About the Course
Introduction
This CLE course will discuss the changes to the federal class action rule that took effect on Dec. 1, 2018. Our panel will explain the changes and address the obvious and subtle impacts on class action practice and practitioners by the revisions to Rule 23. The panel will also discuss new strategies for approaching class actions from both the plaintiff and defense perspectives.
Description
Significant amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure's Rule 23, which governs class actions, are in effect. These changes--while admittedly not breathtaking--were the first amendments to Rule 23 in 15 years and meaningfully impact class action strategy and practice.
Reduced to their essentials, the amendments expand the means of notice to class members; set a performance standard for the information that must be submitted to the district court before the district court can give notice to the class of a proposed settlement; establish core factors the district court must consider in evaluating a request to approve a proposed settlement; address consideration offered to class action settlement objectors to withdraw an objection; and clarify that no appeal may be taken from the approval by the district court of a class action settlement.
Listen as our authoritative panel discusses the straightforward import of these rules, analyzes the subtle and nonobvious significance of the changes, and provides practical guidance for capitalizing on the new rules in litigating class actions in federal court.
Presented By
Mr. Ackerman focuses his practice on three main areas: class actions, appeals, and insurance coverage litigation. He chairs the firm's Class Action team and is the editor of the firm's Class Actions Insider blog. Mr. Ackerman has a national class action defense practice. Over more than twenty years, he has been involved in defending more than 130 class actions in over 20 jurisdictions. In many of those cases, he prevailed on a dispositive motion.
Ms. Bernay is a partner in Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd LLP’s San Diego office, where she specializes in antitrust and unfair competition class-action litigation. She has also worked on some of the Firm’s largest securities fraud class actions, including the Enron litigation, which recovered an unprecedented $7.2 billion for investors. Ms. Bernay currently serves as co-lead counsel in In re Payment Card Interchange Fee and Merchant Discount Antitrust Litig., in which a settlement of $5.5 billion was upheld by the Second Circuit Court of Appeals. She speaks on a variety of issues related to litigation, including recent changes to Rule 23 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.
-
This 90-minute webinar is eligible in most states for 1.5 CLE credits.
-
Date + Time
- event
Wednesday, February 12, 2020
- schedule
1:00 p.m. ET./10:00 a.m. PT
- Overview of primary changes to Rule 23
- Preliminary approval
- Notice requirements
- Settlement approval
- Class member objections
- Interlocutory appeals
- Miscellaneous changes and considerations
- Strategies and implications
- For class action plaintiffs
- For class action defendants
The panel will review these and other critical issues:
- What are the practical effects of the amendments?
- How do the new rules subtly impact class action practice?
- What are best practices for counsel to employ in light of the new rules?
- What strategies and tactics can be deployed to benefit from the amendments?
Related Courses
Selecting and Protecting Class Representatives: Defending Plaintiff Depositions; Proving Adequacy, Typicality
Thursday, November 5, 2026
1:00 PM ET/10:00 AM PT
Recommended Resources
