February 26, 2019
Decided February 26, 2019
Nutraceutical Corp. v. Lambert, No. 17-1094
Today, the Supreme Court held 9-0 that Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23(f)’s 14-day deadline for filing a petition for permission to appeal an order granting or denying class certification is not subject to equitable tolling.
Background:
Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23(f) imposes a 14-day deadline to petition for permission to appeal from an order granting or denying class certification. After a district court decertified a class, plaintiff was granted 20 days in which to file a motion for reconsideration. Plaintiff timely filed the motion 20 days after issuance of the decertification order, which the court denied three months later. Plaintiff then filed a Rule 23(f) petition for permission to appeal 14 days after the denial of reconsideration. The Ninth Circuit granted the petition, holding that Rule 23(f)’s deadline was not jurisdictional and that equitable circumstances may warrant tolling the Rule 23(f) deadline, including where a plaintiff timely informs the district court of his intention to file a reconsideration motion before the Rule 23(f) deadline has lapsed.
Issue:
Whether Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23(f)’s 14-day deadline to file a petition for permission to appeal an order granting or denying class-action certification is subject to equitable tolling.
Court’s Holding:
No. Rule 23(f)’s 14-day deadline is not subject to equitable tolling.
“The Rules . . . express a clear intent to compel rigorous enforcement of Rule 23(f)’s deadline, even where good cause for equitable tolling might otherwise exist.”
Justice Sotomayor, writing for the unanimous Court
What It Means:
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