After receiving a bankruptcy discharge, a borrower whose home is pending foreclosure has two options: stay in the home and, perhaps, make voluntary payments on the mortgage, or leave the home and start fresh. When a debt collector thereafter attempts to collect mortgage payments from that borrower, there may be grounds for a claim under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) or one its state law variants, such as the Florida Consumer Collection Practices Act ... Keep Reading »
Federal Circuit Courts of Appeal Class Action Articles
The latest class action developments and trends in Federal Circuit Courts of Appeal, including news, key cases, and strategies.
Seventh Circuit Snapshots Hole in Groupon’s Notice of Removal of Instagram User Suit
The Seventh Circuit remanded an Instagram user's appeal after the court found that Groupon's notice of removal did not allege the citizenship of any diverse member of the putative class. The decision highlights the importance of actually alleging the minimal diversity requirement for removal under the Class Action Fairness Act (CAFA). The plaintiff, Christine Dancel, obtained permission under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23(f) to appeal the lower court's denial of ... Keep Reading »
Life May Not Be Fair, But Arizona Cannot Find Out Without Standing
The Sixth Circuit recently held that Arizona lacked standing to intervene in, and object to, a nationwide class settlement at the settlement fairness hearing. The underlying case involved Tristar Products' defective pressure cookers. The district court had certified three state classes for trial - Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Colorado - but after the first day of trial, the parties entered into a nationwide class settlement. The settlement allowed class members to receive a ... Keep Reading »
Ninth Circuit Affirms Certification of Class Alleging Biometric Privacy Violations
The Ninth Circuit has issued its much-anticipated decision in a class action against Facebook involving alleged biometric privacy violations, affirming certification of a class. In Patel v. Facebook, the Northern District of California certified a class of Facebook users residing in Illinois who alleged that the social media giant violated the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) by using facial-recognition technology "without obtaining a written release and ... Keep Reading »
Fifth Circuit Bars Notice of FLSA Collective Actions to Arbitration-Bound Employees
The Fifth Circuit recently became the first federal court of appeals to hold that employees who signed arbitration agreements should not receive notice of collective actions. This case of first impression among the courts of appeal could serve as a powerful tool for employers combatting collective actions under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Accordingly, we think the decision is deserving of more detailed analysis than a mere summary. A Splintered Approach In ... Keep Reading »
Third Circuit Finds Class Members’ Cash Advance Agreements May Fall Short of a True Assignment
On April 26, 2019, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals reversed in part and affirmed in part a district court order purporting to void cash advance agreements entered into by and between class members and litigation funding companies in In re National Football League Players' Concussion Injury Litigation. Following settlement of the underlying litigation, hundreds of class members entered into cash advance agreements with various litigation funding companies, including ... 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 »
No Standing, No Settlement?
In a recent decision, the Eighth Circuit weighed in on the requirement that federal courts assess Article III standing before approving a settlement agreement. In the case at issue, plaintiff filed a putative class action for purported violations of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”) against a data company in state court. Defendant removed to the District Court for the Western District of Missouri. Shortly after the parties reached a tentative settlement ... 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 »
If at First You Don’t Succeed, Try Another CAFA Exception
A Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals Panel recently affirmed a district court order remanding a putative class action to state court after the defendants' initial removal under CAFA. The case involved claims on behalf of users of the Golden Gate Bridge against three defendants for violations of California's privacy statutes concerning the collection and sharing of personally identifiable information. Specifically, the plaintiffs alleged that after collecting information of ... Keep Reading »
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