Recent UK Developments Add to “Global Rise of Collective Actions”
Developments in the UK litigation landscape are a reflection of the “global rise of collective actions,” Kevin LaCroix said in D&O Diary.
LaCroix walks through a memo from earlier this summer written by a UK lawyer titled “Opt-Out Class Actions in the UK: Are We Entering a New Era in Litigation?” The paper cites the UK’s Consumer Rights Act of 2015, the ongoing Mastercard litigation, and new legislation allowing more “opt-out” litigation in Scotland as “gradual but significant changes that may well alter the litigation culture in the UK permanently.”
LaCroix said the “the increased recognition of collective mechanisms makes it increasingly likely” that class actions will be extended into areas of the law that are not expressly covered by the new rules.
