2013 did not offer the blockbuster docket in front of the Supreme Court that 2011 did, but that didn’t stop the Court from issuing a number of opinions whose effects will be felt for some time to come. In addition, a number of other courts took bold steps to either support or constrain class
motion to strike
The Limits of Vague Pleading – Duvio v. Viking Range Corp
Class action practice provides plaintiffs with some odd pleading incentives. Two that cause continual problems are the need to keep things vague (in order to emphasize commonalities over any variations that may arise from more specific details) and the need to frame one’s complaint as broadly as possible to maximize the potential recovery in settlement…
Comity Still Matters – Baker v. Home Depot USA (ND Ill)
Since the Supreme Court issued its opinion in Smith v. Bayer Corp., comity has become a more important doctrine to the class action world. Bayer, as you may recall, said that the denial of certification does not have a preclusive effect, but suggested that, instead, courts might use the doctrine of comity to reach…
Comity Arguments Still Viable – Edwards v. Zenimax Media Inc.
Colorado citizen Landis Edwards bought the online quest game Elder Scrolls: Oblivion. He played it, a lot. In fact, he played it until it broke. According to Mr. Edwards, the game suffered from an animation defect that occurred after about 200 hours of gameplay.
So Mr. Edwards sued, on behalf of a class of…
Strategy Beats Tactics – Carter v. Allstate Ins. Co
Back in 1990, Kenneth Carter was in an automobile accident with an underinsured motorist, one serious enough to exhaust the other party’s limited bodily injury coverage. Carter’s policy allowed him to stack coverage, meaning he probably had $150,000 coming to him. But his insurer didn’t tell him that, instead allowing him to believe that he…
The Problem of the Subjective Class Definition – Weeks v. Merck & Co.
At its height, the mass-tort litigation against Merck for its drug Vioxx received a great deal of press attention. And, when Merck settled with most of the plaintiffs, its decision to only settle with attorneys who were willing to resolve their entire inventory of Vioxx cases generated controversy among the legal commentariat.
Last…
CLE Presentation – The Gauntlet: Early Challenges to Class Certification
Earlier today, I had the distinct pleasure of presenting at the CLE International Class Action conference in Los Angeles with an old friend of mine, plaintiff’s lawyer Garrett Wotkyns of Schneider Wallace. The topic was The Gauntlet: Early Challenges to Class Certification, which regular readers will know is a topic near and dear to…
Rikos v Proctor & Gamble Co (SD Ohio 2012) – Challenge Early, Challenge Hard
This week’s case is the first known follow-up to the Sixth Circuit’s Pilgrim opinion, Rikos v. Proctor & Gamble Co., 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 25104, (S.D. Ohio 2012). In Rikos, the plaintiff sued Proctor & Gamble for allegedly misrepresenting the ability of its product Align to aid in digestion. The plaintiff filed in the…
The Ten Most Significant Class Action Cases of 2011
This was a busy year for class-action jurisprudence. Clearly, most of the Supreme Court cases had some effect on class action practice. But the district and appellate courts also rendered a host of rulings this year that significantly affect class-action practice. Despite what a number of academics and plaintiffs’ lawyers have claimed, the class action…
The Maturing Motion to Strike Class Allegations
Last week, the Sixth Circuit affirmed a trial court’s decision striking class allegations where a proposed nationwide class would necessarily invoke the laws of fifty different jurisdictions. (Russell Jackson has an excellent writeup of the opinion here.) There is no question the opinion is a useful one for defendants. And, since it’s the first…