Tag Archives: dukes

No Supreme Court Review of Moldy Washer Cases

Earlier today, the Supreme Court denied certiorari in two highly anticipated appeals of decisions by the Sixth and Seventh Circuit Courts of Appeals to grant class certification over breach of warranty claims involving allegedly defective washing machines. The denial of cert in Butler v. Sears, Roebuck & Co., Nos. 11-8029, 12-8030 (7th Cir., Aug. 22, … Continue Reading

Common and Predominating Damages: Comcast Opinion Extends Wal-Mart v. Dukes’ Standards for Class Certification but Leaves the Question of Daubert for Another Day

By Casie Collignon on April 3, 2013 Posted in Antitrust, Class Certification, Expert Testimony, Predominance, Rule 23 Requirements

Co-authored by: John B. Lewis, Dustin M. Dow, Patrick T. Lewis, Danyll W. Foix, and Rodger L. Eckelberry Editor’s Note: This Executive Alert was published by members of BakerHostetler’s Securities Litigation and Regulatory Enforcement Team, Employment Team, and BakerHostetler’s Class Action Team. On March 27, 2013, the U.S. Supreme Court decided Comcast Corp. v. Behrend, Case … Continue Reading

Comcast v. Behrend: Supreme Court Tightens Certification Requirements, But Leaves Standard For Expert Evidence Uncertain

By Patrick T. Lewis on March 29, 2013 Posted in Antitrust, Class Certification, Predominance, Rule 23 Requirements

On March 27, 2013, the U.S. Supreme Court decided Comcast Corp. v. Behrend, Case No. 11-864, which tightened class certification requirements in two respects. First, Behrend requires plaintiffs to show a method by which class-wide damages can be commonly calculated in Rule 23(b)(3) antitrust class actions. Second, the decision confirmed that the Court’s “rigorous analysis” … Continue Reading

UniTek Argues $3.8M FLSA Award Cannot Stand in Light of Seventh Circuit Decertification Decision

By Jeanine Conley on March 28, 2013 Posted in Class Certification

In a recent motion filed in Monroe v. FTS USA, LLC, No. 2:08-cv-02100 (D.E. 441-1), defendants Unitek USA, LLC and its subsidiary, FTS USA, LLC, (collectively “UniTek”) asserted that a $3.8 million judgment awarded to a class of cable technicians should be tossed in light of the Seventh Circuit’s ruling in Espenscheid, v. DirectSat USA, … Continue Reading

A Big Week for the Securities Bar: Amgen and Gabelli

By Deborah Renner on March 13, 2013 Posted in Class Certification, Commonality, Injunctions, Practice Pointers, Predominance, Securities

Co-authored by: Marc D. Powers, Mark A. Kornfeld, and Jessie M Gabriel Editor’s Note: This Executive Alert was published by members of BakerHostetler’s Securities Litigation and Regulatory Enforcement Team and BakerHostetler’s Class Action Team. The Supreme Court last week issued two opinions of major importance to the securities bar. In Amgen Inc. v. Connecticut Retirement … Continue Reading

Sixth Circuit Further Defines Requirements of Commonality Under Dukes; Distinguishes Seventh Circuit Case Relaxing Those Requirements

By Rodger Eckelberry on February 21, 2013 Posted in Class Certification, Commonality, Issue Certification, Rule 23 Requirements

Co-author: Elizabeth Braverman In a recent case, Miller v. Countrywide Bank (In re Countrywide Financial Corp. Mortgage Lending Practices Litigation), — F.3d —, No. 12-5250, 2013 U.S. App. LEXIS 924 (6th Cir. Jan. 15, 2013), the Sixth Circuit provided more guidance on the requirements of commonality where plaintiffs allege discrimination resulted from a companywide delegation of … Continue Reading

Dukes Dooms Domino’s Delivery Drivers’ Class Action

By Rodger Eckelberry on February 14, 2013 Posted in Class Certification, Commonality, Rule 23 Requirements

Co-author: Scott J. Bent The Eighth Circuit recently reaffirmed one of the central holdings of Dukes v. Wal-Mart—commonality is no longer a “rubber stamp.” In Luiken v. Domino’s Pizza, a Domino’s delivery driver sought to represent a class of about 1,600 fellow drivers in an action against the pizza giant for wrongfully withholding tips. No. … Continue Reading

Class Certification Denied In Recent Consumer Products False Advertising Cases

By Nicole Skolout on February 14, 2013 Posted in Class Certification, Commonality, Rule 23 Requirements, Superiority, Typicality

In a number of recent district court decisions from across the country, courts have denied requests to certify nationwide or statewide classes in cases involving consumer products. These decisions could prove helpful in opposing class certification in other false advertising cases. Significantly, the courts in both Chow and In re Celexa & Lexapro read exposure/causation … Continue Reading

Supreme Court Denies Cert on Preclusion Issue Post Decertification in Florida Tobacco Case…And Once Again, Decertification Proves to Be a Hollow Victory

By Casie Collignon on December 3, 2012 Posted in Class Certification

Last week, on November 26, 2012, the United States Supreme Court denied cert in one of the thousands of individual cases pending in the aftermath of Engle v. Liggett Group, Inc., 945 So. 2d 1246 (Fla. 2006), where the State of Florida took on the tobacco industry. In R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. v. Clay, Case … Continue Reading

