The Northern District of Illinois cleared the way for a plumbing company’s putative TCPA class action against Allstate Insurance Company and Oh Insurance Agency by denying defendants’ motions to dismiss, which were inspired by the Supreme Court’s Spokeo v. Robins decision. The plumbing company alleged that the insurance companies committed TCPA violations when they placed two phone calls to it: one went to voicemail and another was answered by a company employee. The ... Keep Reading »
Insurance Class Action Articles
The latest class action developments and trends in the insurance industry, including news, key cases, and strategies.
Individualized Inquiries and Difficulties Identifying Class Members Doom Title Insurance Reissue Rate Class Action
The District Court of Idaho recently decertified a title insurance reissue rate class action, finding the initial justifications for class certification have “not withstood the test of time.” Under the Idaho Rate Manual, customers are entitled to a 50 percent discount when a title policy is issued within two years of a previous policy on the same property by the same owner. Seven years ago, the court granted class certification for a class of Idaho residential customers ... Keep Reading »
What are Interim Class Counsel and When Should They be Appointed?
Even before certification of a class under Rule 23(a)-(b), the district court has authority to appoint “interim counsel” under Rule 23(g)(3) “to act on behalf of a putative class before determining whether to certify the action as a class action.” However, as the District of New Jersey recently explained, “neither the federal rules nor the Advisory Committee Notes expressly” state the analysis used to determine when “interim counsel” should be appointed and which counsel ... Keep Reading »
Eleventh Circuit’s Liberal Reading of Bonner Mall a Game Changer for Class Actions?
An Eleventh Circuit panel recently vacated two district court orders after sending the parties to mediation, and after the parties’ conditioned settlement on vacatur of the orders. In Hartford Casualty Insurance Company v. Crum & Forster Specialty Insurance Company, after being ordered to mediation a second time by the appellate panel, the parties reached a settlement contingent on the district court’s vacating its orders on summary judgment and attorney’s fees. On ... Keep Reading »
2016 Carlton Fields Class Action Survey Reveals Important Trends in Class Action Management
The fifth annual edition of the Carlton Fields Class Action Survey has just been released, and in this year’s survey corporate counsel report that class action spending has increased after four consecutive years of decline. Spending is also projected to increase in 2016. This marks a key turning point. The Numbers Across industries, the companies surveyed report that they spent $2.1 billion on class action lawsuits in 2015. The number of companies facing at least one ... Keep Reading »
Don’t Tip Just Yet: Uber Taxi Class Gets Limited Certification
A federal judge in San Francisco recently certified a limited class in a lawsuit against Uber under the California Unfair Competition Law (UCL) and the California Consumers Legal Remedies Act (CLRA). The plaintiff sought to certify a class of all Uber customers who used a traditional taxi from April 2012 to March 2013. However, after examining the claims under Rule 23 and both the UCL and CLRA, the court certified a class consisting of only those customers who received ... Keep Reading »
California District Court Certifies Classes of Fixed Index Annuities Purchasers
The Southern District of California recently certified California and multistate classes of annuities purchasers in a case challenging the allegedly abusive design, execution, and pricing of fixed index annuities (FIA). The plaintiff, a senior who purchased an FIA issued by defendant insurer, claimed the defendant promised asset protection and guaranteed values that were vitiated by an alleged undisclosed “derivative” structure embedded in the annuities, which provided ... Keep Reading »
Class Action Articles in Expect Focus (Vol. III, Summer 2015)
Phantom Injury Dooms “Shadow Insurance” Case A recent federal district court decision dismissing a putative class action complaint against AXA Equitable Life Insurance Company may portend trouble for plaintiffs pursuing a number of similar so-called "shadow insurance" cases against New York insurers based on allegedly sham reinsurance transactions with affiliated (or "captive") reinsurers. Continue reading » Insurer Victory in IUL Class Action In a highly-anticipated ... Keep Reading »
Middle District of Florida Remands Insurance Coverage Class Action, Reasoning Amount In Controversy Is Determined From Value Of Claim, Not Policy
The value of the claim at issue, not the value of the policy limit, is considered for purposes of determining the amount in controversy in an insurance coverage class action. That, the Middle District of Florida found, is the law in the Eleventh Circuit. The plaintiff in Faust v. Maxum Casualty Insurance Company filed in state court a class action against his insurer on behalf of persons covered for Medical Payments coverage under a Florida property, casualty, surety, ... Keep Reading »
GCs facing more bet-the-company and higher exposure class actions
Across industries, companies spent $2 billion on class action lawsuits in 2014, slightly less than the $2.1 billion they spent in 2013. This year, spending is expected to return to 2013 levels. Companies’ class action dockets increased on average by one new case in 2014, bringing the average number of class actions managed to five. This total is expected to remain constant in 2015, as the number of new matters is likely to be offset by those resolved. As before, ... Keep Reading »