Class Actions
They have a very strong team, and have the capacity to handle large engagements.Chambers USA
Practice Overview
Buckley is among the preeminent class action defense firms in the United States for the financial services industry. Our firm vigorously defends leading banks, insurers, mortgage lenders and servicers, credit card issuers, auto lenders, and retailers in putative class actions and other complex litigation across the nation. We are involved in class action claims alleging violations of federal and state consumer protection and consumer credit statutes, wrongful underwriting and servicing practices, credit discrimination, and inflated or otherwise wrongful insurance claims, to name a few.
Buckley has achieved groundbreaking success for our clients involving a wide variety of disputes. We represent clients in federal and state court class and mass actions throughout the country. We consistently deliver efficient and effective representation in class action matters by leveraging our firmwide knowledge and abilities in financial services litigation and the relevant regulations to devise the best possible and most comprehensive defense strategies imaginable.
Given the high stakes of class action claims, we recognize the importance of the early identification of an optimal exit strategy — whether such a strategy is through the dismissal of pleadings, defeat of class certification, prevailing on summary judgment, or obtaining a favorable negotiated resolution for our client. In addition, we frequently handle the complex parallel proceedings involving concurrent government enforcement and civil litigation, congressional investigations, and regulatory counseling matters that often present themselves alongside class action litigation.
Our Class Actions team is comprised of a selection of the most experienced financial services class action trial and appellate attorneys in the country. Our firm is ranked nationally in Band 1 by Chambers for consumer finance litigation, with three Buckley lawyers included among the top 18 consumer finance litigators in the U.S.
Noteworthy matters include:
- Represented numerous insurance companies in multiple putative nationwide and state specific class actions concerning lender-placed insurance
- Represented a mortgage originator and affiliated entities in a putative class action alleging violations of the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) and common law unjust enrichment related to a captive mortgage reinsurance arrangement
- Settlement reached on a nationwide class action brought on behalf of credit card customers regarding a reduction in a credit line and the assessment of overlimit fees; a nationwide class settlement was reached
- Represented a mortgage originator and servicer in a mass action involving hundreds of mortgage borrowers alleging various fraudulent acts in connection with the origination and servicing of their loans, allegedly in violation of New York General Business Law § 349 and common law; the client prevailed on a motion to sever and dismiss claims
They have a very strong team, and have the capacity to handle large engagements.Chambers USA
Articles
Special Alert: D.C. Circuit significantly narrows FCC’s order defining autodialer
On March 16, the D.C. Circuit issued its much anticipated ruling in ACA International v. FCC . The D.C. Circuit’s ruling significantly narrows a Federal Communication Commission order from 2015, which, among other things, had broadly defined an “autodialer” for purposes of the Telephone Consumer...
Special Alerts"The great data breach standing circuit split" by Amanda R. Lawrence, Antonio J. Reynolds, and Michael A. Rome (Law360)
Data breaches are back in the news in a big way. Over the past several weeks alone, prominent hotel chains, online platforms and retailers announced significant data breaches. Unsurprisingly, in the aftermath of these disclosures, consumers filed class actions alleging that the data breaches...
Articles"The rise and fall of statistical sampling in RMBS cases" by Amanda Lawrence and Michael A. Rome (Law360)
The 2008 mortgage crisis prompted a wave of residential mortgage-backed securities and repurchase litigation as trustees, certificate holders (i.e. investors), monoline insurers, securitizers and other stakeholders pursued claims related to loans securitized in RMBS trusts. One of the hallmarks of...
ArticlesFredrick S. Levin Authored a Law360 Article, "2 Litigation Trends Offer Guidance On TCPA Compliance"
$76 million, $14.8 million, $12 million and $3.7 million. These numbers represent some of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act settlement agreements negotiated in 2017. As shown by these numbers, TCPA litigation continues to be a leading litigation risk for corporate America. Recently, several...
ArticlesAmanda Lawrence and Michael A. Rome Authored a Law360 Article, "The Great Class Action Ascertainability Debate"
In recent years, courts have divided sharply over whether or not Rule 23 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure creates an implicit requirement that a class must be ascertainable in order to be certified. This article addresses the meaning of ascertainability, the circuit split over whether and to...
ArticlesSpecial Alert: California Supreme Court Invalidates Widely Used Arbitration Provisions and Curtails the Scope of Proposition 64
On April 6, the California Supreme Court published its opinion in McGill v. Citibank, N.A., finding unenforceable arbitration agreements that purport to waive claims for public injunctive relief brought under California’s Consumer Legal Remedies Act (CLRA), Civ. Civ. Code, § 1750 et seq., its...
