Reforming the Institution of a Class Action in Russian Law: Selected Issues

The paper is devoted to some issues associated with a class action. The subject matter of the study is relevant in light of a comprehensive reform of this institution in the arbitration procedure and the emergence of class actions in civil procedure. The author highlights that class action proceedings cannot be considered as an equal alternative to joinder. Thus, in the author’s view, along with quantitative criteria some other criteria should be used to distinguish class action proceedings from joinder. The author investigates the issue of competition between the class action and individual claims. This problem is resolved in procedural codes in different ways. The paper focuses on some problems associated with the grounds and order of replacement of the claimant representing parties involved. Taking into account that the law allows considering homogeneous claims in collective proceedings, the author concludes that it is necessary to elaborate more detailed rules relating to the case where the class action involves a set of individual claims brought by each participant.

class action, collective action, class action proceedings, mass action, class action reform, civil process, arbitration process, class claims, collective claims, joinder

1. Abolonin G. O. Massovye iski. — M. : Volters Kluver, 2011. — 416 s.

2. Alekhina S. A., Tumanov D. A. Problemy zashchity interesov gruppy lic v arbitrazhnom processe // Zakony Rossii: opyt, analiz, praktika. — 2010. — № 1. — S. 38—43.

3. Dolganichev V. V. Processual’nye osobennosti vozbuzhdeniya i podgotovki del v gruppovom proizvodstve: sravnitel’no-pravovoj aspekt : dis. ... kand. yurid. nauk. — Ekaterinburg, 2015. — 220 s.

4. Zabrodin D. M. Gruppovye iski v arbitrazhnom processe Rossii: problema edinogo pravootnosheniya // Zakon. — 2013. — № 12. — S. 156—162.

5. Strel’cova E. G. O nekotoryh slozhnostyah prakticheskogo primeneniya gl. 28.2 APK RF // Pravo i politika. — 2010. — № 4. — S. 718—733.

6. Tumanov D. A. O gruppovyh iskah v Koncepcii edinogo Grazhdanskogo processual’nogo kodeksa RF // Vestnik grazhdanskogo processa. — 2015. — № 4. — S. 63—83.

7. Hodykin R. M. Nekotorye voprosy primeneniya novyh polozhenij Arbitrazhnogo processual’nogo kodeksa RF o gruppovom proizvodstve // Vestnik Federal’nogo arbitrazhnogo suda Ural’skogo okruga. — 2010. — № 1. — S. 132—143.

8. Yarkov V. V., Timofeev Yu. A., Hodykin R. M. O proekte glavy 38.1 GPK «Rassmotrenie del o zashchite prav i zakonnyh interesov gruppy lic» // Arbitrazhnyj i grazhdanskij process. — 2012. — № 8. — S. 16—19.