38 L.Ed.

2d 713
94 S.Ct. 756
414 U.S. 538

AMERICAN PIPE AND CONSTRUCTION CO. et al.,

Petitioners,
v.
State of UTAH et al.
No. 721195.
Argued Nov. 12, 1973.
Decided Jan. 16, 1974.
Rehearing Denied Feb. 25, 1974.

See 415 U.S. 952, 94 S.Ct. 1477.

Syllabus
Eleven days short of a year after a final consent judgment had been
entered against petitioners in civil actions by the Government to restrain
federal antitrust violations (which actions had been filed almost four years
before entry of that judgment), the State of Utah commenced a Sherman
Act treble-damages class action against petitioners, in which the State
purported to represent various state and local agencies and certain other
Western States. The action was found to be timely under the federal fouryear statute of limitations governing antitrust suits ( 4B of the Clayton
Act) because of 5(b) of that Act providing that whenever the United
States institutes any proceeding to restrain antitrust violations, the running
of the statute of limitations in respect of every private right of action
arising under such laws and based on any matter complained of in such
proceeding shall be suspended during the pendency thereof and for one
year thereafter. The District Court thereafter granted petitioners' motion
for an order pursuant to Fed.Rule Civ.Proc. 23(c)(1) that the suit could not
be maintained as a class action, the court finding that, although the
prerequisites to a class action contained in Rule 23(a)(2) through (4) had
been met, the requirement of Rule 23(a)(1) that 'the class (be) so
numerous that joinder of all members is impracticable' was not satisfied.
Eight days after entry of this order, respondent towns, municipalities, and
water districts, all of which had been claimed as members of the original

class, moved to intervene as plaintiffs in Utah's action, either as of right

under Fed.Rules Civ.Proc. 24(a)(2) or by permission under Rule 24(b)(2),
but the District Court denied this motion, concluding that the limitation
period had run as to all those respondents and had not been tolled by
institution of the class action. The Court of Appeals reversed as to denial
of permission to intervene under Rule 24(b)(2), finding that as to the
members of the class Utah purported to represent, suit was actually
commenced by Utah's filing of the class action. Held:
1. The commencement of a class action suspends the applicable statute of
limitations as to all asserted members of the class who would have been
parties had the requirement of Rule 23(a)(1) been met, and here where
respondents, who were purported members of the class, made timely
motions to intervene after the District Court had found the suit
inappropriate for class action status, the institution of the original class
suit tolled the limitations statute for respondents. Pp. 552556.
2. A judicial tolling of the statute of limitations does not abridge or modify
a substantive right afforded by the antitrust acts; the mere fact that a
federal statute providing for substantive liability also sets a time limitation
upon the institution of suit does not restrict the power of the federal courts
to hold that the statute of limitations is tolled under certain circumstances
not inconsistent with the legislative purpose. Pp. 556559.
3. The District Court's determination in denying permission to intervene
that respondents were absolutely barred by the statute of limitations, was
not an unreviewable exercise of discretion but rather a conclusion of law
which the Court of Appeals correctly found to be erroneous. Pp. 559
560.
4. The commencement of the class action suspended the running of the
limitations period only during the pendency of the motion to strip the suit
of its class action character. Since the class action was filed with 11 days
yet to run in the period as tolled by 5(b), the intervenors had 11 days
after entry of the order denying them participation in the class suit in
which to move to file their intervention motion. Their filing only 8 days
after the entry of such order was thus timely. Pp. 560561.
473 F.2d 580, affirmed.
Jesse R. O'Malley, Los Angeles, Cal., for petitioners.
Gerald R. Miller, Salt Lake City, Utah, for respondents.

Mr. Justice STEWART delivered the opinion of the Court.

This case involves an aspect of the relationship between a statute of limitations

and the provisions of Fed.Rule Civ.Proc. 23 regulating class actions in the
federal courts. While the question presented is a limited one, the details of the
complex proceedings, originating almost a decade ago, must be briefly
recounted.

