Posted by Jonathan Adler:
Was *Iqbal* a Big Win for Business?
http://volokh.com/archives/archive_2009_06_21-2009_06_27.shtml#1246114122
Today's WSJ has an [1]interesting story about the potential impact of
the Supreme Court's decision in Ashcroft v. Iqbal, a 5-4 decision
rejecting Javaid Iqbal's effort to sue various high-level government
officials for his alleged mistreatment and detention after September
11.
Ashcroft v. Iqbal, released in May, will make it harder to bring a
lawsuit without specific factual evidence, raising the threshold
for moving a case into expensive litigation and possibly saving
companies millions of dollars in legal fees. The case was
overshadowed by other business rulings on consumer lawsuits,
environmental and employment law and other matters in a term set to
end Monday, but legal experts said it may be the most important. .
. .
In the case, a Pakistani named Javaid Iqbal sued government
officials over his detainment after Sept. 11, 2001. The Supreme
Court ruled that Mr. Iqbal didn't have sufficient factual evidence
to proceed with his discrimination claims.
"While legal conclusions can provide the framework of a complaint,
they must be supported by factual allegations," Justice Anthony
Kennedy wrote in the 5-4 opinion. He cited the 2007 decision in
Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly, an antitrust case that outlined
what plaintiffs must assert to make it through initial court
proceedings.
As a result of the Iqbal ruling, businesses may find it easier to
fend off lawsuits by persuading courts to dismiss complaints early
in litigation. . . .
The decision translates most easily to business cases that list not
only a single company, but also its parent company and affiliates,
Ms. Willis said. The court didn't allow Mr. Iqbal to assert that
government officials had "supervisory liability" for the orders
that resulted in his arrest.
More broadly, the opinion clarifies that the Twombly ruling applies
beyond antitrust cases. It also makes it harder to press a lawsuit
without making more substantive, factual allegations.
References
1. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124602796930461013.html
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