Topic: Standing/Mootness
A Class Action Sleeper Issue Might Be Waking Up
The Sixth Circuit appears poised to become the fourth federal court of appeals to reject the use of the “juridical link” doctrine as a means to establish Article III standing in a class action. The doctrine, a seldom-used class action legal concept, recognizes an exception to the ordinary Article III standing requirements in instances in […]
When can class members recover for non-traditional harms?
At oral argument in TransUnion, LLC v. Ramirez, TransUnion’s counsel told the U.S. Supreme Court that a lack of harm is a reason “to break out the champagne, not to break out a lawsuit.” The Court has now decided TransUnion, and its decision may make it harder for class-action plaintiffs to sue for non-traditional harms. […]
Supreme Court, over Thomas Dissent, Dodges Cy Pres Mechanism in Class Settlement
Last year in this space, we reported on the continuing debate concerning the use of cy pres awards in class action settlements. Since 2013, Chief Justice Roberts has provided cautionary comments about this practice. See Marek v. Lane, 134 S. Ct. 8 (2013). We also reported on the Ninth Circuit’s approval of a cy pres […]
Placeholder Class Cert Motions No Longer Needed
We have commented before in this space about using offers of judgment to “pick off” the named plaintiff in a class action case, a tactic the Supreme Court addressed in Campbell-Ewald v. Gomez, 136 S. Ct. 663 (2016). There, the Supreme Court held that an unaccepted offer of judgment does not moot the case, at least […]
Fourth Circuit Uses Spokeo to Spike $11.7 Million Class Action Judgment
Standing to sue, a venerable piece of American jurisprudence for sure, continues to draw attention in recent class action cases, including in the Fourth Circuit. In its second decision this year evaluating last term’s Supreme Court decision, Spokeo v. Robins, 136 S. Ct. 1540 (2016), a unanimous panel of the Fourth Circuit found insufficient “an […]
Named Plaintiffs Can’t Voluntarily Dismiss Individual Claims in Order to Appeal Class Certification Denial
Earlier this year, we hazarded a guess that the Supreme Court was split 4-4 regarding a Ninth Circuit decision holding that a named plaintiff could achieve appellate review of a decision denying class certification by voluntarily dismissing his individual claims. It turns out, based upon the Supreme Court’s decision in Microsoft Corp. v. Baker [], that […]
Can a Class Action Proceed when the Named Plaintiff’s Claim Becomes Moot? A Recent View from the North Carolina Business Court
In this post we talk about two of our favorite things (relatively speaking): class actions and mootness. We last looked at these issues when covering the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Campbell-Ewald Company v. Gomez, 136 S. Ct. 663 (2016). There, the Court rejected the defendant’s attempt to “pick off” the named plaintiff in a […]
Seventh Circuit Weighs in on Offers of Judgment
In this space, we concentrate on class action decisions in the Carolinas, as well as Fourth Circuit and United States Supreme Court precedent. Occasionally, though, we venture beyond these jurisdictions to highlight issues of particular note, including those where courts are divided. We’ve previously reported here how offers of judgment interact with mootness. In Campbell-Ewald Co. […]
Experian Petitions Fourth Circuit to Review Certification of 88,000-Member Class
Experian recently petitioned the Fourth Circuit to immediately review a district court’s order certifying an 88,000-member, nationwide class of consumers who requested Experian credit reports that listed accounts with the now-defunct Advanta Bank. In this case, Dreher v. Experian Information Solutions, Inc., No. 14-325 (4th Cir. July 3, 2014), Experian requested an interlocutory appeal under […]
Can an offer of judgment to the named plaintiff moot a class action lawsuit? District of South Carolina says “No”
It is often expedient for a defendant to make an offer of judgment in order to avoid the expense of lengthy proceedings, particularly when the plaintiff’s damages claim is small. But what happens when the offer of judgment is made to a class representative? Does that mean that the individual no longer has standing? And does […]