On March 10, 1964, a federal grand jury returned indictments charging a

number of individuals and companies, including the petitioners here, with
criminal violations of 1 of the Sherman Act, 26 Stat. 209, as amended, 15
U.S.C. 1. The indictments alleged that the defendants combined and
conspired together in restraint of trade in steel and concrete pipe by submitting
collusive and rigged bids for the sale of such pipe and by dividing and
allocating business among themselves. Shortly thereafter, on June 19, 1964,
pleas of nolo contendere were accepted and judgments of guilt were entered.
Four days later, on June 23, 1964, the United States filed civil complaints in the
United States District Court for the Central District of California against the
same companies, which complaints, as subsequently amended, sought to
restrain further violations of the Sherman Act and violations of the Clayton and
False Claims Acts. These civil actions were the subject of extended negotiations
between the Government and the defendants which culminated in a 'Final
Judgment,' entered on May 24, 1968, in which the companies consented to a
decree enjoining them from engaging in certain specified future violations of
the antitrust laws.1

Eleven days short of a year later, on May 13, 1969, the State of Utah
commenced a civil action for treble damages against the petitioners in the
United States District Court for the District of Utah, claiming that the
petitioners had conspired to rig prices in the sale of concrete and steel pipe in
violation of 1 of the Sherman Act. The suit purported to be brought as a class
action in which the State represented 'public bodies and agencies of the state
and local government in the State of Utah who are end users of pipe acquired
from the defendants' and also those States in the 'Western Area' which had not
previously filed similar actions. This action was found to be timely under the
federal statute of limitations governing antitrust suits2 because of the provision
of 5(b) of the Clayton Act, 38 Stat. 731, as amended, 15 U.S.C. 16(b),
which states that

'(w)henever any civil or criminal proceeding is instituted by the United States

to prevent, restrain, or punish violations of any of the antitrust laws, . . . the

running of the statute of limitations in respect of every private right of action

arising under said laws and based in whole or in part on any matter complained
of in said proceeding shall be suspended during the pendency thereof and for
one year thereafter . . ..'3
5

Since the Government's civil actions against the petitioners had ended in a
consent judgment entered on May 24, 1968, Utah's suit, commenced on May
13, 1969, was timely under 5(b), with 11 days to spare.4

On a motion made by the majority of the petitioners, the suit was subsequently
transferred by the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation from Utah to the
United States District Court for the Central District of California for trial by
Judge Martin Pence, Chief Judge of the District of Hawaii, sitting in the
California District by assignment. The transfer and assignment were found
appropriate because of the prior concentration of more than 100 actions arising
out of the same factual situation in the Central District of California before
Judge Pence. In re Concrete Pipe, 303 F.Supp. 507, 508509.
(Jud.Pan.Mult.Lit.1969.)

In November 1969 the petitioners moved for an order pursuant to Fed.Rule

Civ.Proc. 23(c)(1) that the suit could not be maintained as a class action.5 This
motion was subsequently granted. In his memorandum opinion in support of
the order granting the motion Judge Pence found that those 'Prerequisites to a
class action' contained in Rule 23(a)(2) through (4) appeared to have been met,
or at least that minor deficiencies in meeting those standards for determining
the suitability of proceeding as a class would 'not be fatal to the plaintiffs' class
action.' 49 F.R.D. 17, 20.6 But the requirement of Rule 23(a)(1) that 'the class
(be) so numerous that joinder of all members is impracticable' was found by
Judge Pence not to be satisfied: While the complaint had alleged that the
members of the class totaled more than 800, Judge Pence, relying on his
extensive experience in dealing with litigation involving the same defendants
and similar causes of action, concluded that the number of entities which
ultimately could demonstrate injury from the trade practices of the petitioners
was for lower, and, further, that '(f)rom prior actual experience in like cases
involving the same alleged conspiracy, this court could not find that number so
numerous that joinder of all members was impracticable . . ..' 49 F.R.D., at 21.

