Depositions are a mainstay of modern discovery. For corporate litigants, the affirmative duties that Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 30(b)(6) imposes often require significant investment to prepare corporate representatives. In class actions, those burdens can multiply quickly. But Rule 30
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Fourth Circuit Holds That a Named Plaintiff Who Settles Individual Claims Lacks Standing to Appeal Decertification
It is black-letter law that a plaintiff must have standing to pursue claims in federal court and that an actual case or controversy must persist at every stage of the litigation, including on appeal. In June, the Fourth Circuit had…
Corporate Policies as a Basis for Class Certification: Fourth Circuit Vacates Brewery Wage Class
A generalized company policy may supply the starting point for a class-certification motion. But, as the Fourth Circuit recently reiterated, a policy described at too high a level of abstraction cannot substitute for the rigorous, element-specific analysis Federal Rule 23…
Too Late to Arbitrate? Arbitration Clauses and Class Action Waivers
The widespread adoption of arbitration agreements with class action waivers began fifteen years ago following the Supreme Court’s decision in AT&T Mobility LLC v. Concepcion. Concepcion held that the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) preempts state laws or policies preventing the…
Empire Contractors v. Town of Apex and the Importance of Individual Factual Inquiries in State Class Actions
The North Carolina Supreme Court’s recent decision in Empire Contractors, Inc. v. Town of Apex, 923 S.E.2d 516 (N.C. 2025), highlights the importance that individual fact issues can play at the class certification stage, including in cases under the…
North Carolina Supreme Court Requires Ascertainability for Class Actions
Fourth Circuit Provides a Procedural Roadmap for Early Class Certification Motions
Federal Rule of Civil Procedure Rule 23(c)(1)(A) requires district courts to decide whether to certify a class at “an early practicable time.” When defendants seek to strip a suit of its class allegations at the earliest practicable time — before…
Another Attempt at a Roundup Class Action Settlement
Monsanto and its parent Bayer recently announced that they had reached a proposed class action settlement to resolve most claims alleging Non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) caused by exposure to Roundup weed killer. See King v. Monsanto, No. 2622-CC00325 (Mo. Circ. Ct.…