Class actions pose the single greatest risk to a corporation. If not defended properly from the outset, class actions can become unmanageable and cripple a company. For defendants, the key often becomes finding an effective means for disposing of the cases early, before class certification takes place. As the Seventh Circuit stated, "Many corporate executives are unwilling to bet their company that they are in the right in big-stakes litigation, and a grant of class status can propel the stakes of a case into the stratosphere." Blair v. Equifax, 181 F.3d 832 (7th Cir. 1999).
To meet the challenge, Wilson Elser has consolidated its significant class action defense experience into a Class Action Practice Group. Each attorney in the group has extensive experience with a broad range of class action litigation in areas such as antitrust, employment discrimination, environmental, civil rights, pharmaceutical, insurance, product liability, consumer fraud, and securities law.
Wilson Elser has successfully defeated class certifications in both state and federal courts. Examples include a case in which a state court affirmed denial of class certification in a consumer fraud action involving electrical devices brought against a large electrical device manufacturer; dismissal of class allegations in a statewide wage and hour overtime compensation class action brought against a major real estate developer; and defeat of class certification twice in the representation of a life insurer against claims of improper premium withdrawals.
A goal to managing class actions is early resolution. Wilson Elser has obtained early dismissals of the named plaintiffs' claims based on a lack of standing and/or injury. We have obtained early stays of the proceedings under the doctrines of primary jurisdiction and federal preemption. Our attorneys have been successful at removing class actions from state to federal court based on the Class Action Fairness Act of 2005. We have consolidated and transferred multiple class action filings to the Panel for Multi-District Litigation ("MDL"). We have conducted class- and merits-based discovery, taken interlocutory appeals of certification rulings, and administered class action settlements.
Class actions have also become more complicated by duplicative and overlapping cases that are filed in multiple courts around the country during the same time period. Wilson Elser is experienced in developing strategies to represent clients to deal with these types of onslaughts, including motions for federal multidistrict consolidation and motions for state and federal coordination. We are also mindful that class actions can potentially generate extraordinary fees for our clients. However, based on our significant class action litigation experience, combined with our nationwide reach and technological capabilities, Wilson Elser handles such matters with efficiency, always keeping in mind our clients' bottom line.
Attorneys in our Class Action Practice Group are also at the forefront of recent developments in class action law. Many of them often speak and write for major organizations and publications throughout the country.