On December 12, 1969, eight days after entry of the order denying class action
status,7 the respondents, consisting of more than 60 towns, municipalities, and
water districts in the State of Utah, all of which had been claimed as members
of the original class, filed motions to intervene as plaintiffs in Utah's action
either as of right, under Rule 24(a)(2)8 or, in the alternative, by permission

under Rule 24(b)(2),9 and for other relief not pertinent here. On March 30,
1970, the District Court denied the respondents' motion in all respects
concluding that the limitations period imposed by 4B of the Clayton Act, as
tolled by 5(b), had run as to all these respondents and had not been tolled by
the institution of the class action in their behalf. 50 F.R.D. 99.
9

On appeal, the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit affirmed as to the denial
of leave to intervene as of right under Rule 24(a)(2), but, with one judge
dissenting, reversed as to denial of permission to intervene under Rule 24(b)
(2).10 473 F.2d 580. Finding that 'as to members of the class Utah purported to
represent, and whose claims it tendered to the court, suit was actually
commenced by Utah's filing,' the appellate court concluded that '(i)f the order
(denying class action status), through legal fiction, is to project itself backward
in time it must fictionally carry backward with it the class members to whom it
was directed, and the rights they presently possessed. It cannot leave them
temporally stranded in the present.' Id., at 584. We granted certiorari to consider
a seemingly important question affecting the administration of justice in the
federal courts. 411 U.S. 963, 93 S.Ct. 2146, 36 L.Ed.2d 683.

10

* Under Rule 23 as it stood prior to its extensive amendment in 1966, 383 U.S.
10471050, a so-called 'spurious' class action could be maintained when 'the
character of the right sought to be enforced for or against the class is . . .
several, and there is a common question of law or fact affecting the several
rights and a common relief is sought.'11 The Rule, however, contained no
mechanism for determining at any point in advance of final judgment which of
those potential members of the class claimed in the complaint were actual
members and would be bound by the judgment. Rather, '(w)hen a suit was
brought by or against such a class, it was merely an invitation to joinderan
invitation to become a fellow traveler in the litigation, which might or might not
be accepted.' 3B J. Moore, Federal Practice 23.10(1), p. 232603 (2d ed.). Cf.
Snyder v. Harris, 394 U.S. 332, 335, 89 S.Ct. 1053, 1056, 22 L.Ed.2d 319;
Zahn v. International Paper Co., 414 U.S. 291, at 296 and n. 6, 94 S.Ct. 505, at
509 and n. 6, 38 L.Ed.2d 511. A recurrent source of abuse under the former
Rule lay in the potential that members of the claimed class could in some
situations await developments in the trial or even final judgment on the merits
in order to determine whether participation would be favorable to their interests.
If the evidence at the trial made their prospective position as actual class
members appear weak, or if a judgment precluded the possibility of a favorable
determination, such putative members of the class who chose not to intervene
or join as parties would not be bound by the judgment. This situationthe
potential for so-called 'one-way intervention' aroused considerable criticism
upon the ground that it was unfair to allow members of a class to benefit from a

favorable judgment without subjecting themselves to the binding effect of an

unfavorable one.12 The 1966 amendments were designed, in part, specifically to
mend this perceived defect in the former Rule and to assure that members of
the class would be identified before trial on the merits and would be bound by
all subsequent orders and judgments.13
11

Under the present Rule, a determination whether an action shall be maintained

as a class action is made by the court '(a)s soon as practicable after the
commencement of an action brought as a class action . . ..' Rule 23(c)(1).14
Once it is determined that the action may be maintained as a class action under
subdivision (b)(3),15 the court is mandated to direct to members of the class 'the
best notice practicable under the circumstances' advising them that they may be
excluded from the class if they so request, that they will be bound by the
judgment, whether favorable or not if they do not request exclusion, and that a
member who does not request exclusion may enter an appearance in the case.
Rule 23(c)(2).16 Finally, the present Rule provides that in Rule 23(b)(3) actions
the judgment shall include all those found to be members of the class who have
received notice and who have not requested exclusion. Rule 23(c)(3).17 Thus,
potential class members retain the option to participate in or withdraw from the
class action only until a point in the litigation 'as soon as practicable after the
commencement' of the action when the suit is allowed to continue as a class
action and they are sent notice of their inclusion within the confines of the
class. Thereafter they are either nonparties to the suit and ineligible to
participate in a recovery or to be bound by a judgment, or else they are full
members who must abide by the final judgment, whether favorable or adverse.

