18-1120-cv

Tobias Bermudez Chavez, et al. v. Occidental Chemical Corp.

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS

FOR THE SECOND CIRCUIT

August Term, 2018

(Argued: March 4, 2019 Decided: August 6, 2021)

Docket No. 18-1120-cv

TOBIAS BERMUDEZ CHAVEZ, GERARDO ANTONIO FONESCA TORRES, FRANKLIN 

GUILLEN SALAZAR, GARCIA MONTES JOSE GABINO, MARIANO DE LOS ANGELES 

PIZARRO, ANTONIO OSORNO OSORNO, EUSEBIO PEREZ DINARTES, ANGEL NAPTALI 

AGILA SALINAS, JOSE VICENTE CAMPOS DEL PESO, GABRIEL RODOLFO CAMPOVE 

ARCE, JOSE ANTONIO E. ESPINOZA, MANUEL ISAIAS ESTRADA MOSQUERA, PEDRO

RAMON GARCIA VILLON, MANUEL JESUS INGA DOMINGUEZ, JOSE VIRGILIO LOPEZ 

CORREA, JUAN BAUTISTA NORIEG MOREIRA, ANGEL RAFAEL ROMERO CASTRO,

JULIAN GONZALO SUAREZ DEL ROSARIO, SIXTO TORRES FARIAS, TEODORO 

FERNANDO UNAMUN CORONEL, IDELFONSO ARAUZ ARAUZ, HECTOR ARCIA,

SANTOS CAMARENA-CABALLERO, FULVIO CESAR CHAVEZ SUIRA, JOSE ANTONIO 

GONZALE HERNANDEZ, VALENTIN MONTERO MENDEZ, JUSTO GERMAN OPORTO 

VILCHEZ, JULIO SEVILLA FLORES, FELIX VARGAS RODRIGUEZ, LEOCADIO ZURDO 

AMADOR, JULIO ABREGO ABREGO, BERNARDO ABREGO JORIETO, SIMON ABREGO 

PINEDA, ONCHI ABREGO QUINTERO, DILVIO ALVAREZ MORENO, JUAN CHOLY 

APARICIO, FRANCISCO DEL SOCORRO BAT MORA, CELIO BONILLA VALDEZ, PEDRO 

BRICENO ESCALANTE, SANTIAGO CASTILO CASTILLO, LIBERATO CASTILO CASTILLO,

GERARDO DELEON ZAPATA, ABNEGO GUILLERMO DUGEL WILLIAMS, FELICIMO 

DUGUEL MICHI, MANUEL GONZALES SANCHEZ, ERNESTO GUADAMUZ, HILARIO 

JULIAN MILTON, RICARDO ADOLFO MALDONAD SMITH, JOSE MIRANDA NICO,

PANCHO MOLINA ACUNA, RAMON ABREGO, LORENZO MORALES MORALES, JULIO 

MORENO MONTEZUMA, MARIO MUNOZ SANTOS, ALEJANDRO PALACIO PINEDA,

GENITO QUINTERO GONZALEZ, GREGORIO ELLINGTON, DIONICIO SANTIAGO 

ABREGO, SIMON SANTOS VILLAGRA, JULIO SANTOS SANTOS, NAPOLEON SERRANO 

NITI, VICTORIANO SERRANO CHICO, SAMUEL SMITH SMITH, SAMUEL TAYLOR ERA,

DEMETRIO WILLIAMS JIMENEZ, SEBASTIAN WILLIAMS MIGAR, ALVARADO ALFARFO 
18-1120-cv

Tobias Bermudez Chavez, et al. v. Occidental Chemical Corp.

