U.S. Class Actions With Foreign Citizens As Class Members: Are We on the Correct Path?

With an increasingly global economy and the recent worldwide recession, class actions have taken on an international character. One question that arises is whether U.S. courts can deal fairly with defendants in a class action where non-U.S. class members may have the opportunity to bring a second, subsequent lawsuit against the same defendants in the plaintiffs’ home country—a ‘second bite’ action. The course courts are currently steering may create a significant risk to defendants of unfair, redundant litigation. This article offers a suggestion for an alternative that will manage that risk.