Samuel Issacharoff leads ALI effort on aggregate litigation

About six years ago, the American Law Institute, the highly influential publisher of Restatements of the Law, decided it was time to examine class actions and other forms of collective litigation that have become so prevalent in U.S. courts. To lead that project, the ALI selected Samuel Issacharoff, now Bonnie and Richard Reiss Professor of Constitutional Law. That made sense, given his long-held expertise in complex litigation. Later this spring, the ALI will publish, “Principles of the Law of Aggregate Litigation,” the product of the efforts of Issacharoff and his three fellow Reporters.

On March 12, in anticipation of the publication of the ALI report, George Washington University Law School held a day-long conference on this critical area of law, and Issacharoff moderated a session on non-class aggregate litigation. Yet even before the final ALI report is officially out, draft versions have been shaping the law. In a foreword to the report, ALI Director Lance Liebman notes, “As we proudly publish this work, it is already clear that American courts are citing the recommended Principles and that law reformers in Europe and Asia are finding the Principles useful as their countries consider procedural changes that would increase the use of collective lawsuits.”

Posted March 19, 2010