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MIGUEL FRANCISCO, EDGAR ARROYO GONZALEZ, MARCELO COREA COREA, JOSE 

DAIZ BENAVIDEZ, GONZALEZ MARIN MARVIN, MIGUEL ANGEL MORALES GUZMAN,

RODRIGO QUIROS CHAVARRIA, GUILLER SANDRE REYES MORA, VEGA UGALDE 

NORMAN, FLORENTINO GILBERTO ALCIBA MONTESARRATE, TOMAS GILBERTO 

ASUNCI QUIMI, ODILO CASTRO LOPEZ, JOSE SANTIAGO LOJA ALVARADO, RICARDO 

ALBERTO ORRALA RAMIREZ, JOSE NICANOR PACHECO URGILES, LUIS ALFONSO 

PALADIN ILLESCAS, MANUEL JOSE PORRAS ALVAREZ, JOSE LEONCIO PUCHA

VILLAMAGUA, LEOPOLDO MAURICIO QUEZAD VITONERA, GERMASN ELEUTERIO 

RAMIR OYOLA, EUGENIO DE JESUS VIVAR SANCHEZ, ESTEBAN GARCIA ACOSTA,

MARIANO GONZALEZ PITTI, HECTOR GUTIERREZ VICTORIA, WILLFREDO MIRANDA 

PATINO, JUAN DEDIOS QUINTERO, MARIO REYES SALDANA, DANIEL RODRIGUEZ 

MADRID, ARCENIO RODRIGUEZ GALLARDO, FERMIN ROMERO DE LEON, JAVIER

ENRIQUE RUBIO MORALES, MARGARITO SALINAS MOJICA, BASILIO SALINAS MOJICA,

LINO VILLARREAL CONCEPCION, JORGE LUIS AGUILAR MORA, CARLOS AGUIRRE 

FLORES ALVAREZ, JUAN JOSE ARGUELLO JIMENEZ, JOSE BUSTOS OSES, RAFAEL 

BUSTOS BUSTOS, GERMAN FALLAS HERRERA, ELIZONDO GUARIN EDUARDO,

FEDERICO CLEVER MONTERO SALAS, JULIAN ALVAREZ JOVINO, NERTOR EVELINO 

CACAY CORDOVA, JOSE DARIO CHICA ROMERO, MARIANO CRUZ JIMENEZ 

GUANOQUIZA, ALCIDES HUMBERTO LUPU REYES, MANUEL BENIGNO ORTIS, MIGUEL 

ANGEL QUITO AREVALO, GREGORIO JUAN TORRES TENESACA, FRANCISCO OSWALDO

VILLACR MENDOZA, EULOGIO APOLOGIO ZAMBRA OTERO, ALCIDES BAULES 

RODRIGUEZ, LAUDINO CABALLERO RIOS, AGRIPINO CAMARENA CEDENO, DOMINGO 

CASTILLO MORALES, DANIEL CENSION CAMANO, DANIEL ESPINOSA MITRE, OSCAR 

ALEXIS GANTES ARAUZ, CESAR AUGUSTO GONZALE CABALLERO, EDUARDO

GONZALEZ CABALLERO, ENEDICTO JIMENEZ MIRANDA, RAFAEL MARTINEZ 

GONZALEZ, AURELIO MIRANDA DIAZ, MARCOS MORALES GUTIERREZ, ABRAHAM 

MORENO CONCEPCION, JUAN ADOLFO OLIVERO MAGUE, LEOPOLDO PENA SANJUR,

PAULINO PITTY SANCHEZ, LUIS ENRIQUE NAVARRO QUINTERO, CATALINO ROSALES 

PINEDA, NICOLAS SANTOS MONTENEGRO, CATALINO SERRUD, SANTOS TORRES

PINZON, AQUILINO VIGIL SANCHEZ, EDWIN AGUERO JIMENEZ, JORGE AGUERO 

RETANA, ALBERTO CONEJO CHACON, DIDIER CORDERO CISNEROS, ESTANISLAO 

CRUZ CRUZ, MIGUEL ANTONIO DIAZ CORDERO, DOGABERTO ESQUIVEL 

VALDELOMAR, JOSE GAMBOA CASTILLO, MARCOS GOLUBOAY MEJIAS, ROGER 

ANTONIO LOPEZ ZAMORA, RUFINO MATARRITA MORENO, JOSE FABIO NUNEZ 

CASTRO, CARLOS LUIS PEREIRA OROZCO, FRANCISCO PEREIRA RAMIREZ, CARLOS 

MANUEL QUIROS ZUNIGA, WILLIAM FELICIANO RODRIGUEZ, JOSE ANGEL ROJAS 
18-1120-cv

Tobias Bermudez Chavez, et al. v. Occidental Chemical Corp.

