A Good Reason to Address Class Cert Early

Falk v. Children’s Hospital L.A., No. B251182 (D2d3 Jun 24, 2015)

This case is about so-called American Pipe tolling. See Am. Pipe & Const. Co., v. v. Utah, 414 U.S. 538 (1974). It was developed under federal law, but generally applies in California as well. The gist of the doctrine is that a plaintiff who is within the class definition in a pending class action can rely on that action in deferring to bring her own suit. The statute of limitations on her claims gets tolled during that period. The whole point is to deter every potential class member from feeling like they need to jump in to preserve their rights, which would defeat the whole point of the class action procedure.