News

CCL President Robert S. Peck spoke to trial lawyer executives on constitutional challenges to tort reform laws on Nov. 13 in Portland, OR.  Members of the National Association of Trial Lawyer Executives, meeting at their annual Government Affairs Conference, heard about recent cases in states around the nation and key elements of what contributes to a successful court challenge.

CCL’s Robert S. Peck spoke about Medicare liens and recent case developments during an American Bar Association continuing legal education teleseminar conducted Oct. 23. Peck who was counsel in the groundbreaking case of Bradley v. Sebelius, 621 F.3d 1330 (11th Cir. 2010), which held that Medicare was only entitled to its pro rata share of a settlement to reimburse it for medical expenses, rather than the entire settlement, as it had asserted.

At a policy symposium sponsored by the RAND Institute for Civil Justice, CCL’s Robert S. Peck spoke on “The Future of Class Actions after Wal-Mart v. Dukes” Oct. 16 in Santa Monica, California. In the Wal-Mart case in 2011, the Supreme Court of the United States tightened the commonality requirements for the certification of class actions under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23 and decertified the largest federal employment class action ever assembled. Since the decision, defendants have tried unsuccessfully to apply the same reasoning to state class actions as a matter of due process. Peck spoke about these cases and why the Court’s new construction of Rule 23 should not affect class actions tried in state courts.

CCL’s John Vail presented a paper at the University of South Carolina School of Law’s Symposium on Personal Jurisdiction. You can now access the 2011 Symposium Issue, including John’s article “Six Questions in Light of J. McIntyre Machinery, Ltd. v. Nicastro.”

On October 2, CCL’s Robert Peck spoke on the opening panel of the National Summit on Language Access in the Courts, held in Houston, Texas. Sponsored by the National Center for State Courts, the Conference of Chief Justices, and the Conference of State Court Administrators, the summit was designed to assist the attending teams from 49 states, the District of Columbia, and territorial jurisdictions in implementing their constitutional and Title VI obligations to assure that parties have interpreters to enable them full access to the courts. Peck spoke on the constitutional background of the interpreter issue in the courts on a panel moderated by Chief Judge Eric Washington of the District of Columbia Court of Appeals and Michael Buenger, a lawyer who spoke on the Title VI issues.

The Conference is described at http://www.ncsc.org/Conferences-and-Events/Language-Access-Summit.aspx.

CCL’s Robert Peck spoke to the congressional Civil Justice Caucus about some of the cases raising issues of civil justice in the upcoming Supreme Court term on September 28. The session, held in the Rayburn House Office Building, focused on Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum, a case involving whether U.S. courts could exercise jurisdiction over human rights abuses that took place in Nigeria against plaintiffs who had now been granted political asylum in the United States, as well as a quartet of class action issues raised in Amgen Inc. v. Connecticut Retirement Plans and Trust Funds, Comcast v. Behrend, Genesis HealthCare Corp. v. Symczyk, and The Standard Fire Insurance Co. v. Knowles. Debating the significance and likely outcomes of the cases with Mr. Peck was Victor Schwartz, a partner at Shook, Hardy & Bacon and general counsel of the American Tort Reform Association.

The American Constitution Society, at its annual convention, hosted a roundtable on whether individuals are losing the right to trial by jury. Professor Arthur Miller of NYU Law School moderated. CCL’s John Vail was among the panelists. The Blog of the Legal Times covered the event.

The George Mason Judicial Education Program is “the nation’s preeminent provider of high-quality and balanced judicial education programs that focus on economics, finance, accounting, statistics, and scientific method.” This week it hosted the sixth annual judicial symposium on civil justice issues. CCL’s Robert S. Peck was this year’s keynote speaker. In addition, Valerie M. Nannery was a panel speaker.

The Milbank Tweed Forum Series at New York University Law School hosted “A Brewing Debate: Does the Tort System Need Reform?” Panelists included Andre M. Mura of CCL; Elizabeth Cabraser of Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein, LLP; J. Russell Jackson, of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, LLP; and Victor Schwartz, general counsel, American Tort Reform Association. Professor Catherine Sharkey of NYU Law was the moderator.

CCL’s Robert S. Peck spoke at the annual convention of the North Carolina Advocates for Justice, as part of a panel addressing the constitutional implications of restrictions on tort law.