Chadbourne & Parke LLP v. Troice (571 U.S. 377)
U.S. Supreme Court · decided February 26, 2014 · Supreme Court Database (Spaeth)
- Citation
- 571 U.S. 377 · 134 S. Ct. 1058
- Decided
- February 26, 2014
- Term
- October Term 2013
- Vote
- 7–2
- Majority author
- Justice Breyer
- Issue area
- Economic Activity
- Disposition
- Affirmed
- Outcome
- Petitioning party lost
- Ideological direction
- Liberal
Opinion excerpt
Justice BREYER delivered the opinion of the Court. The Securities Litigation Uniform Standards Act of 1998 (which we shall refer to as the "Litigation Act") forbids the bringing of large securities class actions based upon violations of state law. It says that plaintiffs may not maintain a class action "based upon the statutory or common law of any State" in which the plaintiffs allege "a misrepresentation or omission of a material fact in connection with the purchase or sale of a covered security ." 15 U.S.C. § 78bb(f)(1) (emphasis added). The Act defines "class actions" as those involving more than 50 members. See § 78bb(f)(5). It defines "covered security" narrowly to include only securities traded on a national exchange (or, here irrelevant, those issued by investment companies). §§ 78bb(f)(5)(E), 77r(b)(1)-(2). The question before us is whether the Litigation Act encompasses a class action in which the plaintiffs allege (1) that they "purchase[d]" uncovered securities (certificates of deposit that are not traded on any national exchange), but (2) that the defendants falsely told the victims that the uncovered securities were backed by covered securities. We note that the plaintiffs do not allege that the defendants' misrepresentations led anyone to buy or to sell (or to maintain positions in) covered securities. Under these circumstances, we conclude the Act does not…
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