Are Class Action Lawsuits Obsolete? AT&T Mobility v. Concepcion CLE

Are Class Action Lawsuits Obsolete? AT&T Mobility v. Concepcion

May 2011

Program Description:

Are class action lawsuits about to become obsolete? That seems inconceivable, but many experts are now arguing that it is very possible.

According to the “Class Action Litigation Report” (BNA, Vol. II, No. 19; Oct. 8, 2010; p. 5-51): “As of this juncture, the long term future of the class action is in doubt, and only some basic compromises . . . seem capable of preserving it as a broad form of litigation practice.”

AT&T Mobility LLC v. Concepcion is the most immediate attack on class action litigation as it now exists. The case was argued before the U.S. Supreme Court on November 9, 2010, and was recently decided by the Court. The Court was called on to decide whether all contract claims (including agreements with shareholders, consumers, vendors, and employees) may be exclusively resolved through arbitration and such arbitration would not be possible as a class.

Following up on previous CBA-CLE seminars presented by Dirk de Roos on class action arbitration and the impact of the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Stolt-Nielsen S.A. v. AnimalFeeds International Corp., this seminar will analyze the AT&T Mobility decision and what may be its historic (and potentially almost inconceivable) impact on class action litigation.

Presented by Dirk W. de Roos, Esq. and Russell O. Stewart, Esq.

Agenda:

11:30 am - 12:00 pm Registration

12:00 pm - 1:00 pm Program (Lunch Provided)

Faculty:

Dirk W. de Roos, Esq.

Faegre & Benson LLP

Dirk W. de Roos, Esq. is a partner in the Faegre & Benson Denver office. For three decades, he has counseled clients on insurance coverage and risk management issues and has litigated nationally on insurance coverage issues and in claims handling disputes.

Mr. de Roos has substantial experience representing parties in all phases of the insurance process. He provides counseling and litigation on a wide range of complex insurance issues including the following: commercial general liability policies, specialty lines, errors and omissions, directors and officers liability policies, XS/umbrella/surplus lines coverage, and employment practice liability policies. He has extensive experience in state and federal court at the trial and appellate levels.

Mr. de Roos is a frequent speaker on a variety of insurance, litigation, and related topics, including Enforcing or Invalidating Class Arbitration Waivers: Legal Trends and Best Practices in Class Arbitration for Colorado Bar Association CLE in 2008.

Russell O. Stewart, Esq.

Faegre & Benson LLP

Russell O. Stewart, Esq. is a senior partner in the General Litigation practice of Faegre & Benson LLP. He focuses on the defense of prescription drugs and toxic torts, and has recently served as national counsel in Seroquel® and Vaccine litigation. Mr. Stewart has briefed and argued class action certification motions in state and federal courts, and is the editor of the Colorado Chapter of “A Practitioner's Guide to Class Actions” (American Bar Association, 2010). Mr. Stewart is an active member of the International Association of Defense Counsel, where he served as chair of the Toxic and Hazardous Substances Litigation Committee. He is admitted to practice in state and federal courts in Colorado, Wyoming, and Kansas, and serves on the Colorado Supreme Court Committee on Civil Jury Instructions.

Jay S. Horowitz, Esq.
Horowitz/Forbes, LLP
Denver, CO

Mr. Horowitz is the founding partner and principal of Horowitz/Forbes, LLP. The practice of Horowitz/Forbes, LLP focuses on civil/commercial litigation. Mr. Horowitz graduated from Harvard Law School in 1967. He then served as the Senior Law Clerk to the Hon. Thomas Masterson of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. Following his clerkship, Mr. Horowitz was recruited to be an Assistant United States Attorney in the Southern District of New York. Mr. Horowitz subsequently was recruited by Archibald Cox, Watergate Special Prosecutor, to serve as an Assistant Special Prosecutor in charge of numerous investigations of alleged wrongdoing in President Nixon's Administration. In the late 1970s Mr. Horowitz, together with several others, formed a litigation firm in Denver, Colorado. That firm has led to a succession of firms of which Mr. Horowitz has been the principal and of which Horowitz/Forbes, LLP is the latest incarnation. All of these firms have focused on commercial litigation. In addition to Mr. Horowitz's litigation practice he was one of the first two outside directors of J.D. Edwards & Co.