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BARQUERO, HERNAN SOLANO CASTRO, RAFAEL SOLANO SABORIO, MARIO TORRES 

MORA, RAFAEL VALDERRAMA GRANADOS, GREIVIN VALENCIA LOPEZ, MELECIO 

VARELA SOTO, VICTOR VARGAS ARIAS, NIXON MODESTO ALVARAD VASQUEZ,

ROBERTO WILLIAM BARONA BENITES, LAURO OLMEDO CHACON QUICHIMBO,

FRANCISCO DOMINGO CONTRER ESPINOZA, EPIFANIO ARCHIBALDO CORN LEON,

MANUEL GUAICHA CARDENAS, JUAN DE JESUS HUERTA MOSQUERA, MIGUEL ANGEL 

INIGUEZ OCHOA, HUGO EBERIO LEON VELEZ, MILTON MEDARDO MAZA VIVANCO,

ROSARIO AVELINO NICANOR VIRGILIO, GALO MIGUEL ORBE VALENCIA, JOSE

NICANOR PACHECO URGILES, ERICK FRANKLIN PALOMI ROMERO, ANGEL RAFAEL 

ROMERO CASTRO, LUIS VINICIO SALVATI VILLA, MIGUEL ANGEL SARAGURO, JOSE 

FERNANDO SARMIE CABRERA, LUIS GILBERTO VASQUE LOPEZ, EUGENIO APOLINARIO 

VILL PRIMITIVO, MAURO GREGORIO ZERDA GUERRA, BELISARIO ATENCIO MUNOZ,

LUIS ALBERTO BARRIA ARAUZ, BENEDICTO CORELLA VASQUEZ, HUMBERTO DEL CID 

QUINTERO, ABEL GALLARDO CONCEPCION, ALCIBIADES GOMEZ QUIEL, CIRO 

GUTIERREZ CORTEZ, SALVADOR MILLAN PENALBA, MANUEL MAYORGA MOREDIBU,

FELIX ANTONIO QUIROZ MORANTE, EMILIANO VEGA MORALES, GONZALEZ ARAYA

FRANKLIN, GERMAN EDUARDO BRAVO VALDERRAMOS, EDWIN CERDAS MASIS,

JORGE LUIS CORDERO BAQUERO, JOHNNY ESPINOZA GAMBOA, ESNEY HERNANDEZ 

FAJARDO, JIMENEZ RAMIREZ GILBERTO, ALVARADO RODRIGUEZ WILBERT, JOSE 

MANUEL SALAZAR BRENES, AUDIT VARGAS ROBLES, ELVIN VARGAS BLANCO,

ROLANDO VILLEGAS JIMENEZ, ELEVIO VINDAS ZAMORA, DOUGLAS ROLANDO 

SANCHEZ, VICENTE BARRIA ARAUZ, GENARO BONILLA QUINTERO, NOEL ENRIQUE 

VALDES RODRIGUEZ, MARIO ESTEBAN CACERAS HERNANDEZ, TOMAS ALBERTO 

CEDENO RODRIGUEZ, WILFREDO GOMEZ VARGAS, EVIDELIO GONZALEZ ACOSTA,

EDWIN ENUVIN GUERRA GONZALEZ, JUAN DEDIOS BAUTISTA SANCHEZ, RONALDO

MORALES VARGAS, LIONEX MORALES MONTENEGRO, ALBERTO PINEDA

MARQUINEZ, RAFAEL PINEDA MARQUINEZ, FELIX ANTONIO PINEDA ESPINOSA,

ERICK ELIAS PINEDA JURADO, PABLO RIVERA BUICOBO, ISRAEL SANCHEZ GONZALEZ,

ADOLFO VEGA GUERRA,

Plaintiffs-Appellees,

v.

