Although this doesn’t have anything to do with punitive damages, readers of this blog may find an upcoming webinar sponsored by the Washington Legal Foundation to be of interest. The webinar, which features my partner Andy Pincus and Jones Day partner Meir Feder (whom I have known for almost as long as I know Andy), will focus on so-called no-injury class actions—i.e., class actions seeking statutory damages for violations that didn’t cause actual injury to the named plaintiff(s) or to the similarly situated members of the putative class.
Andy and Meir will address, in particular, the pending certiorari petition in Spokeo Inc. v. Robins, which presents the question whether Congress may confer Article III standing on a plaintiff who suffered no concrete harm merely by creating a cause of action for statutory damages. Andy is counsel of record for Spokeo, and Meir filed an amicus brief for Experian Information Solutions in support of Spokeo.
Sixteen other companies and associations filed a total of nine additional amicus briefs in support of Spokeo, which are available here. The issue intrigued the Supreme Court enough to invite the Solicitor General to submit a brief setting forth the views of the United States. That brief has not yet been filed.
The webinar will take place on Tuesday, December 9, from 10:00 to 11:00 EDT. Readers who are interested in listening in may use this link to register.