Kimberly Kralowec offers a preview of the oral argument this morning in Am. Express Co. v. Italian Colors Restaurant, No. 12-133 (U.S.). Check it out.
The case deals with whether a court may strike down an arbitration clause under federal law (the Arbitration Act) on the ground that it makes getting relief under substantive
The Supreme Court of Texas held last week that the courts below shouldn't have refused to certify a "takings" case as a class action on the ground that the class representatives couldn't adequately represent the interests of all class members. Riemer v. Patterson, No. 11-0548 (Tex. Feb. 22, 2013).
That doesn't amount to saying
Blawgletter has noted concerns about awarding money from class action judgments and settlements to non-class members by way of "cy pres" awards. See "Does Cy Pres Have a Prayer?". These payments aim to do the next best thing to paying the funds to the members of the class.
Such efforts become necessary fairly
Seventh Circuit Judge Richard Posner today upheld (with help of course) a ruling against a plaintiff class that accused a pair of firms from the Great White North of scheming with U.S. outfits to raise the price of sulfuric acid, a by-product for the Canadians of smelting non-ferrous metals like nickel and copper.
The
You saw last week our post on our debut before the U.S. Supreme Court, in Comcast Corp. v. Behrend, No. 11-864 (U.S.). The post included a link to the transcript of the argument. Now you can listen to it also.
Blawgletter had the pleasure today of standing before the Chief Justice and eight Associate Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States. We urged their honors to send a case we've worked on for more than nine years back to the trial court . . . for trial.
We had not done that before
The Federal Aviation Act pre-empts state laws that "relate[] to a price, route, or service of an air carrier." The statute thus bars state law price-fixing claims against your American Airlineses, your U.S. Airwayses, your Virgin Americas, and — yes — even your Air Gumbos and your go!s.
But what about our foreign flying friends at
The Second Circuit today upheld a district court's order barring class members in a federal class action from suing class counsel in a new state court action for botching the class case by settling for too little. The panel ruled that the "relitigation exception" to the federal Anti-Injunction Act (which, by the way, played a
Um.
Settling a class action case means you don't have to try it. But does making peace also mean you don't have to turn all the square corners of the class action rule, the one we call 23?
It does. Kind of. At least to the extent it avoids trial problems. The kind that could
Got non-fat dry milk?
You'll just have to trust Blawgletter that the U.S. Department of Agriculture sets minimum prices for milk producers.
Unless you want to read the 10-page SUMMARY of the process in Carlin v. DairyAmerica, Inc., No. 10-16448, slip op. at 8731-41 (9th Cir. Aug. 7, 2012).
Go ahead. We'll wait.