Third Circuit Weighs in on Application of Daubert at Class Certification Stage

Since the Supreme Court’s decision in Comcast v. Behrend, 113 S. Ct. 1426 (2013) courts evaluating expert testimony at the class certification stage may not simply accept that testimony at face value. The Supreme Court did not, however, articulate what standard should be applied in evaluating such testimony. Most courts now recognize that the standards of Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals, Inc., 509 U.S. 579 (1993), must be addressed in some form before the class can be certified, but courts differ on whether a “full” Daubert analysis is required, or whether some lesser analysis is permissible. In In re: Blood Reagents Antitrust Litigation, No. 12-4067 (3d Cir. April 8, 2015), the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit required what appears to be a full, rigorous analysis where opinion testimony relates to a requirement for certification.

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