Dropping the Spear: The Case for Enhanced Summary Judgment Prior to Class Certification

This brief article makes the case for enhanced judicial scrutiny of summary judgment motions prior to the class certification decision. This argument is congruent (and convergent) with the Supreme Court‘s summary judgment trilogy, the Court‘s twin pleading decisions in Twombly and Iqbal, the Third Circuit‘s decision in Hydrogen Peroxide, and the suggestions from various quarters that courts ought to evaluate the merits of proposed class actions during the class certification process.to evaluate the merits of proposed class actions during the class certification process. Summary judgment prior to class certification, then, is a logical―and desirable―extension of these trends. This article argues that summary judgment before class certification embodies a sensible timing accommodation between the heightened pleading requirements of Twombly/Iqbal and the heightened class certification requirements of Hydrogen Peroxide.

Summary judgment prior to class certification, then, is a logical―and desirable―extension of these trends. This article argues that summary judgment before class certification embodies a sensible timing accommodation between the heightened pleading requirements of Twombly/Iqbal and the heightened class certification requirements of Hydrogen Peroxide.