OCCIDENTAL CHEMICAL CORPORATION, INDIVIDUALLY AND AS A SUCCESSOR TO 

OTHER OCCIDENTAL CHEMICAL COMPANY OTHER OCCIDENTAL CHEMICAL
18-1120-cv

Tobias Bermudez Chavez, et al. v. Occidental Chemical Corp.

4

AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS INC. OTHER HOOKER CHEMICAL AND PLASTICS OTHER 

OCCIDENTAL CHEMICAL COMPANY OF TEXAS OTHER BEST FERTILIZER COMPANY,

Defendant-Appellant.

Before: SACK, RAGGI, AND CARNEY, Circuit Judges.

This case returns to us after our certification of two questions to the New 

York Court of Appeals. We asked the Court of Appeals to address whether 

(1) New York law recognizes cross-jurisdictional class action tolling; and (2) a 

non-merits dismissal of class certification terminates class action tolling, and if 

so, whether the underlying orders in this matter did so. Chavez v. Occidental 

Chem. Corp., 933 F.3d 186, 202 (2d Cir. 2019) ("Chavez"). The answers to these 

questions would in turn decide whether, in light of the procedural postures and 

histories of this and related putative class actions, plaintiffs' complaint was 

timely. 

The Court of Appeals answered both questions in the affirmative. 

Bermudez Chavez v. Occidental Chem. Corp., 35 N.Y.3d 492, 158 N.E.3d 93 (2020) 

("Bermudez Chavez"). The Court of Appeals held that (1) New York recognizes 

cross-jurisdictional class action tolling; and (2) "tolling ends—as a matter of 

law—when there is a clear dismissal of a putative class action, including a 
18-1120-cv

Tobias Bermudez Chavez, et al. v. Occidental Chemical Corp.

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dismissal for forum non conveniens, or denial of class certification for any 

reason." Id., 35 N.Y.3d at 508, 158 N.E.3d at 104. The court further held that the 

underlying orders terminated class action tolling in 1995, thus rendering 

plaintiffs' claims untimely. Id.

In light of these holdings, we VACATE the order of the district court 

denying Occidental judgment on the pleadings, and REMAND with instructions 

to enter judgment, consistent with this opinion and the New York Court of 

Appeals' answers to our certified questions, in Occidental's favor. 

JOHN P. ELWOOD, Vinson & Elkins LLP, 

Washington, DC (D. Ferguson McNiel, III, 

Vinson & Elkins LLP, Houston, TX, 

Timothy Jay Houseal, Young Conaway 

Stargatt & Taylor, LLP, Wilmington, DE, on 

the brief), for Defendant-Appellant.

JONATHAN S. MASSEY, Massey & Gail LLP, 

Washington, DC (Paul J. Berks, Massey & 

Gail LLP, Chicago, IL, Scott M. Hendler, 

Hendler Flores Law PLLC, Austin, TX, on 

the brief), for Plaintiffs-Appellees.

PER CURIAM:

Over the course of nearly three decades, this and related putative class 

actions have wended their way through United States federal and state courts. 

We rely on and incorporate here by reference the background and procedural 
18-1120-cv

Tobias Bermudez Chavez, et al. v. Occidental Chemical Corp.

6

histories of these cases as set forth at length in our prior opinion. Chavez v. 

Occidental Chem. Corp., 933 F.3d 186, 190-95 (2d Cir. 2019) ("Chavez"). We

summarize the facts relevant to our resolution of this appeal upon its return to us 

from the New York Court of Appeals, which answered the questions we 

certified, as follows:

This putative class action and others like it arose from Occidental's 

manufacture, distribution, sale, and use of dibromochloropropane ("DBCP"), a 

pesticide to which the plaintiffs-appellees were allegedly exposed when they 

worked and lived on banana plantations in Central and South America between 

the 1960s and the 1980s. Id. at 189-91. Exposure to DBCP, a suspected 

carcinogen, also allegedly caused, among other infirmities: sterility, reduced 

sperm quality and quantity, liver damage, vision loss, chronic skin disorders, 

and compromised pulmonary and respiratory systems. Id. at 191. While the 

risks associated with DBCP exposure were allegedly known to some 

manufacturers as early as 1961 and at least by 1976, "Occidental nevertheless 

continued to manufacture, sell, market, and distribute DBCP until at least 1979 

for agricultural use, including on banana plantations in Costa Rica, Panama, and 

Ecuador." Id. at 191. 
18-1120-cv

Tobias Bermudez Chavez, et al. v. Occidental Chemical Corp.

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In the 1990s, groups of plaintiffs who had been exposed to DBCP on 

banana plantations in Costa Rica, Panama, and Ecuador began filing putative 

class actions against Occidental and other defendants. Id. Relevant here, in 

August 1993, one group of plaintiffs—which did not include any of the plaintiffsappellees in this case—brought an action in Texas state court. Dead Sea Bromine, 

a corporation indirectly owned in part by the State of Israel, was impleaded by 

the defendants and removed the Texas case to federal court (the "Texas Action"). 

Id. 

In April 1995, the defendants in the Texas Action moved to dismiss the suit 

on forum non conveniens grounds; the district court conditionally granted the 

motion. Id.; Delgado v. Shell Oil Co., 890 F. Supp. 1324, 1373 (S.D. Tex. 1995). In its 

July 11, 1995 order (the "July 1995 Order"), the Texas district court attempted to 

"ensure availability of an alternative forum" by "condition[ing] dismissal not only 

on the defendants' and third-party defendants' stipulation to waive all 

jurisdictional and limitations defenses but also upon acceptance of jurisdiction by 

the foreign courts involved in these cases." Delgado, 890 F. Supp. at 1357. Also 

pending before the district court was the plaintiffs' motion for class certification, 

which it administratively denied as moot. Chavez, 933 F.3d at 192; Delgado, 890 F. 
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Tobias Bermudez Chavez, et al. v. Occidental Chemical Corp.

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Supp. at 1375 ("[A]ll pending motions in those cases not otherwise expressly 

addressed in this Memorandum and Order are denied as moot." (emphasis 

omitted)). The Texas court's order also included the following "return 

jurisdiction" clause: 

Notwithstanding the dismissals that may result from this Memorandum 

and Order, in the event that the highest court of any foreign country finally 

affirms the dismissal for lack of jurisdiction of any action commenced by a 

plaintiff in these actions in his home country or the country in which he 

was injured, that plaintiff may return to this court and, upon proper 

motion, the court will resume jurisdiction over the action as if the case had 

never been dismissed for [forum non conveniens].

Delgado, 890 F. Supp. at 1375; see also Chavez, 933 F.3d at 192 (discussing the

"return jurisdiction" clause). 

The Texas Action defendants proceeded to meet the conditions for 

dismissal, and on October 27, 1995, "the district court entered a 'final judgment' 

dismissing the action." Chavez, 933 F.3d at 192 (together with the July 1995 

Order, the "1995 Orders"). The plaintiffs appealed, challenging the district 

court's exercise of subject matter jurisdiction under the Foreign Sovereign 

Immunities Act ("FSIA"). Id.; Delgado v. Shell Oil Co., 231 F.3d 165, 174-75 (5th Cir. 

2000). The Fifth Circuit concluded, inter alia, that Israel's indirect ownership of a 

majority interest in Dead Sea Bromine through a "tiered structure" of corporate 
18-1120-cv

Tobias Bermudez Chavez, et al. v. Occidental Chemical Corp.

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entities qualified Dead Sea Bromine as a "foreign state" within the meaning of the 

FSIA such that Dead Sea Bromine properly removed the case to federal court and

the district court had subject matter jurisdiction over it. Delgado, 231 F.3d at 175-

76; Chavez, 933 F.3d at 192. In so holding, the Fifth Circuit affirmed the district 

court's dismissal of the action on forum non conveniens grounds. Delgado, 231 F.3d 

at 182-83.

In a decision arising out of similar DBCP litigation in Hawaii that 

ultimately reached the Supreme Court, the Court held that "[a] corporation is an 

instrumentality of a foreign state under the FSIA only if the foreign state itself 

owns a majority of the corporation's shares." Dole Food Co. v. Patrickson, 538 U.S. 

468, 477, 480 (2003). Because the State of Israel "owned a majority of shares, at 

various times, in companies one or more corporate tiers above the Dead Sea 

Companies," Dead Sea Bromine was not an "agency or instrumentality of a 

foreign state" within the meaning of the FSIA. Id. at 473, 475; 28 U.S.C. 

§§ 1603(a), (b). This in turn rendered improper Dead Sea Bromine's removals of

the Texas and Hawaii actions to federal court: No federal subject matter 

jurisdiction existed. Chavez, 933 F.3d at 193.
18-1120-cv

Tobias Bermudez Chavez, et al. v. Occidental Chemical Corp.

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In light of the Supreme Court's decision in Patrickson, the plaintiffs in the 

Texas Action moved to vacate the district court's July 1995 Order. Id. In March 

2004, that court "issued a final judgment denying the plaintiffs' motion to vacate 

the July 1995 Order but indicated that it would consider remanding the case to 

[Texas] state court upon the filing of a properly supported motion." Id. The 

plaintiffs subsequently filed such a motion, which the court granted. Id. The 

Texas district court explained that the "[forum non conveniens] dismissal and the 

return jurisdiction clause on which it was premised remain[ed] valid," and that 

the dismissal on forum non conveniens grounds "was not a 'final judgment' that 

extinguished the court's duty either to continue examining its subject matter 

jurisdiction over this case, or to remand the underlying cases to state court when 

and if it determines that it lacks subject matter jurisdiction." Delgado v. Shell Oil 

Co., 322 F. Supp. 2d 798, 809, 816 (S.D. Tex. 2004). The court accordingly 

remanded the case to Texas state court. Id. at 817; Chavez, 933 F.3d at 193-94. 

The Texas state court then granted the plaintiffs' motion to reinstate their 

claims. In June 2010, however, the Texas court denied the plaintiffs' motion for 

class certification. Chavez, 933 F.3d at 194. The day after this denial, the plaintiffs 

voluntarily dismissed their claims, effectively ending the Texas litigation. Id.
18-1120-cv

Tobias Bermudez Chavez, et al. v. Occidental Chemical Corp.

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The separate but similar litigation underlying this appeal began as eight 

lawsuits filed in the United States District Court for the District of Delaware in 

June 2012. Chavez, 933 F.3d at 194. The Delaware district court consolidated the 

cases into two actions, one of which was captioned Chavez v. Dole Food Co. Id. 

Defendant Occidental moved to dismiss Chavez v. Dole Food Co. on personal 

jurisdiction grounds. Id. In May 2017, the Delaware court granted Occidental's 

motion in part and transferred the plaintiffs' claims against Occidental to the 

United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. Id. On 

September 1, 2017, Occidental moved for judgment on the pleadings, asserting 

that the plaintiffs' claims were time-barred. Id.; Chavez v. Occidental Chem. Corp., 

300 F. Supp. 3d 517, 522 (S.D.N.Y. 2018). 

The district court (Paul A. Engelmayer, J.) denied Occidental's motion. 

