How A Ruling Shapes A $160 Million Class Action Settlement

Our Annual Workplace Class Action Report analyzes the top ten settlements each year in various categories of complex workplace litigation, including employment discrimination, wage & hour, ERISA, and governmental enforcement litigation. As analyzed in Chapter 2 of our Annual Reports, employment discrimination settlements have waned since Rule 23 certification standards were heightened with the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in 2011 in Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. v. Dukes, 131 S. Ct. 2541 (2011).

In 2010, the last year prior to Dukes, the top ten employment discrimination settlement totaled $346 million. Conversely, in 2012, the first year after Dukes, the top ten employment discrimination settlements totaled $45 million. Clearly, employers have been more successful in opposing employment discrimination class actions, and to the extent they settle such litigation, they are doing so for fewer dollars.

To read this blog post click here