Managing Complex Class Litigation: Leveraging Bifurcation, Bellwether Trials, Joinder, Subclasses and Issue Classes
Course Details
- smart_display Format
On-Demand
- signal_cellular_alt Difficulty Level
- work Practice Area
Class Action and Other Litigation
- event Date
Thursday, July 27, 2017
- schedule Time
1:00 PM E.T.
- timer Program Length
90 minutes
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This 90-minute webinar is eligible in most states for 1.5 CLE credits.
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This CLE course will discuss the growing complexity of class action suits and the procedural tools available to litigants to assist in managing large and complex class claims. The program will discuss how the parties and courts are utilizing aggregation tools such as subclasses and joinder, bifurcation and bellwether trials to create efficient outcomes for the litigation.
Class action litigation is becoming increasingly more complex with respect to issues and large number of claimants. As a result, parties and courts are resorting to procedural and statutory tools to efficiently manage complex class litigation.
Plaintiffs potentially can create subclasses to address unique issues or resolve potential intra-class conflicts of interest. Counsel opposing certification need to be prepared to leverage the intra-class conflict as grounds for denial of certification, and to argue that subclasses render class treatment unmanageable.
Courts sometimes use issue certification and bifurcation to separate an issue that may be dispositive of the entire litigation. There are a number of other factors courts consider in determining whether issue certification and/or a separate trial on one or more issues is appropriate. Another potentially useful tool for complex class actions is the bellwether trial, as commonly used in mass tort claims.
Listen as our authoritative panel of class action litigators discusses how the parties and courts are utilizing case management tools such as subclasses, issue certification, bifurcation and bellwether trials to create efficient outcomes for large, complex class claims.
- Case Management Tools
- Subclasses, Rule 23(c)(5)
- Issue classes, Rule 23(c)(4)
- Joinder, Rule 42(a)
- Issue bifurcation, Rule 42(b)
- Bifurcation of certification and merits
- Bifurcation of liability and damages
- Bellwether trials
The panel will review these and other key issues:
- When would subclasses under Rule 23(c)(5) be appropriate?
- When would issue classes under Rule 23(c)(4) be appropriate?
- Under what circumstances should the parties seek bifurcation of either discovery or liability in class litigation?
- What factors will courts consider in determining whether issue bifurcation or a separate trial on one or more issues is appropriate?
- How are bellwether trials useful in managing large and complex class litigation?
