Last week I attended the Defense Research Institute (DRI) Class Action Seminar in Washington, DC. Here are some insights I gleaned from day 1 of the seminar (focusing on presentations that had some relevance to insurance class actions):
Comcast v. Behrend (see blog post): Miguel Estrada, who argued this case for Comcast…
A recent decision by the D.C. Circuit provides a detailed analysis of how the circuit courts of appeal have applied the commonality standard articulated in Wal-Mart v. Dukes. The key point I see here is that not only do plaintiffs need to identify at least one common question, the answer to which is
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Has there been a “sea change” in Florida class action law making it more favorable to plaintiffs? That is what a dissenting opinion asserts in a recent Florida Supreme Court per curiam decision. If that dissent is accurate, insurers and other large corporations should be prepared to face a potential increase in class action filings…
Title insurers have been hit with a wave of putative class action lawsuits alleging that they improperly failed to provide discounts on premiums for title policies issued in connection with a refinancing. (For more on this, see the Title Insurance page of this blog.) Although some classes have been certified on this issue, the federal…
One question I’ve received from readers is whether class action filings against the insurance industry have decreased after the Supreme Court’s decision in Wal-Mart v. Dukes, which was issued in June of 2011. Anecdotally some people in the industry seem to have perceived a decrease in filings, at least against their companies. Interestingly, however…
In a title insurance class action, the Fifth Circuit recently illustrated one method of applying the Supreme Court’s decision in Wal-Mart v. Dukes: Analyze separately each question that the named plaintiffs propose as a common question of law or fact. Determine whether it is actually a proper question that a judge would decide as…
One important distinction that Rule 23 makes between different types of class actions is that the rule does not require notice to the class or an opportunity to opt out for 23(b)(1) and (b)(2) classes, but notice and an opportunity to opt out are required for 23(b)(3) classes. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 23(c)(2)(A), (B)…
A recent decision on class certification in a case involving ratemaking for universal life insurance policies illustrates where the rubber is meeting the road in insurance class actions post-Wal-Mart. It also reminds class action lawyers of the importance of considering carefully whether the putative class members would actually want the relief being sought…
There have been an unusually large number of significant decisions in insurance class actions over the last couple of weeks. I will not be able to discuss all of them in detail but thought you would like to have shorter summaries of them. Here is the first installment regarding recent P&C class action decisions:
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How is a district court supposed to apply the Supreme Court’s opinion in Wal-Mart v. Dukes? Dive deeply into the specifics of the plaintiff’s causes of action, the defendant’s defenses and the relevant facts. A more general, broad brush analysis will not do. That was the message delivered by the Fifth Circuit fairly strongly…
