Amchem Products, Inc. v. Windsor

This case was a massive class action against a company that manufactured asbestos products. All class members, including the named plaintiffs, asserted that the defendant had manufactured and sold a defective product (asbestos) without sufficient warnings and safety precautions.  Some of the class members, including some of the named plaintiffs, showed signs of exposure to asbestos.  Other class members, including other named plaintiffs, had been exposed but were as yet asymptomatic. The lawsuit included no subclasses or separate law firms to represent the two categories.  Justice Ginsburg, writing for a 6-2 majority, held that the named plaintiffs had conflicts of interest such that the district court abused its discretion in finding that the class satisfied the representativeness prerequisite.  Specifically, Justice Ginsburg reasoned that symptomatic class members wanted immediate pay-outs to fund medical care and monitoring, while asymptomatic (exposure-only) class members would prefer delayed payments in case they developed symptoms later in life.