Byron Dorgan: “I believe that we need to do a class action reform bill. Some of us who voted against cloture this afternoon believe…”

“I believe that we need to do a class action reform bill. Some of us who voted against cloture this afternoon believe that there have been abuses in the area of class action litigation, and that reform is needed. But class action reform has to be sensible and thoughtful, and it needs to be resolved through negotiation. I am hopeful that this will be accomplished. There is no question that there have been instances of abusive forum shopping. There are cases being filed in state court in places like Madison County, Illinois, where there are thousands of plaintiffs, but only a handful are from that area. It's pretty clear to me that cases like that, when brought on behalf of nationwide classes, should be heard in federal court. Suffice it to say that forum shopping is a problem, and we need reforms in this area. I also believe that there is a problem with coupon settlements. It makes no sense to have settlements where plaintiffs get meaningless coupons that are never redeemed.”