The 2023 Review analyzes rulings from all state and federal courts in 23 areas of law. It is designed as a reader-friendly research tool that is easily accessible in hard copy and e-Book formats. Class action rulings from throughout the year are analyzed and organized into 23 chapters and 4 appendices for ease of analysis and reference.
The stakes at issue in class action litigation are often significant. A company’s market share and corporate reputation are typically implicated by a class action, as are the careers of senior management. For obvious reasons, these exposures and risks put immense pressure on corporate decision-makers.
The purpose of the Duane Morris Class Action Review is multi-faceted. We hope it will demystify some of the complexities of class action litigation, and keep corporate counsel updated on the ever-evolving nuances of Rule 23 issues. In this respect, we hope this book will provide our clients with an analysis of trends and significant rulings that enable them to make informed decisions in dealing with complex litigation risks.
Duane Morris partner Gerald L. Maatman, Jr. reviews the key findings in class action litigation for 2022.
2022 had the most billion-dollar class action settlements in the history of the American court system, with 15 class actions that resolved cases for $1 billion or more in settlements.
The U.S. Supreme Court has continued to define and shift the playing field for class action litigation.
Companies have enjoyed a high rate of success enforcing arbitration agreements and using them to thwart class actions out of the gate.
In 2022, the plaintiffs’ class action bar succeeded in certifying class actions at a high rate.
Biden Administration continued to roll out changes on several fronts as it aimed to expand the rights, remedies, and procedural avenues available to workers and the EEOC continued to operate with a Trump-appointed majority of commissioners.
The number of data breaches continues to rise, costing U.S. businesses millions of dollars. High profile companies such as Apple, Meta, Twitter, and Samsung have all disclosed cybersecurity attacks in 2022. Companies that experienced data breaches faced a convergence of risk factors in 2022 as data protections issues continued to plague corporate defendants.
During 2022, courts continued to grapple with the rules that govern the certification of classes that contain uninjured class members. Various cases climbed to the federal circuit level, with varying results, and the U.S. Supreme Court once again declined to take up the issue, making uninjured class members a continued topic of disagreement and debate for 2023.
In 2022, corporate defendants aggressively asserted defenses based on personal jurisdiction to fracture collective actions in particular.
In 2022, actions under the California Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA), Cal. Lab. Code, §§ 2698, et seq., saw their first setback as a workaround to workplace arbitration programs that require individual proceedings.
The 2023 Review is a comprehensive study that examines judicial decisions made in state and federal courts across the United States in 23 different areas of law. It is designed to be a user-friendly resource that can be easily accessed in both hard copy and e-book formats and is intended to assist with research and analysis.