Defense Strategy

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A recent Texas Supreme Court decision in a class action caught my eye because it addressed several significant class certification issues, including one that I’ve seen regularly and another that the court analyzed in a new and different way. First, the court held that a named plaintiff does not have standing to seek injunctive relief…

A recent Ninth Circuit decision illustrates how defendants can use evidence on an individualized defense to potentially defeat class certification.

In Van v. LLR, Inc., — F.4th –, 2023 WL 2469909 (9th Cir. Mar. 13, 2023), the defendant allegedly charged sales tax that was not owed by Alaska purchasers on online purchases. While the…

Last week the Fifth Circuit issued a short opinion that made an important point that does not arise often in class certification decisions. Class certification failed because the plaintiffs’ proposed theory of liability would benefit only some class members and disadvantage others, who would be overpaid if the plaintiffs’ theory were correct. For that reason…

On August 30, 2021, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit issued a decision in Bais Yaakov of Spring Valley v. ACT, Inc. that addresses how plaintiffs can satisfy the predominance requirement in federal class actions. (The opinion (“Op.”) is available here). The decision held that on the facts of this case,…

Last Friday, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a new decision on the requirement that plaintiffs have “standing” to sue in federal court. More specifically, the Court addressed what is required for a plaintiff to demonstrate “concrete harm.” Following this decision, defendants in class actions will have significant strategic decisions to make about whether and when…

This week the D.C. Circuit and Seventh Circuit issued decisions addressing a question that has been hotly debated by class action lawyers on the plaintiffs’ and defense sides: whether the Supreme Court’s decision on personal jurisdiction in Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. v. Superior Court of California, 137 S. Ct. 1773 (2017) (blog post)…

A recent decision by a Washington federal district court caught my eye because it involved a circumstance I often see—a new development in the law results in a class action lawsuit being filed before the defendant has an opportunity to change its practices in response to the change (or clarification) in the law. This decision…

A recent decision by the Eighth Circuit in a Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) class action provides an important pointer for defendants and their counsel with respect to strategy in defending a putative class action. The key takeaway is to take into consideration whether the case was originally filed in federal court or removed from…