Class Actions Brief Blog

For what appears to have been a frivolous lawsuit, In re: Subway Footlong Sandwich Marketing and Sales Practices Litigation generated an interesting opinion from the Seventh Circuit full of class-action issues. The case originated when an Australian teenager posted a photo of an 11-inch Subway sandwich, with a tape measure, on his Facebook page. Coming in the midst of Subway’s $5 Footlongs^TM campaign, the picture went viral, and class-action cases were soon pending.

After early discovery showed that most “footlongs” were, in fact, 12 inches long, plaintiffs’ counsel ...

We don’t often get appellate guidance after a federal trial judge remands a case to state court following removal because 28 U.S.C. Sect. 1447(d) generally makes such a ruling unreviewable. But the Class Action Fairness Act (“CAFA”), 28 U.S.C. Sect. 1332(d), permits a court of appeals to accept an appeal of a remand from a class action. The Fourth Circuit exercised this right in Scott v. Cricket Communications, LLC, No. 16-2300 (4th Cir. July 28, 2017), in order to provide some guidance about the quantum and quality of proof required to prove the amount in controversy under ...

Not every class action court filing in North and South Carolina becomes a full-length post on our blog. Here is a recap of July's filings:

Prince, et al. v. Perfect Delivery, Inc., et al.; No. 8:17-cv-01950 (D.S.C. July 24, 2017) (purported collective and class action brought by delivery drivers against defendants, which operate Papa John’s franchises in North and South Carolina, alleging defendants used flawed methods to determine reimbursement rates for the drivers who used their own vehicles for delivery, thereby causing their wages to fall below federal minimum wage ...

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 informational injury” the lead plaintiff advanced under the Fair Credit Reporting Act—the same statute under review in Spokeo.  Dreher v. Experian Information Solutions Inc., 856 F. 3d 337 (4th Cir. May 11, 2017). See also Beck v ...

Not every class action court filing in North and South Carolina becomes a full-length post on our blog. Here is a recap of June's filings:

Lopez, et al. v. Ham Farm, LLC et al., No. 2:14-cv-00030 (E.D.N.C. June 30, 2017) (purported collective and class action brought under FLSA and state wage and hour laws by migrant agricultural workers against sweet potato farm to recover allegedly unpaid minimum wages and overtime compensation).

Sneed, et al. v. Reynolds American Inc., et al., No. 1:17-cv-00584 (M.D.N.C. June 26, 2017) (putative class action asserting securities violations ...

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 the internal debate was not so much over whether the Ninth Circuit erred in allowing the appeal, but whether that error had both statutory and constitutional implications. The Supreme Court had accepted certiorari to review ...

Not every class action court filing in North and South Carolina becomes a full-length post on our blog. Here is a recap of May's filings:

Kasprzyk, et al. v. Hilton Grand Vacations Company, LLC, et al., No. 4:17-cv-01393 (D.S.C. May 26, 2017) (purported collective and class action brought under FLSA alleging defendants deducted wages, straight time and overtime pay from commissions earned.)

Berg, et al. v. Span-America Medical Systems, Inc., et al., No. 6:17-cv-01399 (D.S.C. May 26, 2017) (putative class action alleging defendants, who entered into an agreement and plan of merger ...

The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act (“PSLRA”) establishes special rules in securities class actions. One such rule, found in 15 U.S.C. Sect. 78u-4(a)(3)(B)(vi) and known as the “Five-in-Three Provision,” prevents a “person” from serving as a lead plaintiff in “more than 5 securities class actions” during any three-year period. Does that rule, though, apply to institutional investors? The plain words of the statute certainly suggest so—it is difficult to argue that an institutional investor is not a “person,” and had Congress wanted to ...

Today we provide you with an update on a previous blog post addressing Dish Network’s plea for a new trial after a jury awarded damages of $20.5 Million in a telemarketing class action lawsuit. After a five-day trial in January, a jury awarded damages by assigning $400.00 to each of the 51,119 distinct phone calls made in violation of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (the “TCPA”).

Although Dish hoped for a new trial, Judge Eagles issued a text order denying Dish’s Motion for Judgment as a Matter of Law and Motion for a New Trial on May 16, 2017.

After the jury verdict, both ...

Class actions don’t work if the class representative has a conflict with the class he or she purportedly represents. As the United States Supreme Court noted over 70 years ago, “a selection of representatives for purposes of litigation, whose substantial interests are not necessarily or even probably the same as those whom they are deemed to represent, does not afford that protection to absent parties which due process requires.” Hansberry v. Lee, 311 U.S. 32, 45 (1940). A decision this week from Judge Higginson out of the Fifth Circuit provides an interesting commentary on ...