Multiple Parties & Claims Flashcards
Permissive v Compulsory Joinder
Compulsory joinder: Person must be joined in lawsuit—provided subject matter jurisdiction is preserved—if absence will:
(1) prevent court from granting complete relief to existing parties
(2) prejudice absent person’s interest
or
(3) subject existing party to multiple or inconsistent obligations
==> if a necessary party cannot be joined because of jurisdictional or venue concerns, then the court must determine whether, in equity and good conscience, the action should proceed among the existing parties or be dismissed.
Permissive joinder
Person may be joined in lawsuit if:
(1) claims by or against person arise out of same transaction/occurrence and
(2) common question of fact or law will arise
Statutory interpleader special reqs
SMJ: requires an amount in controversy of at least $500 and minimal diversity of citizenship between at least two claimants
PJ: exists over any claimant who is served with process anywhere within the U.S.
Venue: proper in any judicial district where any claimant resides and
Deposit: requires the stakeholder to deposit the property at issue with the court or post a bond in an amount determined by the court
Interpleader
is available when multiple persons (i.e., claimants) claim an interest in the same property (i.e., the stake). It allows the possessor of the stake (i.e., the stakeholder) to force potential claimants into a single lawsuit to determine who has a right to the property. There are two types of interpleader: statutory interpleader and rule interpleader
Rule interpleader special reqs
SMJ: Complete diversity between stakeholder & claimants + amount in controversy >$75,000 or
Claim arises under U.S. Constitution, treaty, or federal law
PJ: Consent; Service of process; Specific jurisdiction; General jurisdiction
Venue: Any district where…
-any claimant resides, if all reside in same state
property located/events occurred
or
-any claimant is subject to personal jurisdiction (if neither of above applies)
Deposit ==> NOT REQUIRED
Ct may decline SJ …
-raises novel/complex issue of state law
-new claim predoms over old ones
-og claims have been dismissed
-other compel reason
When must a compuls counterclaim b asserted
A compulsory counterclaim must be asserted in the defendant’s answer or the counterclaim is waived. This is true unless the action is dismissed before the defendant files an answer, in which case the compulsory counterclaim is not waived and can be raised in a future lawsuit.
impleader deadline
the defendant must file a third-party complaint
(1) within 14 days of serving his/her original answer or
(2) after this deadline with the court’s leave (i.e., permission).
Impleader
Third-party practice (i.e., impleader) allows a defendant to add a nonparty who may be liable to the defendant for all or part of the plaintiff’s claim.
The impleaded claim must relate to the original claim against the defending party. ==> In judging whether the claims are related, the** test is whether they arise out of a “common nucleus of operative fact” such that all claims should be tried together in a single judicial proceeding.**
However, the court must have original subject-matter jurisdiction or supplemental jurisdiction over the third-party claim.
Claim aggregation to satisfy DJ AIC
One P v One D ==> ok
One P v Mult Ds ==> no UNLESS joint liability
Mult Ps v One D ==> Aggregation not allowed unless πs enforcing common or undivided interest
Class Cert Reqs
Numerosity – the class is so numerous that joining all the members as named plaintiffs is impracticable (usually met when there are over 40 members)
Commonality – the class shares common questions of law or fact
Typicality – the named plaintiffs’ claims are typical of the claims of the class
Adequacy – the named plaintiffs will fairly and adequately protect the interests of the class
Settlements of Class Actions
A proposed settlement of a federal class action must be…
1. approved by the court to be valid.
2. The proposed settlement may be approved only after the court holds a hearing and issues findings that the settlement is fair, reasonable, and adequate.
Counterclaims: Compulsory v Permissive
Compulsory = At time of service, counterclaim is compulsory if it arises out of same transaction/occurrence AND doesn’t
require adding another party over whom court has no JX
==> SMJ: by def court will have SJ so don’t need independent SMJ from og claim
Permissive = Party has discretion if counterclaim isn’t compulsory
==> SMJ: need DJ or FQ
** TPs—can assert counterclaims against og P or D, and governed by
requirements for counterclaims and joinder
Crossclaim v counterclaim
A counterclaim is brought by a defendant against the opposite party, the plaintiff.
A crossclaim is a claim by either a plaintiff against another plaintiff or a defendant against another defendant.
==> must arise from same transaction/ occurrence
A crossclaim that does not assert a claim for relief against a coparty but merely asserts a defense against the opposing party’s claim is improper.
When a case involves legal and equitable claims that share common fact issues…
the court should hold a jury trial on the legal claim before holding a nonjury trial on the equitable claim.
A class member who objects to a proposed settlement
A class member who objects to a proposed settlement shows that his/her interests diverge from those of the class. As a result, an objection allows the class member to appeal if the court approves the proposal—but not to file an individual suit.
