Famular v. Whirlpool Corporation

Background

Walt Famular, individually and on behalf of all others similarly situated, sued Whirlpool Corporation over alleged misrepresentations concerning the water and energy efficiency of three models in Whirlpool’s Maytag Centennial line of washing machines.

The court had stayed the case while the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit considered another matter involving whether New York law recognizes cross-jurisdictional class-action tolling. Cross-jurisdictional tolling is a rule under which the filing of a class action in one court may pause the statute of limitations for claims later pursued in another court. The Second Circuit asked the New York Court of Appeals to decide that issue, and the New York court answered yes. The Second Circuit then returned the issue to this court.

Issue

Whirlpool argued that the New York Court of Appeals had adopted the tolling rule from American Pipe & Construction Co. v. Utah, as limited by China Agritech, Inc. v. Resh. Under Whirlpool’s argument, the earlier nationwide class action in which the New York class was voluntarily dismissed did not pause the limitations period, making Famular’s class claims untimely.

Ruling and reasoning

The court disagreed. It explained that the New York Court of Appeals had grounded its decision in New York’s class-action statute, which is intended to protect people who lack an effective individual remedy and to avoid unnecessary, duplicative litigation.

The court further held that even if New York had adopted the federal rule from China Agritech in full, that rule did not bar these claims. China Agritech involved a third successive class action brought for the same proposed class after class certification had been denied in two earlier suits. Here, the New York class had been voluntarily dismissed from the earlier nationwide class action before any decision on class certification. Famular was not attempting to represent the same class as a prior suit, and no court had denied certification of the New York class.

Accordingly, the court held that the class claims were tolled until the New York class was voluntarily dismissed from the earlier action and were not barred by the statute of limitations.

Disposition

Judge Vincent L. Briccetti vacated the stay. The court directed the parties to file a joint letter proposing how to move the case forward by February 19, 2021, and scheduled a telephone status conference for February 26, 2021, at 3:30 p.m.