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
Eighth Circuit
Labor Depreciation Class Action: New Eighth Circuit Decision
By Wystan Ackerman on
Posted in Property Insurance
This week the Eighth Circuit issued its long-awaited decision in a class action against State Farm involving the “labor depreciation” issue that I have covered extensively on this blog (see my August 14 post and others). State Farm prevailed on both the merits of whether its approach to determination of the actual cash value of…
Cy Pres Distributions in Class Action Settlements Addressed By Eighth Circuit
By Wystan Ackerman on
Posted in Class Action Settlements
Over the last several years, federal courts of appeals have been closely scrutinizing cy pres distributions to charitable organizations in class action settlements. This includes opinions by the First Circuit, Third Circuit and Ninth Circuit. The general thrust of these decisions is that cy pres should be used sparingly, and the charitable organization …
Medpay and Personal Injury Protection (PIP) Class Action: Eighth Circuit Reverses Class Certification, Stressing That All Class Members Must Have Standing
By Wystan Ackerman on
Posted in Auto Insurance
The Eighth Circuit recently addressed class certification in an insurance class action involving medpay and personal injury protection (PIP) coverage. The case involved the use of third-party bill reviewers and the application of a guideline comparing charges for medical services to the 80th percentile of such charges in the geographic area. The court applied the…
Stipulations Regarding Amount in Controversy Under the Class Action Fairness Act (CAFA): Eighth Circuit Upholds Stipulations
By Wystan Ackerman on
Posted in Class Action Fairness Act
A February 2, 2012 decision by the Eighth Circuit upheld the use of stipulations by the named plaintiff and plaintiff’s counsel attempting to limit the amount in controversy to below the $5 million threshold for federal jurisdiction under the Class Action Fairness Act (CAFA). This is the first court of appeals opinion squarely addressing this…