7th Circuit Interprets Wal-Mart v. Dukes

Thomson Reuters reports on last week’s decision from the Seventh Circuit in Ross v. Charter One, a class-action suit by employees. The report’s catchy title is “7th Cir. to wage-and-hour defendants: No Dukes for you!”
HT Howard Bashman’s How Appealing blog

Here is an excerpt from the article:

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit just handed lawyers representing employees in wage-and-hour class actions potent protection against the U.S. Supreme Court's 2011 ruling in Wal-Mart v. Dukes.

The opinion came in a class-action suit filed in Chicago federal court against RBS Citizens, otherwise known as Charter One bank. Back in 2010, U.S. District Judge Joan Lefkow certified two classes, one of hourly workers and one of assistant branch managers, concluding that certification was appropriate for these narrowly-defined classes. The bank's lawyers at Proskauer Rose appealed. After oral arguments at the Seventh Circuit -- but before the appellate panel decided the case -- the Supreme Court issued its ruling in Dukes. The Seventh Circuit then asked both sides for briefs on Dukes’s implications for the case. In the first appellate ruling to address Dukes’ application to wage-and-hour class actions, the Seventh Circuit affirmed class certification.