Class Action Blog

Plaintiff, a royalty owner of Oklahoma natural gas wells, sued for alleged underpayment of royalties. Defendant filed a CAFA removal to federal court. The royalty owner’s motion for abstention or to remand to state court based on the home state exception to CAFA was denied. The 10th Circuit reviewed the record and affirmed. Nichols v. Chesapeake Operating, LLC Plaintiff, a royalty owner in Oklahoma natural gas wells, sued Chesapeake Operating, LLC and Chesapeake Exploration, LLC (Chesapeake) in Oklahoma state court. Chesapeake then removed asserting CAFA jurisdiction because there were at least 100 proposed class members and more than $5,000,000 in controversy. Chesapeake alleged its principal place of business was in Oklahoma and that at least one class member was a Texas citizen.

Patricia Wright and Kevin West sued Owens Corning and Owens Corning Sales, LLC (“Owens Corning”) in Pennsylvania pursuing a nationwide class action case for allegedly selling defective roofing shingles. The summary judgment ruling in favor of the Defendants was partially reversed on appeal which led Wright and West to join with Jaime Gonzalez and others in filing similar suits in California, Illinois, Pennsylvania, and Texas. Those cases were then transferred and consolidated in Pennsylvania. The District Court denied the motion to certify the Nationwide and Four-State Class Action cases, rulings the 3rd Circuit affirmed in March of 2018. The case was before the 3rd Circuit on a Rule 23(f) appeal.