En Banc Court Stands by Ban on Class-Action Incentive Payments for Plaintiffs
Posted on Aug 11, 2022 in Class Actions | Comments Off on En Banc Court Stands by Ban on Class-Action Incentive Payments for Plaintiffs
Nearly two years after a divided three-three judge panel held that federal law prohibits “incentive payments” to named class representatives (see our previous blog post here), the Eleventh Circuit denied a petition to rehear that case en banc. Johnson v. NPAS Solutions, LLC, 2022 U.S. App. LEXIS 21455 (11th Cir. Aug. 3, 2022). The denial effectively upholds that prohibition across...
General Statistical Evidence of “Local Controversy” Held Insufficient for Jurisdiction Under Class Action Fairness Act
Posted on Mar 23, 2021 in Class Actions | Comments Off on General Statistical Evidence of “Local Controversy” Held Insufficient for Jurisdiction Under Class Action Fairness Act
Can class-action plaintiffs avoid federal court by relying on general economic studies and population statistics to prove that their case should be in state court? Not in the Eleventh Circuit. In Smith v. Marcus & Millichap, Inc., 2021 WL 939184 (11th Cir. Mar. 12, 2021), the court held that “studies, surveys, and census data—which do not directly involve the plaintiffs”—are...
Eleventh Circuit Bans Incentive Payments to Lead Plaintiffs in Class Actions
Posted on Nov 5, 2020 in Class Actions | Comments Off on Eleventh Circuit Bans Incentive Payments to Lead Plaintiffs in Class Actions
In what appears to be a first, the Eleventh Circuit recently held that federal law prohibits so-called “incentive payments” to class representatives, even as part of an agreed settlement. The court acknowledged that it was forging a new path in Johnson v. NPAS Solutions, LLC, 975 F.3d 1244, 1248–49 (11th Cir. 2020)—identifying errors that it said had “become commonplace in everyday...
Bankruptcy Preemption/Preclusion Defense Does Not Preclude Class Certification in FDCPA/FCCPA Case
Posted on Nov 5, 2019 in Bankruptcy | Comments Off on Bankruptcy Preemption/Preclusion Defense Does Not Preclude Class Certification in FDCPA/FCCPA Case
In an opinion vacating a district court order denying class certification, the Eleventh Circuit held that whether the Bankruptcy Code precludes and/or preempts the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (“FDCPA”), 15 U.S.C. § 1962 et seq., and the Florida Consumer Collection Practices Act (“FCCPA”), Fla. Stat. § 559.55 et seq., raised issues common to all class members. Sellers v....
Rule 23(f) Petitions to Eleventh Circuit
Posted on Apr 18, 2019 in Class Actions | Comments Off on Rule 23(f) Petitions to Eleventh Circuit
One question that Eleventh Circuit litigants often ask is how likely the court is to grant a Rule 23(f) petition for interlocutory review of a class certification decision. Litigants who have been on the wrong end of a class certification decision ask this question with particular urgency because an interlocutory appeal—before the trial on the merits—can often save a case. Defendants...