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Reforming Class Action Abuse

with Ted Frank

This Liberty Law Talk is with Ted Frank on reforming class action litigation and, in particular, the settlements plaintiffs receive under the current system. Frank, the founder of the Center for Class Action Fairness, argues that class-action suits contribute little to plaintiffs and substantially benefit only their lawyers. Monitoring and agency problems reign because most plaintiffs lack the incentives to ensure that the class’s lawyers are actually representing their interests and not the lawyer’s monetary desires. We also discuss the turn to arbitration by companies as an exit from class actions and Frank’s work that contests egregious attorney fee awards in class settlements. To date, the CCAF has had over a quarter of a billion dollars in attorneys’ fees reduced in class action awards.