By Gerald L. Maatman, Jr., Alex S. Oxyer, and Paul M. Waldera

Seyfarth Synopsis: In Toomey v. Arizona, No. 19-CV-0035, 2020 WL 2465707 (D. Ariz. May 12, 2020), a Magistrate Judge for the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona recommended the certification of class claims brought under Title VII and the Equal Protection Clause regarding
Continue Reading Arizona Federal Court Recommends Class Certification On The Basis Of Demographic Studies

By Gerald L. Maatman, Jr., Jennifer A. Riley, and Alex S. Oxyer

Seyfarth Synopsis: Although federal courts are certifying class actions at a record rate, a recent opinion by the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio demonstrates that the requirements of Rule 23 are not mere formalities.  In Littler v. Ohio Association of Public
Continue Reading Ohio Federal Court Rules That Varying “Interests” And “Feelings” Among Putative Class Members Prevents Class Certification 

By Gerald L. Maatman, Jr., Jennifer Riley, and Michael L. DeMarino

Seyfarth Synopsis: For nearly a decade, the aftershocks of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.  v. Dukes have curtailed the success of plaintiffs attempting to certify class discrimination claims in situations where the alleged discriminatory policy is highly discretionary. But Zollicoffer, et al.
Continue Reading Class Certification Granted In Staffing Company Workplace Bias Suit

By Gerald L. Maatman, Jr., Jennifer Riley, Alex S. Oxyer, Paul M. Waldera

Seyfarth Synopsis: In Rusis, et al. v. Int’l Bus. Machines Corp., No. 18 Civ. 8434, 2020 WL 1151322, at *2 (S.D.N.Y. Mar. 10, 2020), the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York recently declined to conditionally certify a nationwide collective
Continue Reading New York Federal Court Finds That A Common Policy Or Plan Is Still Critical To ADEA Collective Actions

Seyfarth Synopsis: At our recent book launch for the 2020 Workplace Class Action, we discussed a circuit by circuit analysis of 303 certification orders in 2019. That analysis revealed interesting results including Plaintiff-centric success in certifying wage & hour cases at the highest rates of the decade. Conversely, employers fared well in the employment discrimination space. The location of these
Continue Reading Seyfarth’s Jerry Maatman Presents On 2019 Class Action Trend #1: Certification Trends

By Gerald L. Maatman, Jr., Jennifer A. Riley, Alex S. Oxyer, Andrew D. Welker

Seyfarth Synopsis: On January 15, 2020, in Guzman v. Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc., No. 17-CV-02606-HSG, 2020 WL 227567 (N.D. Cal. Jan. 15, 2020), Judge Haywood Gilliam of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California denied a motion for class certification brought by
Continue Reading Chipotle’s Employees Denied Class Certification On Employment Discrimination Claims

By Gerald L. Maatman, Jr., Christina M. Janice, and Alex W. Karasik

Seyfarth Synopsis:  In Ituah, et al. v. Austin State Hospital, a federal magistrate judge in Texas recently recommended the denial of a motion for class certification brought by patients alleging disability discrimination against a state psychiatric hospital for failing to make reasonable accommodations to protect them
Continue Reading Court Declines To Certify Class Of Sexually Assaulted Hospital Patients

Seyfarth Exclusive! In Person Event & Live Webinar

You are invited to join Erin Mulvaney, Senior Legal Reporter at Bloomberg Law, and Seyfarth Partner Gerald (“Jerry”) L. Maatman, Jr. for a panel discussion marking the release of Seyfarth’s 16th Annual Workplace Class Action Litigation Report. Please click here to register. For those of you in the Midwest, please join us
Continue Reading Top Trends In Workplace Class Action Litigation: Panel Discussion/Webinar For Book Launch

By Gerald L. Maatman, Jr. and Christina M. Janice

Seyfarth Synopsis: In the latest development in the ultra-high stakes nationwide Prescription Opiate Litigation, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit recently granted the petition of six Ohio cities to appeal the  class certification order of U.S. District Court Judge Daniel A. Polster creating a new and innovative
Continue Reading Sixth Circuit Allows Appeal Of Novel Class Action Ordered In Nationwide Opiate Litigation

By Gerald L. Maatman, Jr. and Christina M. Janice

Seyfarth Synopsis: In complex class actions, courts have looked to Rule 23 to authorize class actions either for trial, or for approval of a previously negotiated settlement. Now as thousands of public entities nationwide pursue financial relief from opiate manufacturers, distributors, and pharmacies, U.S. District Court Judge Daniel A.
Continue Reading Ohio Federal Judge Crafts An Unprecedented Class Action Mechanism To Bring Relief To Counties And Cities Struggling To Address Opioid Crisis