Spray Price Premium Damages Model Passes Comcast Scrutiny
The Southern District of California certified a food labeling class against Ocean Spray Cranberries Inc. based in part upon a price premium damages model developed by an aptly named Dr. Belch. The plaintiff, a self-proclaimed "health coach" and "label guru," alleged Ocean Spray misrepresented that many of its juice products contained no artificial flavors when in fact they contained malic and fumaric acids, synthetic chemicals that simulate the advertised flavors. She ... Keep Reading »
Third Circuit Ascertainability Requirement Satisfied in FDCPA Class Against Law Firm
Our prior blogs have discussed the Third Circuit’s “rigorous” ascertainability requirement for 23(b)(3) classes here and here. We have also explored how district courts in the Circuit, such as the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, have denied certification in reliance on that heightened standard. A recent E.D. Pa. opinion demonstrates that all is not lost for putative Third Circuit class actions when the proposed class is readily ascertainable based on objective criteria ... Keep Reading »
No Injury, No Problem?: The First Circuit Weighs in on Certification Where Absent Class Members Lack Harm
In Tyson Foods, the Supreme Court declined to resolve the issue of whether a class may be certified if it contains members who were not injured and have no legal right to damages. Dealing with this increasingly common issue in class action litigation, the First Circuit recently summarized circuit precedent on the issue — and ultimately reversed a district court decision certifying a class that contained class members who had not suffered any injury. The plaintiffs filed ... Keep Reading »
Inexperienced Class Counsel Stalls Class Certification While Defendants Attempt to Employ EEOC Conciliation Agreement Against Class
The Northern District of Illinois recently denied a motion for class certification based largely on the inexperience of class counsel, and simultaneously denied the defendant’s motion to deny class certification. The plaintiffs sought to represent a class of all present and former female employees who worked at a Chicago area Ford Motor Company facility beginning in 2012. Plaintiffs filed a 123-count complaint alleging a wide range of claims, including sexual harassment, ... Keep Reading »
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