Political Quotes

“Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Chairman, my amendment ensures the draconian class action rules created by H.R. 985 do not apply to cases alleging fraud. Corporate malfeasance and fraudulent practices are an ongoing problem facing American consumers. We saw this firsthand with the recent Wells Fargo case. In response to the company creating over 2 million phony bank and credit card accounts, thousands of account holders certified as a class to hold Wells Fargo accountable in court. However, under H.R. 985's new requirements, this class action would have been stopped dead in its tracks at the certification phase. This is because the bill does not clearly define exactly how similar the scope and how similar the type of injury a class member must suffer. Since each individual Wells Fargo account holder endured varying degrees of financial harm from the company's unauthorized actions, it is unclear if the victims would be considered a class under these new rules. The Volkswagen Dieselgate scandal is another example of a fraud case that would be at risk under these new rules. The German company defrauded thousands of consumers by selling cars that did not meet EPA emissions standards. The cars were, instead, fitted with illegal defeat software, which allowed them to pass routine emissions tests while still producing up to 35 times the legal limits of nitrogen oxides.…”