Chavez, 300 F. Supp. 3d at 522, 540. The district court first concluded that the 

plaintiffs' claims were timely because, even though New York courts had not yet 

spoken on the issue, it thought that New York law would recognize the doctrine 

of "cross-jurisdictional class action tolling," meaning that the pendency of the

Texas Action tolled these plaintiffs' claims in the Southern District of New York. 

Id. at 529-30. Second, the district court concluded that the Texas district court's 
18-1120-cv

Tobias Bermudez Chavez, et al. v. Occidental Chemical Corp.

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1995 Orders did not terminate tolling because they "did not clearly disallow class 

status" and that "absent class members such as the plaintiffs here . . . could 

[therefore] reasonably have relied thereafter on the continued maintenance of the 

[Texas Action]" as tolling the statute of limitations. Id. at 535. Further, the court 

reasoned, the July 1995 Order was "only a conditional dismissal" which "held out 

the guarantee of resuming jurisdiction as if the case had never been dismissed." 

Id. at 536 (emphasis in original) (internal quotation marks and alterations 

omitted). According to the district court, the underlying claims were tolled until 

June 2010, when the Texas state court denied class certification on the merits. Id.

at 537. The plaintiffs' claims were therefore timely under the applicable threeyear statute of limitations. Id.; Chavez, 933 F.3d at 196. 

The district court recognized, however, that its conclusions hinged on 

unresolved questions of New York law which, as a district court, it was unable to 

certify to the New York Court of Appeals. It encouraged us to do so on appeal. 

Chavez, 300 F. Supp. 3d at 539 ("The issue is also a pure question of New York 

law, on which the New York courts have remained silent. It is therefore a strong 

candidate for certification, by the Second Circuit, to the New York Court of 

Appeals."). 
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Tobias Bermudez Chavez, et al. v. Occidental Chemical Corp.

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In a subsequent opinion and order, the district court denied Occidental's 

motion for reconsideration. Chavez v. Occidental Chem. Corp., No. 17-cv-3459 

(PAE), 2018 WL 620488, at *1 (S.D.N.Y. Jan. 29, 2018), 2018 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 14522, 

at *7 (S.D.N.Y. Jan. 29, 2018). On April 18, 2018, we granted Occidental leave to 

file an interlocutory appeal. Chavez, 933 F.3d at 195. 

On appeal, we recognized that while New York had adopted the class 

action tolling rule of American Pipe and Construction Co. v. Utah, 414 U.S. 538 

(1974), this doctrine was not dispositive of the issues presented. Chavez, 933 F.3d

at 196. In American Pipe, the Supreme Court held that "commencement of the 

original class suit tolls the running of the statute [of limitations] for all purported 

members of the class . . . ." American Pipe, 414 U.S. at 553. American Pipe tolling, 

however, is not synonymous with cross-jurisdictional class action tolling, i.e., 

whether a class action filed in another jurisdiction "tolls the New York statute of 

limitations for absent class members' claims in New York courts." Chavez, 933 

F.3d at 196. Moreover, even if New York did recognize cross-jurisdictional class 

action tolling, "[w]e would still have to decide whether the Texas Action tolled 

the plaintiffs' claims," and in turn, whether the 1995 Orders, which dismissed the 
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Tobias Bermudez Chavez, et al. v. Occidental Chemical Corp.

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Texas Action on forum non conveniens grounds and therefore did not address 

class certification on the merits, terminated tolling. Id. at 198-99.

To these ends, we certified two questions to the New York Court of 

Appeals: (1) Does New York law recognize cross-jurisdictional class action 

tolling?; and (2) Can a non-merits dismissal of class certification terminate class 

action tolling, and if so, did the Orders at issue here do so? Id. at 202. 

