Well, it didn’t take long. Unsurprisingly, DirecTV filed its petition for panel rehearing or rehearing en banc on August 9th, seeking rehearing of the Cappuccitti v. DirecTV decision by the Eleventh Circuit adding a requirement that at least one plaintiff allege damages exceeding $75,000 in addition to the other CAFA jurisdictional requirements. Here’s a copy of the petition. Mellissa Ingalls and Robyn Bladow, of the Los Angeles office of Kirkland & Ellis, and Matthew Richardson of the Altana office of Alston & Bird signed off on the peition for DirecTV.
The statement of issues meriting rehearing has some interesting language: "Under the guise of interpreting the Class Action Fairness Act . . . the panel decision in this case effectively repeals it. The decision eliminates CAFA jurisdiction over class actions unless an individual plaintiff has a claim worth more than $75,000, even if the aggregate amount in controversy exceeds CAFA’s $5 million threshold. Not only does this decision invent a new jurisdictional requirement that does not exist in the statute, but it also contradicts how courts around the country – including the United States Supreme Court – have interpreted CAFA since its enactment." There’s a bunch more in the petition, so take a look if you’re as interested in this case as we at the CAFA Law Blog are.