12

Under former Rule 23, there existed some difference of opinion among the
federal courts of appeals and district courts as to whether parties should be
allowed to join or intervene as members of a 'spurious' class after the
termination of a limitation period, when the initial class action complaint had
been filed before the applicable statute of limitations period had run. A majority
of the courts ruling on the question, emphasizing the representative nature of a
class suit, concluded that such intervention was proper.18 Other courts
concluded that since a 'spurious' class action was essentially a device to permit
individual joinder or intervention, each individual so participating would have
to satisfy the timeliness requirement.19 This conflict in the implementation of
the former Rule was never resolved by this Court.

13

Under present Rule 23, however, the difficulties and potential for unfairness
which, in part, convinced some courts to require individualized satisfaction of
the statute of limitations by each member of the class, have been eliminated,
and there remain no conceptual or practical obstacles in the path of holding that

the filing of a timely class action complaint commences the action for all
members of the class as subsequently determined.20 Whatever the merit in the
conclusion that one seeking to join a class after the running of the statutory
period asserts a 'separate cause of action' which must individually meet the
timeliness requirements, Athas v. Day, 161 F.Supp. 916, 919 (D.Colo.1958),
such a concept is simply inconsistent with Rule 23 as presently drafted. A
federal class action is no longer 'an invitation to joinder' but a truly
representative suit designed to avoid, rather than encourage, unnecessary filing
of repetitious papers and motions. Under the circumstances of this case, where
the District Court found that the named plaintiffs asserted claims that were
'typical of the claims or defenses of the class' and would 'fairly and adequately
protect the interests of the class,' Rule 23(a)(3), (4), the claimed members of
the class stood as parties to the suit until and unless they received notice thereof
and chose not to continue. Thus, the commencement of the action satisfied the
purpose of the limitation provision as to all those who might subsequently
participate in the suit as well as for the named plaintiffs. To hold to the contrary
would frustrate the principal function of a class suit, because then the sole
means by which members of the class could assure their participation in the
judgment if notice of the class suit did not reach them until after the running of
the limitation period would be to file earlier individual motions to join or
intervene as parties precisely the multiplicity of activity which Rule 23 was
designed to avoid in those cases where a class action is found 'superior to other
available methods for the fair and efficient adjudication of the controversy.'
Rule 23(b)(3).
14

We think no different a standard should apply to those members of the class

who did not rely upon the commencement of the class action (or who were
even unaware that such a suit existed) and thus cannot claim that they refrained
from bringing timely motions for individual intervention or joinder because of a
belief that their interests would be represented in the class suit.21 Rule 23 is not
designed to afford class action representation only to those who are active
participants in or even aware of the proceedings in the suit prior to the order
that the suit shall or shall not proceed as a class action. During the pendency of
the District Court's determination in this regard, which is to be made 'as soon as
practicable after the commencement of an action,' potential class members are
mere passive beneficiaries of the action brought in their behalf. Not until the
existence and limits of the class have been established and notice of
membership has been sent does a class member have any duty to take note of
the suit or to exercise any responsibility with respect to it in order to profit from
the eventual outcome of the case. It follows that even as to asserted class
members who were unaware of the proceedings brought in their interest or who
demonstrably did not rely on the institution of those proceedings, the later

running of the applicable statute of limitations does not bar participation in the
class action and in its ultimate judgment.
II
15

In the present case the District Court ordered that the suit could not continue as
a class action, and the participation denied to the respondents because of the
running of the limitation period was not membership in the class, but rather the
privilege of intervening in an individual suit pursuant to Rule 24(b)(2).22 We
hold that in this posture, at least where class action status has been denied solely
because of failure to demonstrate that 'the class is so numerous that joinder of
all members is impracticable,' the commencement of the original class suit tolls
the running of the statute for all purported members of the class who make
timely motions to intervene after the court has found the suit inappropriate for
class action status. As the Court of Appeals was careful to note in the present
case, '(m)aintenance of the class action was denied not for failure of the
complaint to state a claim on behalf of the members of the class (the court
recognized the probability of common issues of law and fact respecting the
underlying conspiracy), not for lack of standing of the representative, or for
reasons of bad faith or frivolity.' 473 F.2d, at 584. (Footnote omitted.)

