Civil Procedure Commons^™

Auctioning Class Settlements, Jay Tidmarsh

Journal Articles

Although they promise better deterrence at a lower cost, class actions are infected with problems that can keep them from delivering on this promise. One of these problems occurs when the agents for the class (the class representative and class counsel) advance their own interests at the expense of the class. Controlling agency cost, which often manifests itself at the time of settlement, has been the impetus behind a number of class-action reform proposals. This Article develops a proposal that, in conjunction with reforms in fee structure and opt-out rights, controls agency costs at the time of settlement. The idea …

Revising Civil Rule 56: Judge Mark R. Kravitz And The Rules Enabling Act, Edward H. Cooper

Articles

This contribution uses the history of amending Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 56, “Summary Judgment,” to pay tribute to Mark R. Kravitz and to the Rules Enabling Act process itself. The three central examples involve discretion to deny summary judgment despite the lack of a genuine dispute as to any material fact, the choice whether to prescribe a detailed “point–counterpoint” procedure for presenting and opposing the motion, and the effect of failure to respond to a motion in one of the modes prescribed by the rule. These topics are intrinsically important. The ways in which the Civil Rules Advisory Committee …

Summary Of Déjà Vu Showgirls Of Las Vegas, Llc V. Nevada Dep’T Of Taxation, 130 Nev. Adv. Op. 72, Hayley Miller

Nevada Supreme Court Summaries

The Court (1) determined the sole remedy for a taxpayer aggrieved by a final decision from the Nevada Tax Commission concerning a tax refund request under NRS Chapter 368A (the Nevada Live Entertainment Tax) is to file a petition for judicial review pursuant to NRS 233B.130 and (2) reaffirmed its judicial estoppel doctrine.

Vladimir Putin And The Rule Of Law In Russia, Jeffrey Kahn

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

“Standing” In The Shadow Of Erie: Federalism In The Balance In Hollingsworth V. Perry, Glenn S. Koppel

Pace Law Review

This Article provides an insight into the Court’s divergent views on the federal standing issue in Hollingsworth by viewing the Justices’ conflicting positions through the lens of the Court’s Erie jurisprudence, which, at its core, focuses on calibrating the proper judicial balance of power in a given case between conflicting federal and state interests in determining vertical choice-of-law issues. Hollingsworth is uniquely positioned at the intersection of federal standing principles and Erie doctrine, confronting the Court with competing balance of power concerns inherent in our federal system. Standing, as a requirement for the limited exercise of federal judicial power under …

Procedural Rights As A Crucial Tool To Combat Climate Change, Svitlana Kravchenko

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

Better For Business, Better For Justice: Why West Virginia Needs An Intermediate Appellate Court, Stephanie Zwerner

West Virginia Law Review

No abstract provided.

I Like To Move It, Move It: Partialvenue Transfer For Less Than A Fulllegal Action, Krystal Brunner Swendsboe

Washington and Lee Law Review

No abstract provided.

A Court By Any Other Name: Preserving The Right Of Diversity Removal From State Administrative Agencies That Emulate Courts, John D. Pizzo

West Virginia Law Review

No abstract provided.

Proportionality, Pretrial Confidentiality, And Discovery Sharing, Dustin B. Benham

Washington and Lee Law Review

No abstract provided.

Stuart V. Hertz Corp. And Its New Jury Instruction: "Dump" The Case And "Clunker" That Old Rental Car, Larry Roth

Florida A & M University Law Review

The Florida Supreme Court has allowed new Standard Civil Jury Instructions ("SCJI") recommended by its Committee on Civil Jury Instructions. 2 In allowing these new instructions, however, the Court chose to not actually give its seal of approval to the Instructions set out in 501.5. 3 Thematically, these SCJI deal with the tort law concept of "Other Contributing Causes of Damages.

Summary Of Las Vegas Sands Corp. V. Eighth Judicial Dist. Court, 130 Nev. Adv. Op. 69, Michael Bowman

Nevada Supreme Court Summaries

The Court determined whether a former CEO is within a “class of persons” allowed to use the corporation’s privileged documents in litigation against the corporation.

Summary Of Campos-Garcia V. Johnson, 130 Nev. Adv. Op. 64, Michael Valiente

Nevada Supreme Court Summaries

An appeal is properly taken from an amended judgment only when the amendment “disturb[s] or revise[s] legal rights and obligations which the prior judgment had plainly and properly settled with finality."

Thus, an appeal from a post-judgment award of attorney’s fees and costs must be timely filed, because its incorporation into an amended judgment does not disturb or revise the legal rights and obligations of the parties.

Summary Of Brady, Vorwerck, Ryder & Caspino V. New Albertson’S, Inc., 130 Nev. Adv. Op. 68, Ashleigh Wise

Nevada Supreme Court Summaries

The Court determined that NRS 11.207(1), in regards to the two-year statute of limitations, is tolled against a cause of action for attorney malpractice pending the outcome of the underlying lawsuit in which the malpractice allegedly occurred. The Court did not address whether the four-year time limitation may be tolled, because that time limitation had not expired when the malpractice action at issue was filed.

Buying Time? False Assumptions About Abusive Appeals, Michael Kagan, Fatma Marouf, Rebecca Gill

Catholic University Law Review

No abstract provided.

16th Annual Open Government Summit: Access To Public Records Act & Open Meetings Act, 2014, Department Of Attorney General, State Of Rhode Island

School of Law Conferences, Lectures & Events

No abstract provided.

Allison Orr Larsen On Intensely Empirical Amicus Briefs And Amicus Opportunism At The Supreme Court, Allison Orr Larsen

Popular Media

No abstract provided.

