Schwartz Weighs in on Campbell-Ewald v. Gomez for Law360
Shook, Hardy & Bacon Partner Victor Schwartz discussed the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in Campbell-Ewald v. Gomez in a January 20 Law360 article titled “Lawyers Weigh In On High Court's Class Action Ruling.”
The decision, which divided the Court 6-3, holds that companies cannot escape class action claims by making settlement offers to individual plaintiffs.
Schwartz, who chairs Shook’s Public Policy Practice, describes how the ruling could affect how defendants approach class action settlements. While Schwartz understands the impact of the decision, he doesn’t think the justices addressed all unanswered questions from the case.
Schwartz says, “The significance of this decision is that it postpones for a later day the key question of whether a defendant's complete offer and payment to a plaintiff can moot a case so that it is no longer a 'case' or 'controversy' under Article III of the U.S. Constitution. The court left undecided what the result would be if a defendant followed up on its offer and deposited money into an account payable to the plaintiff.”
The decision, which divided the Court 6-3, holds that companies cannot escape class action claims by making settlement offers to individual plaintiffs.
Schwartz, who chairs Shook’s Public Policy Practice, describes how the ruling could affect how defendants approach class action settlements. While Schwartz understands the impact of the decision, he doesn’t think the justices addressed all unanswered questions from the case.
Schwartz says, “The significance of this decision is that it postpones for a later day the key question of whether a defendant's complete offer and payment to a plaintiff can moot a case so that it is no longer a 'case' or 'controversy' under Article III of the U.S. Constitution. The court left undecided what the result would be if a defendant followed up on its offer and deposited money into an account payable to the plaintiff.”
