Rule 2-231.Class actions

Rule 2-231 governs class actions in Maryland circuit court, and it starts with a limit that surprises some lawyers coming from federal practice: only plaintiff classes are allowed. A group of defendants cannot be named or certified as a class in Maryland. On the plaintiff side, one or more class members can sue on behalf of everyone else only if they clear four hurdles — the class is too large for individual joinder to be practical, the class shares common legal or factual questions, the representatives' claims are typical of the class, and the representatives will protect everyone's interests well.

Clearing those four hurdles isn't enough by itself. The case must also fit one of three categories. It can proceed as a class action if separate lawsuits would risk inconsistent rulings that create conflicting obligations for the defendant, or would as a practical matter decide the rights of class members who aren't in court. It can proceed if the defendant acted on grounds that apply to the whole class, making class-wide injunctive or declaratory relief appropriate. Or it can proceed if common questions predominate over individual ones and a class action is the superior way to resolve the dispute — weighing how much individual members want to control their own suits, how much related litigation already exists, whether this court is the right forum, and how hard the class would be to manage.

The court decides certification as soon as practicable, on its own initiative or on motion, holds a hearing if any party asks for one, and must explain its findings and reasons whichever way it rules. A certification order is not set in stone — the court can condition it or change it before deciding the case on the merits. Certification can also be partial: a class action can cover only certain issues, or the class can be split into subclasses each treated as its own class.

Notice requirements depend on the type of class action. For predominance-and-superiority classes, the court must give notice telling members they can opt out by a set date, that the judgment will bind everyone who doesn't opt out, and that non-opting members may appear through their own counsel. For other class actions, the court has discretion to require notice. Along the way, the court can enter case-management orders — controlling how proceedings unfold, requiring notice of major developments, imposing conditions on the representatives, or trimming pleadings that improperly allege representation of absent people.

Discovery in a class action runs through the named representatives; other class members aren't automatically treated as parties for discovery purposes, though the court can allow discovery by or against them on motion. A class action cannot be dismissed or settled without court approval, and notice of any proposed dismissal or settlement must go to the class. Finally, the judgment must identify the class members it covers — either by describing who the court found to be members, or, for opt-out classes, by describing everyone who received notice and didn't opt out.