Requirements for Bringing Suit

1. Requirements for Bringing Suit • Cause of Action -- legally recognized harm • Jurisdiction -- “right court” -- need both: • Subject Matter Jurisdiction and • Personal Jurisdiction

2. Requirements for Bringing Suit, #2 • Timing: • File suit within limitations period • Not unripe or moot • Unripe:too early, no real dispute requiring judicial resolutiondeveloped yet • Moot:too late, dispute requiring judicial resolution no longer exists

3. Requirements for Bringing Suit, #3 • Standing: • Person bringing suit has a personal interest that is directly affected by the action complained of • Requirements for standing: • Injury in fact • Causation • Redressability

4. Class Action Suits • Allows many suits to be consolidated in one action • Requirements: • So many similar claims to be impracticable for them to sue individually • Commonality: there are questions of law and fact common to all members of the class • Plaintiff seeking to represent the class also suffers the same legal harm

5. Federal Restrictions on Class Action Suits • Class Action Fairness Act of 2005 • Class actions are to be filed in federal courts where: • The amount in controversy is >$5 million • Any class member is a citizen of a state different from where the defendant resides • Any class member or the defendant is a resident of a foreign state • Class actions suits may be filed in state courts if: • more than 2/3 of the plaintiffs reside in the same state, and • at least one defendant is a resident of that state • Where “coupon settlements’ are proposed, the attorney’s fees awarded must be based on the value of coupons redeemed