16

A contrary rule allowing participation only by those potential members of the

class who had earlier filed motions to intervene in the suit would deprive Rule
23 class actions of the efficiency and economy of litigation which is a principal
purpose of the procedure. Potential class members would be induced to file
protective motions to intervene or to join in the event that a class was later
found unsuitable. In cases such as this one, where the determination to disallow
the class action was made upon considerations that may vary with such subtle
factors as experience with prior similar litigation or the current status of a
court's docket,23 a rule requiring successful anticipation of the determination of
the viability of the class would breed needless duplication of motions. We are
convinced that the rule most consistent with federal class action procedure must
be that the commencement of a class action suspends the applicable statute of
limitations as to all asserted members of the class who would have been parties
had the suit been permitted to continue as a class action.24

17

This rule is in no way inconsistent with the functional operation of a statute of

limitations. As the Court stated in Order of Railroad Telegraphers v Railway
Express Agency, 321 U.S. 342, 64 S.Ct. 582, 88 L.Ed. 788, statutory limitation
periods are 'designed to promote justice by preventing surprises through the
revival of claims that have been allowed to slumber until evidence has been
lost, memories have faded, and witnesses have disappeared. The theory is that

even if one has a just claim it is unjust not to put the adversary on notice to
defend within the period of limitation and that the right to be free of stale
claims in time comes to prevail over the right to prosecute them.' Id., at 348
349, 64 S.Ct., at 586. The policies of ensuring essential fairness to defendants
and of barring a plaintiff who 'has slept on his rights,' Burnett v. New York
Central R. Co., 380 U.S. 424, 428, 85 S.Ct. 1050, 1054, 13 L.Ed.2d 941, are
satisfied when, as here, a named plaintiff who is found to be representative of a
class commences a suit and thereby notifies the defendants not only of the
substantive claims being brought against them, but also of the number and
generic identities of the potential plaintiffs who may participate in the
judgment. Within the period set by the statute of limitations, the defendants
have the essential information necessary to determine both the subject matter
and size of the prospective litigation, whether the actual trial is conducted in
the form of a class action, as a joint suit, or as a principal suit with additional
intervenors.25
18

Since the imposition of a time bar would not in this circumstance promote the
purposes of the statute of limitations, the tolling rule we establish here is
consistent both with the procedures of Rule 23 and with the proper function of
the limitations statute. While criticisms of Rule 23 and its impact on the federal
courts have been both numerous and trenchant, see, e.g., American College of
Trial Lawyers, Report and Recommendations of the Special Committee on
Rule 23 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (1972); H. Friendly, Federal
Jurisdiction: A General View 118120 (1973); Handler, The Shift from
Substantive to Procedural Innovations in Antitrust SuitsThe Twenty-Third
Annual Antitrust Review, 71 Col.L.Rev. 1, 512 (1971); Handler, TwentyFourth Annual Antitrust Review, 72 Col.L.Rev. 1, 3442 (1972), this
interpretation of the Rule is nonetheless necessary to insure effectuation of the
purposes of litigative efficiency and economy that the Rule in its present form
was designed to serve.

III
19

The petitioners contend, however, that irrespective of the policies inherent in

Rule 23 and in statutes of limitations, the federal courts are powerless to extend
the limitation period beyond the period set by Congress because that period is a
'substantive' element of the right conferred on antitrust plaintiffs and cannot be
extended or restricted by judicial decision or by court rule.26 Unlike the
situation where Congress has been silent as to the period within which federal
rights must be asserted,27 in the antitrust field Congress has specified a precise
limitation period, and further has provided for a tolling period in the event that
Government litigation is instituted. The inclusion of the limitation and the

tolling period, the petitioners assert, makes the 'substantive' statute immune
from extension by 'procedural' rules. They rely in large part on the Court's
decision in The Harrisburg, 119 U.S. 199, 7 S.Ct. 140, 30 L.Ed. 358, in which it
was stated, with respect to state wrongful-death statutes,
20

'The statutes create a new legal liability, with the right to a suit for its
enforcement, provided the suit is brought within 12 months, and not otherwise.
The time within which the suit must be brought operates as a limitation of the
liability itself as created, and not of the remedy alone. It is a condition attached
to the right to sue at all.' Id., at 214, 7 S.Ct., at 147.

