Mission

The Class Actions and Derivative Suits Committee is one of the 40 practice groups open to all members of the American Bar Association’s Section of Litigation. Joining the committee entitles a member to a number of benefits (see list below). The committee consists of practitioners, corporate counsel, and academicians interested in class actions and stockholder derivative suits. Its leadership of top practitioners works to keep members abreast of issues in the class actions area.

To accomplish this goal, the committee provides its members with these benefits:

• CADS Report, a quarterly publication
• the renowned annual National Class Action Institute
• the Survey of Class Action Law
• networking opportunities with leading practitioners
• discounted CLE programs
• online access to case notes
• past issues of CADS Report and other helpful information
• opportunities to write for committee publications, speak on committee panels, and participate in the activities of our subcommittees

Whether you want to receive CADS Report, learn from and network with top litigators, or contribute to our programs and publications, or all of the above, join us. Section of Litigation members may join up to three committees at no charge.

To join, you must first be a member of the ABA and also a member of the ABA Section of Litigation.

 

Announcements

Next Newsletter Aims at Inflated Health Benefits of Products

Watch for the Class Actions & Derivative Suits Committee's Spring 2012 newsletter, which will include must-read articles and information on class-action lawsuits that allege inflated health benefits of products.

A Brief Guide to Removal

Removing a case to federal court is a technical and detail-oriented process. It can sometimes be difficult to determine the proper approach, given various interconnected and interrelated statutes governing federal jurisdiction and removal. Matthew M.K. Stein and Abra C. Bron have provided a brief guide to those statutes and related interpretative case law, incorporating the Federal Courts Jurisdiction & Venue Clarifications Act of 2011, which applies to actions commenced after January 6, 2012.

Class Actions and Derivative Suits Committee Updates Survey of State Law

The Class Actions and Derivative Suits Committee has released this year’s state law class action survey. The survey is a tool for in-house and outside counsel who litigate class actions in state forums. The summaries are prepared by litigators from each of the respective states and address changes in rules and statutes, as well as significant case law.

The Committee would like to thank the editors who worked to put this together, including Elizabeth Cabraser and Fabrice N. Vincent, editors in chief; C. Timothy Corcoran III, editor; Thomas R. Grande, Anne Wheeler, and Dennis K. Egan, editors emeritus; and Marcy Aldrich, Fred Burnside, Howard S. Suskin, Daniela Gonzales Aldape, and Todd Carnam, executive editors.

Members can download the survey from the Survey of State Class Action Law page.

Attention Young Lawyers

Our Committee is seeking to serve young lawyers and recruit them as members. You may find articles directed at young lawyers and the basics of class actions on the articles page. You may also contact our chairs, Greg Cook and Jocelyn Larkin, to become involved in our Committee immediately.

Message from the Chairs

We want to welcome you to the Class Actions & Derivative Suits Committee. Let us take this opportunity to introduce you to our committee and the many benefits that membership provides.

Get Case Developments, Legal Analysis, and Strategy Advice
Here on our web page, you will find a wealth of articles and recent developments that will keep you up to date on class-action law. Prepared by preeminent class-action practitioners, you can expect cogent analysis and real-world practice pointers.

We also produce a quarterly newsletter with in-depth analysis and perspectives. Take advantage of this great resource—or take the next step and submit an article for publication. Our terrific team of editors is there to help you: Kathryn Honecker (khonecker@bffb.com), Ben Seessel (BVS@jordenusa.com), Robert Herrington (herringtonr@gtlaw.com), and Julia Campins (jcampins@lewisfeinberg.com).

Another unique resource we offer is our annual survey of state class-action law. No other publication provides you with this comprehensive and up-to-date resource on the changing state-law frontier.

We believe this is one of the finest collections of content that you will find, and it is one of the primary benefits of committee membership.

Annual Class Action Institute
Ever wonder what drives those professional class-action objectors? Are they watchdogs, ideologues, or hold-up artists? At our most recent National Institute on Class Actions held in New York City in October, we presented a fascinating (and raucous!) panel of three well-known objectors to explain their practices and answer our members’ questions. Innovative programs like this are the norm for our National Institute leader Dan Karon and his crew. They put on a great show that also happens to be exceptionally educational, while still giving us a chance to network over lunch and cocktails. Held every October, this is our committee’s signature event, and you won’t want to miss it.

Get Involved
We want to give all of our committee members a chance to be involved and to network with other class-action practitioners. Our committee convenes at the Section of Litigation’s Section Annual Conference in April and at the ABA Annual Meeting in August, which always provide the opportunity for informal networking. We also hold teleconferences once every two months with our members to update them on committee developments and opportunities to get involved.

Join Us
If you are already a member of the Section of Litigation, joining our committee is simple and easy (and free).

Gregory Cook—gcook@balch.com
Jocelyn Larkin—jlarkin@impactfund.org
Michael Hyman—hymikeb@aol.com

Chairs, Class Actions & Derivative Suits Committee

Minutes from Committee Meetings

• » May 3, 2012 | 
• » January 11, 2012 | 
• » November 10, 2011 | 
• » September 15, 2011 | 
• » July 21, 2011 | 
• » May 12, 2011 | 
• » March 10, 2011 | 
• » January 19, 2011 | 

Subcommittees

Find contact information for committee and subcommittee chairs: