Arnold & Porter Defeats Class Certification in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California

Arnold & Porter has secured another victory for Epoch Everlasting Play, LLC in a consumer products lawsuit over its Calico Critters toy line. On May 4, 2026, Judge Wright of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California denied with prejudice a renewed motion for class certification, eliminating all class claims in the case and barring any future class certification motion.

Plaintiffs alleged that the Calico Critters products are hazardous and sought to halt sales and obtain full refunds for California purchasers under the state’s Unfair Competition Law. Judge Wright held that the plaintiffs could not satisfy Rule 23’s adequacy requirement, finding that the named plaintiff’s lack of standing to seek injunctive relief, as previously determined by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, created a conflict with absent class members who might still pursue such relief.

This decision builds on an appellate victory from September 2025, in which the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, on interlocutory appeal under Rule 23(f), vacated the district court’s initial order granting class certification.

The Arnold & Porter team was led by partners James Speyer, Ian Hoffman, and William Perdue; senior counsel Eric Rubel; senior associate Henry Morris; and associate Zach Woodward.