21

In The Harrisburg, however, the Court dealt with a situation where a plaintiff
who was invoking the maritime jurisdiction of a federal court sought relief
under a state statute providing for substantive liability.'28 The Court held that
when a litigant in a federal court asserted a cause of action based upon a state
statute he was bound by the limitation period contained within that statute
rather than by a federal time limit. Cf. Guaranty Trust Co. of New York v.
York, 326 U.S. 99, 65 S.Ct. 1464, 89 L.Ed. 2079. But the Court in The
Harrisburg did not purport to define or restrict federal judicial power to
delineate circumstances where the applicable statute of limitations would be
tolled. As we said in Burnett, supra, '(w)hile the embodiment of a limitation
provision in the statute creating the right which it modifies might conceivably
indicate a legislative intent that the right and limitation be applied together
when the right is sued upon in a foreign forum, the fact that the right and
limitation are written into the same statute does not indicate a legislative intent
as to whether or when the statute of limitations should be tolled.' 380 U.S., at
427 n. 2, 85 S.Ct., at 1054. The proper test is not whether a time limitation is
'substantive' or 'procedural,' but whether tolling the limitation in a given context
is consonant with the legislative scheme.29

22

In recognizing judicial power to toll statutes of limitation in federal courts we

are not breaking new ground. In Burnett v. New York Central R. Co., 380 U.S.
424, 85 S.Ct. 1050, 13 L.Ed.2d 941, a railroad employee claiming rights under
the Federal Employers' Liability Act, 45 U.S.C. 51 et seq., initially brought
suit in a state court within the three-year time limitation specifically imposed by
6 of the Act, 45 U.S.C. 56. The state proceeding was subsequently
dismissed because of improper venue. Immediately after the dismissal, but also
after the running of the limitation period, the employee attempted to bring suit
in federal court. Reversing determinations of the District Court and the Court of
Appeals that the federal suit was time barred, the Court held that the
commencement of the state suit fulfilled the policies of repose and certainty
inherent in the limitation provisions and tolled the running of the period. See

also Herb v. Pitcairn, 325 U.S. 77, 65 S.Ct. 954, 89 L.Ed. 1483.
23

Similarly, in cases where the plaintiff has refrained from commencing suit
during the period of limitation because of inducement by the defendant, Glus v.
Brooklyn Eastern District Terminal, 359 U.S. 231, 79 S.Ct. 760, 3 L.Ed.2d 770,
or because of fraudulent concealment, Holmberg v. Armbrecht, 327 U.S. 392,
66 S.Ct. 582, 90 L.Ed. 743, this Court has not hesitated to find the statutory
period tolled or suspended by the conduct of the defendant. In Glus, supra, the
Court specifically rejected a contention by the defendant that when 'the time
limitation is an integral part of a new cause of action . . . that cause is
irretrievably lost at the end of the statutory period.' 359 U.S., at 232, 79 S.Ct.,
at 761. To the contrary, the Court found that the strict command of the
limitation period provided in the federal statute was to be suspended by
considerations '(d)eeply rooted in our jurisprudence.' Ibid.

24

These cases fully support the conclusion that the mere fact that a federal statute
providing for substantive liability also sets a time limitation upon the institution
of suit does not restrict the power of the federal courts to hold that the statute of
limitations is tolled under certain circumstances not inconsistent with the
legislative purpose.

IV
25

Finally, the petitioners urge that the Court of Appeals' reversal of the District
Court for failure to permit intervention under Rule 24(b)(2) was nonetheless
improper because the District Court in denying such permission was doing no
more than exercising a legal discretion which the Court of Appeals did not find
to be abused.30 They point out that Rule 24(b) explicitly refers to a district
judge's permission to intervene as an exercise of discretion,31 and that this Court
has held that '(t)he exercise of discretion in a matter of this sort is not
reviewable by an appellate court unless clear abuse is shown . . ..' Allen
Calculators, Inc. v. National Cash Register Co., 322 U.S. 137, 142, 64 S.Ct.
905, 908, 88 L.Ed. 1188; see also Brotherhood of Railroad Trainmen v.
Baltimore & O.R. Co., 331 U.S. 519, 524, 67 S.Ct. 1387, 1390, 91 L.Ed. 1646.

