Twelve years after he introduced the Class Action Fairness Act of 2005, Representative Bob Goodlatte (R-VA) has introduced the Fairness in Class Action Litigation Act of 2017 (“the Act”), which would significantly change the federal class action landscape by creating several procedural mechanisms designed to head off lawyer-driven class action litigation.  The stated purpose of the Act is to “(1) assure fair and prompt recoveries for class members and multidistrict litigation plaintiffs with legitimate claims; (2) diminish abuses in class action and mass tort litigation that are undermining the integrity of the U.S. legal system; and (3) restore the intent of the framers of the United States Constitution by ensuring Federal court consideration of interstate controversies of national importance consistent with diversity jurisdiction principles.”  The Act contains many game-changing provisions, five of which are detailed below.
Continue Reading Proposed Legislation May Significantly Limit Class Action Litigation in Federal Court