Supreme Court Declines to Take on the Issue of Issue Certification

By Paul Karlsgodt on October 10, 2012 Posted in Issue Certification

A definitive ruling on whether courts may certify class actions to decide discrete issues, as opposed to cases or claims, will have to wait. Last Monday, the United States Supreme Court denied a writ of certiorari to review the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals’ ruling in McReynolds v. Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith, Inc., 672 F.3d 482 … Continue Reading

Wal-Mart Sex Discrimination Plaintiffs Get a Second Bite at a Smaller Apple

By Casie Collignon on September 27, 2012 Posted in Class Action Trends, Class Certification, Class Definition, Equitable Relief, Rule 23 Requirements, Rule 23(b)(2) Class Actions

Last year, the Supreme Court ruled in Wal-Mart Stores Inc. v. Dukes, 131 S. Ct. 2541 (2011), that five named plaintiffs alleging nationwide sex discrimination class action claims did not satisfy Rule 23(a)’s commonality requirement and could not bring class claims for monetary relief under Rule 23(b)(2). In October of last year, the plaintiffs filed a … Continue Reading

The Stakes are High as Supreme Court Considers Evidentiary Standards for Expert Testimony on Class Certification

By Paul Karlsgodt on August 28, 2012 Posted in Class Certification, Expert Testimony

The Supreme Court is set to hear oral argument in the case of Comcast v. Behrend this November. The Court’s decision in that case should further refine the Court’s guidance in Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. v. Dukes about the proper standards for federal courts in reviewing motions for class certification. Recently, a team of appellate and … Continue Reading

Second Circuit: Notice Required When Damages Not “Incidental” in a Rule 23(b)(2) Class

By Rand L. McClellan on August 27, 2012 Posted in Rule 23(b)(2) Class Actions, Settlements

Editors’ Note: This article originally appeared as a “Client Alert” from Baker’s Class Action Defense team. Pointing out pitfalls in structuring enforceable class settlements, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals recently found that an absent class member’s claims were not barred by a prior settlement in a Rule 23(b)(2) class where monetary relief was not … Continue Reading

Recent Louisiana Jurisprudence

By Brett Wall on July 12, 2012 Posted in Class Certification, Expert Testimony, Louisiana, Predominance, State Class Action Law

Contributing Author: Amanda Karp The Supreme Court of Louisiana recently struck down the trial and appellate courts’ class certification in Alexander v. Norfolk Southern Corp., 82 So.3d 1234 (La. 2012) for a lack of predominance of common issues. The case highlights the critical importance of procuring expert testimony on predominance issues at the class certification … Continue Reading

Overtime Pay Class Certified Despite Individualized Issues

By Jeanine Conley on May 31, 2012 Posted in Class Certification, Commonality, Predominance, Rule 23 Requirements

Editors’ Note: This blog post is a dual submission to Baker’s Class Action Lawsuit Defense and Employment Class Action blogs. In Cuevas v. Citizens Financial Group Inc., Case No. 10-cv-5582 (E.D.N.Y. May 2, 2012), the plaintiff brought an action on behalf of all Assistant Bank Managers (“ABMs”) who had worked at one of the 230 Citizens … Continue Reading

Trial By Formula, Statistical Sampling, and the Right to Due Process

By Paul Karlsgodt on April 6, 2012 Posted in Class Certification, Expert Testimony

A common temptation in class action litigation is to fashion procedures based on “rough justice” to avoid overburdening the courts or attempting to redress alleged mass harm. Over the past decade, as storage and computing power have increased exponentially, it has become increasingly tempting to use statistical sampling as a proxy for the actual adjudication of … Continue Reading

Individual Causation Issues and Lack of Uniformity in Sales Practices Mean No Certification in Consumer Fraud Class Action

By Darren Crook on April 6, 2012 Posted in Class Certification, Consumer Fraud, RICO

The United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois recently refused to certify a proposed class in a dispute against an insurance company selling annuities to seniors because individualized inquiries into the company’s sales presentations precluded satisfaction of the predominance criterion required for certification. In Rowe et al. v. Bankers Life and Casualty … Continue Reading

ERISA Class Actions Still Being Certified Post-Dukes

By Paul Enockson on April 6, 2012 Posted in Class Certification, ERISA

Editor’s Note: This Entry is a Joint Submission to the Baker Hostetler Class Action Lawsuit Defense and Employment Class Action Blogs. Be sure to check the employment team’s blog at www.employmentclassactionreport.com for more great content relating to the defense of employment-related class actions. ERISA class certification motions routinely cite cases for the proposition that ERISA cases are the paradigmatic example of … Continue Reading

In Contrast to Wal-Mart, Seventh Circuit Allows Issue Certification

By Deborah Renner on March 1, 2012 Posted in Class Certification, Issue Certification

The Seventh Circuit’s decision in McReynolds v. Merrill Lynch, No. 11-3639 (7th Cir. Feb. 24, 2012), exemplifies how courts are dealing with the Supreme Court’s recent decision in Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. v. Dukes, 131 S. Ct. 2541 (2011), at least in Title VII class certification settings. In Wal-Mart, the Court denied certification of a purported … 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

Daubert in the Seventh Circuit After Wal-Mart

By Brett Wall on February 2, 2012 Posted in Expert Testimony

The Seventh Circuit’s recent decision in Messner v. Northshore University HealthSystem, No. 10-2514, 2012 WL 129991 (7th Cir. 2012) built on a 2010 decision from the Circuit and held that, where the admissibility of an expert critical to class certification issues is challenged, the district court must conduct a Daubert review prior to denying class … 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

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