Can a toxic tort class action be maintained where class certification was denied in a materially similar case?
As noted in an item posted by our partners in The Workplace Class Blog, in Baker v Home Depot USA, Inc., No 11-CV-06768 (N.D. Illinois, Jan. 24, 2013), the court granted a motion striking the class allegations at the pleadings stage based upon the principle of comity. As a result of the ruling, plaintiffs were unable to pursue a class claim alleging that Home Depot falsely promoted as safe the purchase and use of wood treated with Chromium Copper Arsenate for residential use. Absent the class allegations, plaintiffs’ action reduced to simple claims based on products liability and negligence.