Should All Plaintiffs in Class Action Lawsuits Have Suffered the Same Level of Injury? (H.R. 985)

What is H.R. 985?

(Updated October 6, 2019)

This bill would reform the framework of class action lawsuits by requiring that classes consist of members with the same type and extent of injury. Potential members of a class action suit would be required to demonstrate that they’ve experienced the same type and intensity an injury as named representatives of the class.

People who are injured to a non-comparable extent or are uninjured could still join class action lawsuits, but must do separately from those who have experienced more extensive injury. Courts would be required to certify that each class in a class action lawsuit meets the type and scope of this legislation’s injury requirements following rigorous analysis.

Argument in favor

Class action lawsuits are often exploited. Courts need to improve how plaintiffs are vetted to ensure that they have actually been harmed. Class action suits should only come from people who have suffered the same.

Argument opposed

The current system for class action lawsuits does a sufficient job of vetting and separating different types of injuries. This bill would make it harder for those who’ve been injured to join a class action lawsuit.

Impact

Plaintiffs in a class action lawsuit, the people and organizations brought to court by class action suits, related federal agencies and the court system.

Cost of H.R. 985

The CBO estimated that additional costs imposed by a previous version of this legislation would be insignificant.

Additional Info

In-Depth: Sponsoring Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-VA) called this a “simple, one-page bill, that furthers a common sense principle that should apply to class action lawsuits in the future.” Goodlatte added in a press release when he introduced it during the last Congress that:

“Today, the class action litigation system has morphed into an expensive enterprise where lawyers are often the only winners, and American businesses and consumers are the losers. Frivolous class action lawsuits are costing parties millions of dollars, and trial lawyers often profit at the expense of deserving victims... When baseless claims come into our courtrooms, the real losers are hardworking Americans. Today’s action addresses the abuses within our class action litigation system, and keeps baseless class action suits away from innocent parties, while still keeping the doors to justice open for parties with real and legitimate claims.”

This legislation has received criticism for making it more difficult for plaintiffs who’ve been injured to join a class action lawsuit. A column in the Los Angeles Times called the bill “Orwellian” and included a lawyer’s quote that “If your injury is different by just $1, it would preclude joining a class action.”

The House Judiciary Committee approved this bill by a vote of 19 to 12. During the last Congress, the House passed this legislation on a 211-188 vote, but it stalled in the Senate.

Media:

• House Judiciary Committee Press Release
• CBO Cost Estimate (Previous Version) 
• Los Angeles Times (Previous Version)
• Modern Healthcare (Previous Version)
• Workplace Class Action Blog (Previous Version)