Class Actions Brief Blog

Last week, we observed that the Supreme Court appeared to be waiting for a ninth justice to decide in an important case involving appealability of class action certification decisions. A news report today* indicates that the Supreme Court has also pushed out arguments concerning the enforceability of class action waivers. As we recently reported in this space, the Court had agreed in three cases to decide whether the NLRA prohibits employers from requiring non-management employees covered by the NLRA to arbitrate their work-related claims individually. For employers, particularly those with a nationwide workforce, this remains one of the few tools available to stave off expensive and risky class litigation from employees. The Court apparently will not hear argument in these cases until the 2017 term, which begins in October. We will be watching the Supreme Court for further developments.

*You may have to register to access the linked article at Law360.