(3rd Circ., Filed November 2, 2016): Arguing that a State cannot invoke sovereign immunity to avoid being bound by a class settlement and, instead, bring a new lawsuit making identical claims when the State was expressly included in the class, received notice of the action and settlement, and did not opt out.
On December 22, 2017, the Court ruled against ATRA’s position and affirmed the district court’s decision finding the Eleventh Amendment barred the suit. It found that GSK’s action in federal court to enjoin Louisiana’s state court lawsuit through enforcing the settlement agreement qualified as a lawsuit against the state (even through the state was acting as a plaintiff in that suit). The Third Circuit also found that a Class Action Fairness Act notice and the state’s failure to act on it was insufficient to waive Louisiana’s sovereign immunity because waiver requires a clear and unequivocal declaration that the state consents to suit.
This letter-to-the-editor was originally published by The Herald-Dispatch in Huntington, WV. West Virginia was a mainstay on the American Tort Reform Foundation’s “Judicial Hellholes®” list for nearly 20 years, finally […]
This op-ed was originally published by DC Journal – Inside Sources. With Florida’s 2023 legislative session in the rearview mirror, Gov. Ron DeSantis remains under a microscope with pundits and […]
Illinois Businesses Brace for Increased Costs and Diminished Appeal as Trial Bar Pushes for Punitive Damages in Wrongful Death Cases
ATRA President Tiger Joyce discusses Florida’s 2023 legal reform successes with Preston Scott on WFLA-FM Tallahassee.
2023 legislative session resulted in landmark legal reforms, ATRF says
ATRA’s Latest Data Reveals $271.8 Million Spent on Legal Services Advertising in Florida in 2022; Florida Accounted for Nearly 20% of Radio Ad Spending Nationwide
