Many members of Congress—and the powerful interests to which they are beholden—want to curtail or eliminate litigation as a means for redressing workplace abuses. With President Trump in the White House and Republican majorities in the House and Senate they hope to do just that. We cannot allow the Orwellian “Fairness in Class Action Litigation Act” (H.R. 985) and “Lawsuit Abuse Reduction Act” (H.R. 720) to become law. They would wipe out access to justice for millions of vulnerable workers who need class actions to combat illegal treatment in the workplace, and encourage employers to target courageous employees and their advocates with unwarranted and wasteful sanctions motions.
We anticipate that there will be a vote on these bills on the House floor tomorrow, Wednesday, March 8, so the time for action is now! It is critical to mobilize ourselves to demonstrate widespread opposition to these bills, so that even if they pass the House, they will be so “radioactive” that they cannot move in the Senate.
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Take Action Now:
- Contact your Representative. Calls are taken seriously, so if you do only one thing, make a call, rather than sending an email. You can reach all Representatives by calling the Capitol switchboard at (202) 224-3121.
- Support for and opposition to these bills does not fall strictly along party lines, so do not make assumptions about your Representative’s position on them. Reach out to every Representative you can and advocate for a “no” vote.
- Forward this email and ask your network of colleagues, clients, and friends to contact their Representatives and share this on Facebook, Twitter, and email.
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Talking Points:
- Tell your Representative how class actions have helped the people in their districts. Let them know that a vote for H.R. 985 is a vote against the everyday working people you represent and whose concerns President Trump promised to address.
- The victims of the Wells Fargo fraudulent account scam are a good example of a large group of people who would be left with no recourse if H.R. 985 passes.
- Rules like those proposed in H.R. 720 used to apply in federal court and were so disastrous that they were repealed.
- There have been no public hearings on either of these bills. The process is undemocratic.
- Judges currently have the discretion to dismiss class actions that have no merit and to levy sanctions where appropriate. The judiciary should continue to make these determinations based on the facts of each case.
Thank you for answering this call to action!
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