ArticlesSpecial Alert: Madden Class Action Moves Forward
On February 27, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York issued a ruling in Madden v. Midland Funding, LLC , [1] holding that New York’s fundamental public policy against usury overrides a Delaware choice-of-law clause in the plaintiff’s credit card agreement. The court allowed...
ArticlesWhat Companies Can Expect After Campbell-Ewald
May defendants moot a putative class action by merely offering complete relief to the putative class representative? The U.S. Supreme Court says no, and the decision may have profound implications on class actions for years to come. Some options may remain, however, if more than a mere offer can be...
ArticlesClass Action Settlement Considerations: Ten Tips for a Successful Settlement (The Case Law)
The following article discusses recent, significant decisions on federal class action settlements. While not all inclusive, these cases may help practitioners avoid common (and some not-so-common) pitfalls when trying to reach a successful, lasting class action settlement. This article assumes that...
ArticlesSpecial Alert: Class Action Suit Filed Based on CFPB Consent Order
In what may be the first action of its kind, a consumer who received restitution under the CFPB consent order has filed a class action lawsuit based on the same alleged violations. While this litigation is still in its early stages, it serves as an important reminder that an institution’s exposure...
Articles
News & Blogs
7th Circuit: Detailed creditor information does not violate FDCPA
On June 6, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit, in a consolidated appeal, affirmed summary judgment in favor of a debt collector in actions alleging that the debt collector violated the FDCPA by naming the “original creditor” and the “client” in its collection letters, but declining to...
InfoBytes9th Circuit: Class decertification appropriate when representative lacks standing
On June 5, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit affirmed a lower court’s decision to decertify a class of callers claiming their cellphone calls were unlawfully recorded, holding that the class representative lacked standing as to its individual claim. According to the opinion, customers...
InfoBytes9th Circuit upholds rejection of consumer’s class action against auto finance company
On May 30, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit affirmed summary judgment in favor of an auto finance corporation and various dealerships (collectively, “defendants”) in a putative class action alleging the defendants failed to provide add-ons the plaintiff purchased with the vehicle. The...
InfoBytesClass action alleges national bank’s grace period practices breach terms of cardholder agreement
On June 3, a consumer filed a class action complaint against a national bank alleging that the bank charges interest on credit card accounts even when consumers’ balances are paid in full by the billing cycle due date, in breach of the bank’s cardholder agreement. The complaint alleges that the...
InfoBytes9th Circuit holds shipping company’s online arbitration agreement is valid
On May 30, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit denied a plaintiff’s writ of mandamus challenging the district court’s order compelling arbitration of the plaintiff’s claims against a national shipping company. According to the opinion, a customer filed a putative class action complaint...
InfoBytesDistrict court rules customers bound by arbitration agreement in credit inquiry dispute
On May 28, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida ruled that customers who financed a vehicle through a Florida car dealership were bound by the arbitration provision contained within a signed purchase order and retail installment sale contact. The customer plaintiffs...
InfoBytesDistrict court approves final settlement resolving breach of contract and conversion claims related to debit card overdraft fees
On May 28, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California granted final approval to a roughly $24.5 million settlement resolving class action allegations that a credit union unfairly charged optional overdraft protection fees on certain debit card transactions. In 2017, the...
InfoBytes9th Circuit revives FCRA suit against credit reporting agency
On May 17, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit revived a putative class action lawsuit against a national credit reporting agency for allegedly failing to follow reasonable procedures to assure maximum possible accuracy in the plaintiffs’ credit reports, in violation of the FCRA...
InfoBytes2nd Circuit: Unsolicited text messages are sufficient injury under TCPA
On April 30, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit held that the receipt of unsolicited text messages, absent any additional injury, is sufficient to demonstrate injury-in-fact in a TCPA class action. According to the opinion, consumers filed a class action lawsuit against a retail store...
InfoBytes3rd Circuit: District court erred in voiding all cash advance agreements in NFL concussion settlement litigation
On April 26, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit, in a consolidated class action, concluded that a district court went “too far” in voiding all of the cash advance arrangements between NFL concussion class members and third party lenders in their entirety. According to the opinion, in...
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Our Class Actions Team
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FYI
"The great data breach standing circuit split" by Amanda R. Lawrence, Antonio J. Reynolds, and Michael A. Rome (Law360)
Recent Blog Posts
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June 13, 2019
7th Circuit: Detailed creditor information does not violate FDCPA
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June 12, 2019
9th Circuit: Class decertification appropriate when representative lacks standing
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June 7, 2019
9th Circuit upholds rejection of consumer’s class action against auto finance company
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June 6, 2019
Class action alleges national bank’s grace period practices breach terms of cardholder agreement
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June 5, 2019
9th Circuit holds shipping company’s online arbitration agreement is valid