On January 19, 2016, the First District of the Illinois Appellate Court reversed the trial court’s certification of a class with plaintiff as its representative in a class action suit brought under the federal Telephone Consumer Protection Act, 47 U.S.C. §227(b)(1)(C)(2012), (“TCPA”).  The reviewing court found plaintiff failed to meet its burden of showing that the representative would adequately protect the interests of the class where the representative’s deposition testimony showed a lack of “knowledge concerning the case and passivity regarding its prosecution.”  2016 IL App (1^st) 143733 ¶ 5.  The court noted the class representative’s fiduciary duty to absent class members which is nondelegable, and stated, “[w[hy even bother to appoint a class representative who unveils himself or herself as a tool of class counsel?” 2016 IL App (1^st) 143733 ¶20,22.

Submitted by Jeanne Zeiger