Complex Litigation: CAFA Cacophony

Abstract

Commentary and analysis of various emerging problems in federal court interpretation and application of the Class Action Fairness Act of 2005 (CAFA). Among the problems discussed are: (1) the authority of an MDL judge - after transfer of litigation to the MDL forum - to reconsider the transferor’s judge’s determination of the propriety of a CAFA removal from state court; (2) a defendant’s strategic deployment of removal under CAFA in order to seek enforcement of a mandatory arbitration clause in federal court; (3) determination of the applicability of CAFA’s home-state or local controversy exceptions to removal; and (4) allocations of burdens of proof on federal jurisdictional issues in CAFA removals.

Keywords: Class Action Fairness Act of 2005, CAFA, CAFA removal, MDL transfer, mandatory arbitration, home state controversy, local controversy CAFA burdens of proof