Thus far, the Supreme Court has granted cert. to only one case from the Second Circuit. Gelboim v. Bank of America is a civil action brought by several investors against several banks, arising out of the LIBOR scandal of a few years ago.

LIBOR – the London Interbank Offered Rate – is an important interest rate in worldwide banking. It was discovered that several banks colluded to manipulate the interest rate, harming investors by giving them a lower interest rate on financial products than they would have had otherwise.

Litigation, Litigation Everywhere

The LIBOR litigation was multidistrict, meaning different suits were filed in different federal district courts around the country.

Not so much. In a one paragraph order, the Second Circuit dismissed the appeal, as it lacked jurisdiction because the district court never issued a final order disposing of all claims.

To the Supreme Court, Gelboim argued that the consolidation of cases was a logistical convenience that didn’t merge the different suits into a single case. Gelboim said that the dismissal of the antitrust claims – which were the only claims in her case – is a “final decision” under 28 USC § 1291.

The question for the Court, which will hear oral arguments in this case December 9, is whether dismissal of an action that has been consolidated with other suits is immediately appealable.

Disclosure: The LIBOR rate is calculated by Thomson Reuters, which owns FindLaw.

Related Resources:

  • A Former Banker Pleads Guilty in British Libor Case (The New York Times)
  • 2nd Cir. Revives Investors’ LIBOR Claims Against Barclays (FindLaw’s U.S. Second Circuit Blog)
  • On Remand, SEC-Citigroup Settlement Reluctantly Approved (FindLaw’s U.S. Second Circuit Blog)

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