Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. v. Dukes: Supreme Court Clarifies Commonality Analysis for Class Actions and Rejects Use of Injunctive Relief as Hook to Certify Damages Class

Last year we reported on the en banc Ninth Circuit’s pathbreakingly broad decision affirming the certification of a class of 1.5 million plaintiffs in a lawsuit alleging that Wal-Mart had discriminated against its female employees at all levels. At that time, we noted that the court of appeals had lowered the bar to class certification in several important respects, creating or deepening at least three conflicts among the circu