The origins of the class action can be traced to the English chancery courts—perhaps even to King Edward II’s adjudication of a dispute concerning the rights of Channel Islanders in 1309. The class action as we know it today, however, emerged in the United States in the mid-20th century and has mutated far beyond anything that would have been recognizable to chancery courts of even a century ago. In recent decades, the U.S.-style class action has begun to spread not only to other common law jurisdictions but also to the civil law countries of Europe and elsewhere. Earlier this summer, the European Union published the text of a proposed directive on “representative actions for the protection of the collective interests of consumers” (the “Directive”). Consumer law is defined broadly to include “data protection, financial services, travel and tourism, energy, telecommunications, environment and health, as well as air and train passenger rights, in addition to general consumer law.” While the class action procedure envisioned by the E.U. directive is more limited in scope than Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23 and state law analogues, the Directive (once it is formally approved and implemented) is expected to significantly expand the availability of the class action mechanism in Europe, particularly in cross-border litigation.
The origins of the class action can be traced to the English chancery courts—perhaps even to King Edward II’s adjudication of a dispute concerning the rights of Channel Islanders in 1309. The class action as we know it today, however, emerged in the United States in the mid-20th century and has mutated far beyond anything that would have been recognizable to chancery courts of even a century ago. In recent decades, the U.S.-style class action has begun to spread not only to other common law jurisdictions but also to the civil law countries of Europe and elsewhere. Earlier this summer, the European Union published the text of a proposed directive on “representative actions for the protection of the collective interests of consumers” (the “Directive”). Consumer law is defined broadly to include “data protection, financial services, travel and tourism, energy, telecommunications, environment and health, as well as air and train passenger rights, in addition to general consumer law.” While the class action procedure envisioned by the E.U. directive is more limited in scope than Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23 and state law analogues, the Directive (once it is formally approved and implemented) is expected to significantly expand the availability of the class action mechanism in Europe, particularly in cross-border litigation.
The origins of the class action can be traced to the English chancery courts—perhaps even to King Edward II’s adjudication of a dispute concerning the rights of Channel Islanders in 1309. The class action as we know it today, however, emerged in the United States in the mid-20th century and has mutated far beyond anything that would have been recognizable to chancery courts of even a century ago. In recent decades, the U.S.-style class action has begun to spread not only to other common law jurisdictions but also to the civil law countries of Europe and elsewhere. Earlier this summer, the European Union published the text of a proposed directive on “representative actions for the protection of the collective interests of consumers” (the “Directive”). Consumer law is defined broadly to include “data protection, financial services, travel and tourism, energy, telecommunications, environment and health, as well as air and train passenger rights, in addition to general consumer law.” While the class action procedure envisioned by the E.U. directive is more limited in scope than Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23 and state law analogues, the Directive (once it is formally approved and implemented) is expected to significantly expand the availability of the class action mechanism in Europe, particularly in cross-border litigation.
