Today, the Competitive Enterprise Institute’s Center for Class Action Fairness (CCAF) filed a cert petition before the U.S. Supreme Court asking for review of a class action lawsuit settlement in Schulman v. LexisNexis, et al. CCAF argued previously at a lower court that the settlement was unfair to the class and that the class attorneys were seeking excessive fees. Today’s petition for certiorari was prompted by the lower court’s failure to follow governing Supreme Court law that recognizes the inherent potential for abuses of the class action settlement process.

“The Supreme Court has an opportunity to bring clarity for thousands of class members who want to opt out of class actions,” said Adam Schulman, CEI attorney.

If the Supreme Court agrees to hear the case, it could resolve splits in circuit court decisions over whether the law provides damages claimants the right to opt out of class actions and, if not, whether the Due Process Clause guarantees that right. The sole statute at issue in the litigation, the Fair Credit Reporting Act, does not permit private parties to seek injunctive relief.

CEI is challenging the district court’s approval of a settlement over data marketing practices, from which class members cannot even opt out, and under which class members receive only injunctive relief that was forbidden by statute, while plaintiffs’ lawyers are awarded over $5.3M.  

Please visit the source link below to learn more about the preceding case and the cert petition in Schulman v. Lexis.