In case by landowners seeking compensation for railroad taking, Judge Miller of the Court of Federal Claims held that “putative class members are not able to use statutory tolling to allow them to opt into a class action filed under Rule of the Court of Federal Claims after 28 U.S.C. 2501 expires because of two significant differences fromAmerican Pipe, Crown Cork, and Stone Container. First, RCFC 23 is not statutory and is not incorporated by reference in 28 U.S.C. 2501. Second, 28 U.S.C. 2501 has been defined by the Supreme Court, most recently in John R. Sand & Gravel, as being jurisdictional in nature and more absolute and rigid than other statutes of limitation, whereas the statutes of limitation in American Pipe, Crown Cork, and Stone Container have not been characterized in that manner. The Rules of the Court of Federal Claims are procedural rules adopted by the court and cannot extend or limit the jurisdiction of the Court of Federal Claims. The statute of limitations applicable to the Court of Federal Claims does not incorporate any rules of the court into the statute. There is no statute to statutorily toll. Putative members of an opt-in class action in the Court of Federal Claims must opt in before the expiration of 28 U.S.C. 2501.” See Fauvergue v. U.S., 86 Fed.Cl. 82 (Fed.Cl. 2009).
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