Opinion ID: 1257947
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: scutpa

Text: Appellants argue the trial court erred in dismissing their SCUTPA claim. We disagree. Appellants filed this suit as a class action. Class action suits are representative lawsuits in which a single individual or a small group of individuals represent the interests of a larger group. SCUTPA, however, prohibits a plaintiff from bringing a suit in a representative capacity. See §§ 39-5-20 and 140 (providing that that any person who suffers a loss as a result of an unfair act or practice may bring an action individually, but not in a representative capacity). Federal courts have recognized that class action suits may not be brought pursuant to SCUTPA. See Gunnells v. Healthplan Servs., Inc., 348 F.3d 417 (4th Cir.2003) (impliedly affirming the district court's refusal to certify a SCUTPA suit as a class action pursuant to § 39-5-140); In re Microsoft Corp. Antitrust Litig., 127 F.Supp.2d 702, 727 (D.Md.2001) (dismissing class action claims under SCUTPA because [t]hat Act does not permit suits for damages to be maintained as class actions.). Additionally, other jurisdictions with a similar provision in their Unfair Trade Practices Acts have also reached the conclusion that such a claim may not be maintained as a class action suit. See Danielson v. DBM, Inc., No. 1:05-CV2091-WSD, slip op. at 4 (N.D.Ga. August 11, 2005); Morris v. Sears, Roebuck and Co., 765 So.2d 419, 421 (La.App.2000) (recognizing that a provision in the Louisiana Unfair Trade Practices Act providing that a plaintiff may bring an action individually but not in a representative capacity expressly prohibits a private class action). Accordingly, because SCUTPA claims may not be maintained in a class action law suit, the trial court properly dismissed Appellants' claim. [6]