The Defendant Strikes Back: A Strategy For Managing Nationwide Class Action Risk

Class actions are designed to aggregate claims and create efficiencies, but for defendants, they often present sprawling risk, potentially nationwide exposure, and create immense settlement pressure long before the merits are even tested. In recent years, defendants have increasingly turned to an early procedural weapon to limit exposure: the motion to strike nationwide class allegations. By challenging national class claims at the pleading stage, defendants can narrow or even eliminate class allegations and reduce their overall litigation exposure before costly discovery begins. Although the viability of these motions can differ widely depending on the judge and jurisdiction, the governing rules give courts the authority to dismiss deficient class allegations early when they are facially untenable.