In a reversal of the usual scenario where a plaintiff seeks and a defendant resists class discovery, the Southern District of Ohio granted a defendant’s motion to compel answers to its interrogatory regarding who was included...more
1/30/2017
/ Banking Sector ,
Class Action ,
Class Certification ,
Credit Unions ,
Discovery ,
Interrogatories ,
Motion to Compel ,
Punitive Damages ,
RESPA ,
Reversal ,
Work-Product Doctrine
In Spokeo, the Supreme Court declined to answer the certified question of whether a plaintiff suing for violation of a federal statute satisfied Article III’s standing requirement by alleging no concrete injury as a result of...more
1/26/2017
/ Article III ,
Cable Communications Protection Act (CCPA) ,
Cable Operators ,
Class Action ,
Class Certification ,
Customer Information ,
Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) ,
IKEA ,
Injury-in-Fact ,
Personally Identifiable Information ,
Song-Beverly Credit Card Act ,
Spokeo v Robins ,
Standing ,
Time Warner
On November 22, the Eleventh Circuit clarified that Class Action Fairness Act (CAFA) jurisdiction is not eliminated when the class claims are dismissed before the class is certified.
The plaintiff, an Alabama trucking...more
12/7/2016
/ Article III ,
CAFA ,
Class Action ,
Class Certification ,
Jurisdiction ,
Oil & Gas ,
Settlement ,
Standing ,
Subject Matter Jurisdiction ,
Transportation Industry ,
Trucking Industry
In two recent cases, California and Florida district courts reached divergent views on whether to permit wide-ranging class discovery prior to a certification decision. Interestingly, both decisions involved Ocwen companies....more
A defendant who lost a bench trial in a certified class case alleging that it violated the Electronic Funds Transfer Act by forcing the plaintiff and class to use electronic funds transfer services to obtain loans sought to...more
12/7/2016
/ Article III ,
Banking Sector ,
CashCall ,
Class Action ,
Consumer Lenders ,
EFTA ,
EFTs ,
Fees ,
Loans ,
Spokeo v Robins ,
Standing
A Northern District of California judge refused to preliminarily approve a class settlement of Uber customers who used its “Rideshare Services” in which Uber would have paid class members $28.5 million. The court was...more
On August 31, the Ninth Circuit continued its trend of certifying “no injury” classes, this time in the context of an Agricultural Workers’ Protection Act claim that a Washington state fruit and vegetable farm violated the...more
On August 30, the Northern District of California thwarted a disgruntled timeshare owner’s attempt to arbitrate her dispute against a timeshare developer on a classwide basis. A timeshare purchaser alleged that Wyndham, the...more
Lawyers seeking to settle class actions pending in federal court by dismissing and refiling in state court beware! In two recent orders, a federal judge in the Western District of Arkansas ruled that the attorneys...more
On July 6, the Sixth Circuit addressed a question apparently left open by the Supreme Court in its recent Campbell-Ewald case. In Campbell-Ewald, the Supreme Court ruled that an unaccepted Rule 68 offer of judgment did not...more
The Seventh and Eighth Circuits both addressed motions to decertify classes the week of July 5—with divergent results. These cases illustrate the deference afforded district courts’ class certification determinations. Both...more
7/19/2016
/ Abuse of Discretion ,
Burden of Proof ,
Class Action ,
Class Certification ,
Eighth Amendment ,
Fourteenth Amendment ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Predominance Requirement ,
Prisoners ,
Termination ,
WARN Act
The Southern District of California rejected a pre-certification class settlement because it provided for an inadequate coupon payment and a tenuous cy pres award, and included a clear sailing attorney fee provision....more
The Supreme Court has issued its long-awaited decision in Spokeo v. Robins. By a 6-2 vote, the Court reversed the Ninth Circuit decision that a class plaintiff who suffered no actual damages had standing to sue. But it did...more
In Pazol v. Tough Mudder Inc., No. 15-1640, — F.3d —-, 2016 WL 1638045 (1st Cir. Apr. 26, 2016), the First Circuit analyzed the “reasonable probability” standard that a defendant must satisfy to support CAFA’s $5 million...more
On April 4, the United States Supreme Court denied certiorari review of a $188 million class-action judgment returned against Wal-Mart in Pennsylvania state court and later upheld by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court regarding...more
The Southern District of California decertified a nationwide consumer product class due to material differences between the state laws applicable to the claims. The plaintiff in Czuchaj v. Conair Corp. alleged a defect in...more
The Southern District of California and the Northern District of Illinois recently entered orders addressing motions to strike class allegations—with very different results for the respective defendants. Although the claims...more
In the latest class action involving front-loading washing machines, the Eleventh Circuit reversed the certification of two statewide Texas and California classes of purchasers contending that the front door seal on early...more
Tyson Foods lost its bid to overturn an almost $3 million class action judgment against it in a case brought by workers at an Iowa pork-processing factory who contended they did not receive overtime pay for time spent...more
Food for Thought is a review of significant court decisions affecting the food, beverage, dietary supplements and personal care products industry. Although many cases in this edition focus on class certification, others...more
2/15/2016
/ Ascertainable Class ,
CAFA ,
Chobani Inc ,
Class Action ,
Class Certification ,
ConAgra ,
Dietary Supplements ,
Federal Food Drug and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA) ,
Food Contamination ,
Food Labeling ,
Food Manufacturers ,
FRCP 23(b)(3) ,
Natural Products ,
Ocean Spray ,
Organic ,
Preemption ,
Standing
The Eastern District of Missouri certified an unusual class of lawyers and their clients who undertook a collective effort to litigate claims against Bayer related to the purported “contamination” of the U.S. rice supply by...more
A divided panel of the Fourth Circuit ruled that a South Carolina district court judge improperly applied Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. v. Dukes in decertifying disparate treatment and disparate impact claims challenging promotion...more
Food for Thought reports on significant court decisions affecting the food industry. The focus of this edition is on several food-related cases pertaining to class certification; particularly, on district court decisions...more
2/24/2015
/ Advertising ,
Ascertainable Class ,
Ben & Jerry's ,
Blue Diamond Growers ,
Class Action ,
Class Certification ,
Coca Cola ,
ConAgra ,
Dole Food ,
False Advertising ,
Federal Food Drug and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA) ,
Food Labeling ,
Food Manufacturers ,
FRCP 23 ,
Gerber ,
POM Wonderful ,
Preemption ,
Retailers ,
Smuckers
Florida’s Third District Court of Appeal reversed an order certifying a class of Porsche vehicle owners who had their high intensity discharge headlights stolen during the class period. The plaintiffs alleged that the...more
On April 7, 2014, the Supreme Court accepted certiorari review in Dart Cherokee Basin Operating Company LLC v. Owens, No. 13-719, to resolve a circuit split regarding whether the Class Action Fairness Act requires a removing...more