"Bringing suit within the Ninth Circuit's footprint now guarantees that minor things like compensating class members for their injuries, holding defendants liable to the extent the law allows, and preventing defendants from injuring class members in the exact same manner will not stand in the way of reaching a quick settlement to the mutual benefit of defendants and class counsel," states the petition filed by Baker & Hostetler's David Rivkin Jr., along with Theodore Frank of the Center for Class Action Fairness and two other law firms.
The case also could give the high court a chance to examine the law of cy pres awards, in which damages are directed to charitable organizations that do work to benefit class members or others similarly situated. Public interest law firms are sometimes the beneficiaries of such awards.