The New York Court of Appeals answered both questions in the 

affirmative. Bermudez Chavez v. Occidental Chem. Corp., 35 N.Y.3d 492, 496, 158 

N.E.3d 93, 96 (2020) ("Bermudez Chavez"). The court first held that, as the district 

court predicted, New York law recognizes cross-jurisdictional class action tolling. 

Id., 35 N.Y.3d at 503-04, 158 N.E.3d at 101. New York CPLR article 9, which 

codifies class action procedures, "was modeled on similar federal law, 

specifically," Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23. Id., 35 N.Y.3d at 503, 158 N.E.3d 

at 100 (internal quotation marks omitted); see N.Y. CPLR § 902. Article 9, like 

Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23, aims "to enable individuals injured by the 

same pattern of conduct by another to pool their resources and collectively seek 

relief where their individual damages may not be sufficient to justify the costs of 

litigation." Bermudez Chavez, 35 N.Y.3d at 503, 158 N.E.3d at 101 (internal 
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Tobias Bermudez Chavez, et al. v. Occidental Chemical Corp.

15

quotation marks omitted). A holding that New York law did not recognize 

cross-jurisdictional class action tolling "would subvert article 9," and run counter 

to "the same animating policies the United States Supreme Court discussed in 

American Pipe and its progeny [which] also underlie article 9." Id., 35 N.Y.3d at 

503-04, 158 N.E.3d at 101. 

Contrary to the district court's holding, however, and by a vote of four to 

three, the Court of Appeals also answered the second question as to when tolling 

ends and whether the 1995 Orders terminated tolling here in the affirmative. The 

Court of Appeals held:

[T]olling ends—as a matter of law—when there is a clear dismissal of a 

putative class action, including a dismissal for forum non conveniens, or 

denial of class certification for any reason. Under those circumstances, 

future plaintiffs are on notice that they must take steps to protect their 

rights because the litigation no longer compels the court to address class 

certification or the named plaintiffs to advance absent class members' 

interests. At that point, it is no longer objectively reasonable for absent 

class members to rely upon the existence of a putative class action to 

vindicate their rights, and tolling is extinguished. Thus, in this case, the 

1995 Texas orders that dismissed that action on forum non conveniens 

grounds ended tolling, as a matter of law. 

Id., 35 N.Y.3d at 508, 158 N.E.3d at 104 (internal citation omitted). 
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Tobias Bermudez Chavez, et al. v. Occidental Chemical Corp.

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The plaintiffs sought re-argument before the Court of Appeals. Their 

motion was denied. Chavez v. Occidental Chem. Corp., 36 N.Y.3d 962, 161 N.E.3d 

480 (2021).

The New York Court of Appeals' answers to our certified questions 

compel the conclusions that the Texas district court's 1995 Orders terminated 

tolling, and therefore, that the plaintiffs-appellees' claims in the case before us are 

untimely. The July 1995 Order conditionally dismissed the action on forum non 

conveniens grounds and administratively denied the class certification motion as 

moot. Delgado, 890 F. Supp. at 1375. Even if this conditional dismissal were not 

dispositive, the October 1995 Order, which entered a "final judgment" dismissing 

the Texas Action, terminated tolling. Chavez, 933 F.3d at 192; Bermudez Chavez, 35 

N.Y.3d at 508, 158 N.E.3d at 104. The plaintiffs-appellees' claims, which accrued 

no later than August 31, 1993, are thus untimely under New York's three-year 

statute of limitations for personal injury actions, which the parties agreed 

applies. Chavez, 933 F.3d at 196. Occidental is therefore entitled to judgment in 

its favor on the grounds that the plaintiffs-appellees' claims are time-barred.

For the foregoing reasons, the order denying Occidental's motion for 

judgment on the pleadings is vacated and the case is remanded to the district 
18-1120-cv

Tobias Bermudez Chavez, et al. v. Occidental Chemical Corp.

17

court with instructions to enter judgment, consistent with this opinion and the 

Court of Appeals' answers to our certified questions, in Occidental's favor.