Neal Marder Quoted in Law360 on Supreme Court’s Revisit of American Pipe Decision

Neal Marder, a partner at Akin Gump and head of its consumer class action litigation practice, was quoted in the Law360 story “Justices May Take Narrow View Of Widening ‘American Pipe.’” The article pertains to the Supreme Court’s scheduled hearing in China Agritech Inc. v. Resh, a case that will decide on the reach of the so-called equitable tolling provisions of the Court’s 1974 landmark decision in American Pipe & Construction Co. v. Utah and whether plaintiffs in certain instances should be allowed to file new class actions after the deadline to do so has passed.

As the article reports, China Agritech, a former fertilizer manufacturer, has asked the justices to overturn a 9th Circuit decision reviving a securities class action against it. The company argues that the appeals court was wrong when it said that American Pipe pauses—or tolls—the statute of limitations for class action filings. In addition, it says the ruling could lead to “perpetual stacking of one class action after another” while also providing plaintiffs attorneys “with a high potential reward while putting tremendous pressure on defendants to settle even meritless claims.”

Marder said the Supreme Court will likely focus on these potential ramifications as well as the policy objectives of American Pipe. He declined to make any predictions about how the justices will decide the case, but said whichever way it turns out, the decision’s impact likely will be felt across all class actions and not just those alleging securities fraud.

Marder co-authored an Akin Gump client alert on the case, which can be read by clicking here.