Trial Practice And Procedure, John O'Shea Sullivan, Ashby K. Fox, Tala Amirfazli

Mercer Law Review

The 2013 survey period yielded noteworthy decisions relating to federal trial practice and procedure in the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, several of which involved issues of first impression. This Article analyzes recent developments in the Eleventh Circuit, including significant rulings in the areas of statutory interpretation, subject matter jurisdiction, arbitration, and civil procedure.

Reforming Property Law To Address Devastating Land Loss, Thomas W. Mitchell

Faculty Scholarship

Tenancy-in-common ownership represents the most widespread form of common ownership of real property in the United States. Such ownership under the default rules also represents the most unstable ownership of real property in this country. Thousands of tenancy-in-common property owners, including members of many poor and minority families, have lost their commonly-owned property due to court-ordered, forced partition sales as well as much of their real estate wealth associated with such ownership as a result of such sales. Though some scholars and the media have highlighted how thousands of African-Americans have lost an untold amount of property and substantial real …

The Federal Rules At 75: Dispute Resolution, Private Enforcement Or Decision According To Law?, James Maxeiner

All Faculty Scholarship

This essay is a critical response to the 2013 commemorations of the 75th anniversary of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.

The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure were introduced in 1938 to provide procedure to decide cases on their merits. The Rules were designed to replace decisions under the “sporting theory of justice” with decisions according to law. By 1976, at midlife, it was clear that they were not achieving their goal. America’s proceduralists split into two sides about what to do.

One side promotes rules that control and conclude litigation: e.g., plausibility pleading, case management, limited discovery, cost indemnity …

Cultural Dimensions Of Group Litigation: The Belgian Case, Stefaan Voet

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

Summary Of All Star Bail Bonds, Inc. V. Eighth Jud. Dist. Ct., 130 Nev. Adv. Op. 45, Sean Daly

Nevada Supreme Court Summaries

A defendant who left the country voluntarily, but was denied admission upon returning to the country, is considered “excluded,” not “deported,” for purposes of NRS 178.509(1)(b)(5). Furthermore, a district court may not exonerate a bond without a statutory basis for doing so.

The New Class Actions In Japan, Michael J. Madderra

Washington International Law Journal

This comment provides the first journal publication on Japan’s new class action law, promulgated on December 11, 2013. In the past, Japanese attorneys used rules of joinder and other alternatives to form de facto class action lawsuits. This comment provides insight into the development of Japan’s new class action law through a discussion of the historical context in which it was created. After discussing the law and its development, this comment argues that Japan should examine U.S. jurisprudence to prepare for challenges to the new class action system. Comparing Japanese and U.S. class action systems is appropriate because of similarities …

Abstention Doctrine And The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, Michael J. Wood

Chicago-Kent Law Review

A survey of cases where federal courts abstain from hearing cases related to existing state court cases under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) reveals varying approaches and theories underlying those courts’ abstentions. This article attempts to distinguish FDCPA claims related to the validity of the underlying debt from claims arising out of debt collectors’ conduct in collecting a debt, and recommends that federal courts avoid abstaining from the latter. When Congress passed the FDCPA, it intended to provide access to a forum of the consumer’s choice to enforce their rights under the Act by serving as “private attorneys …

The Federal Rules At 75: Dispute Resolution, Private Enforcement Or Decisions According To Law?, James R. Maxeiner

Georgia State University Law Review

This essay is a critical response to the 2013 commemorations of the75th anniversary of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure were introduced in 1938 to provide procedure to decide cases on their merits. The Rules were designed to replace decisions under the “sporting theory of justice”with decisions according to law.

By 1976, at midlife, it was clear that they were not achieving their goal. America’s proceduralists split into two sides about what to do. One side promotes rules that control and conclude litigation: e.g.,plausibility pleading, case management, limited discovery, cost indemnity for discovery, and summary …

Closing Nevada's Courthouse Doors: A Critical Examination Of Dogra V. Liles, David H. Rigdon

Nevada Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Division Of Labor: The Modernization Of The Supreme Court Of Georgia And Concomitant Workload Reduction Measures In The Court Of Appeals, Kyle G.A. Wallace, Andrew J. Tuck, Max Marks

Georgia State University Law Review

This article addresses two distinct yet interrelated topics: the arcane and unnecessarily complex jurisdictional division between the Georgia Supreme Court and Georgia Court of Appeals, and the excessive caseload at the Georgia Court of Appeals.

In Part I.A., this article discusses Georgia’s appellate system—its history, the jurisdictional division that arose, the confusion the current jurisdictional framework creates, and the limitations and burdens it places on Georgia’s highest court. In Part I.B., the article discusses the current caseload at the Court of Appeals and the burden any jurisdictional reforms would have on the Court of Appeals. In Part II, the article …

Historical Antecedents Of Challenges Facing The Georgia Appellate Courts, Michael B. Terry

Georgia State University Law Review

The Georgia appellate courts face challenges common to many courts in these days of reduced governmental resources. At the same time, the Georgia appellate courts face unusual challenges that can be traced to their historical antecedents and one unique constitutional provision: the “Two-Term Rule.” Just as “[t]he law embodies the story of a nation’s development through many centuries,” the current rules and practices of both the Supreme Court of Georgia and the Court of Appeals of Georgia embody the story of the development of those courts since their founding.

Several aspects of the history of the courts directly impact the …

The Trouble With Torgerson: The Latest Effort To Summarily Adjudicate Employment Discrimination Cases, Theresa M. Beiner

Nevada Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Civil Rulemaking In Nevada: Contemplating A New Advisory Committee, Thomas O. Main

Nevada Law Journal

No abstract provided.