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Limiting Coercive Speech in Class Actions |
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Andrei Greenawalt [View as PDF]
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114 Yale L.J. 1953 (2005)
Courts once routinely banned communications of named parties and their counsel with potential class members, until the Supreme Court, in Gulf Oil Co. v. Bernard, called for "specific findings" and a "weighing of interests" before the imposition of such bans. Most courts have interpreted the opinion to require evidence that inappropriate communications have already occurred before imposing limitations. This Note argues that Bernard can and should be interpreted differently. Specifically, it recommends that courts issue prophylactic restrictions when a structurally coercive relationship, such as employer-employee, exists between defendants and potential class members.
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