26

In denying permission to intervene in this case, however, Judge Pence did not
purport to weigh the competing considerations in favor of and against
intervention, but simply found that the prospective intervenors were absolutely
barred by the statute of limitations. This determination was not an exercise of
discretion, but rather a conclusion of law which the Court of Appeals correctly
found to be erroneous. The judgment of the Court of Appeals reversing the
District Court's order directed that the case be remanded 'for further

proceedings upon the motions (to intervene).' 473 F.2d, at 584. Rather than
reviewing an exercise of discretion, the Court of Appeals merely directed that
discretion be exercised. 32
V
27

It remains to determine the precise effect the commencement of the class action
had on the relevant limitation period. Section 5(b) of the Clayton Act provides
that the running of the statutes of limitations be 'suspended' by the institution of
a Government antitrust suit based on the same subject matter. The same
concept leads to the conclusion that the commencement of the class action in
this case suspended the running of the limitation period only during the
pendency of the motion to strip the suit of its class action character. The class
suit brought by Utah was filed with 11 days yet to run in the period as tolled by
5(b), and the intervenors thus had 11 days after the entry of the order denying
them participation in the suit as class members in which to move for permission
to intervene. Since their motions were filed only eight days after the entry of
Judge Pence's order, it follows that the motions were timely.

28

The judgment of the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit is therefore
affirmed.

29

Affirmed.

30

Mr. Justice BLACKMUN, concurring.

31

I join the Court's opinion and concur in its judgment. Our decision, however,
must not be regarded as encouragement to lawyers in a case of this kind to
frame their pleadings as a class action, intentionally, to attract and save
members of the purported class who have slept on their rights. Nor does it
necessarily guarantee intervention for all members of the purported class.

32

As the Court has indicated, the purpose of statutes of limitations is to prevent

surprises 'through the revival of claims that have been allowed to slumber until
evidence has been lost, memories have faded, and witnesses have disappeared.'
Order of Railroad Telegraphers v. Railway Express Agency, 321 U.S. 342, 348
349, 64 S.Ct. 582, 586, 88 L.Ed. 788 (1944). Under our decision today,
intervenors as of right will be permitted to press their claims subject only to the
requirement that they have an interest relating to the property or transaction and
be impaired or impeded in their ability to protect that interest. Fed.Rule
Civ.Proc. 24(a). Such claims, therefore, invariably will concern the same

evidence, memories, and witnesses as the subject matter of the original class
suit, and the defendant will not be prejudiced by later intervention, should class
relief be denied. Permissive intervenors may be barred, however, if the district
judge, in his discretion, concludes that the intervention will 'unduly delay or
prejudice the adjudication of the rights of the original parties.' Fed.Rule
Civ.Proc. 24(b). The proper exercise of this discretion will prevent the type of
abuse mentioned above and might preserve a defendant whole against prejudice
arising from claims for which he has received no prior notice.
33

The provision in Fed.Rule Civ.Proc. 23(c)(1), that an order allowing the

maintenance of a suit as a class action 'may be conditional, and may be altered
or amended before the decision on the merits,' could be viewed to generate
uncertainty under the Court's decision, for the class aspect might be disbanded
after the litigation has long been underway. Rule 23(c)(1), of course, provides
that the court shall decide whether a class action may be maintained '(a)s soon
as practicable after the commencement of an action.' This decision, therefore,
will normally be made expeditiously. And any later alteration with respect to
intervention is subject to the discretionary elements of Rule 24(b), mentioned
above, and to Rule 23(d)(3)'s provision that 'the court may make appropriate
orders . . . imposing conditions . . . on intervenors.'

Consent decrees binding each of the petitioners other than American Pipe &
Construction Co. were entered on December 8, 1967; however, in an earlier
action the District Court in Arizona determined that the 'Final Judgment'
entered on May 24, 1968, was final as to all petitioners. Maricopa County v.
American Pipe & Construction Co., 303 F.Supp. 77, 87 (1969).

Section 4B of the Clayton Act, 15 U.S.C. 15b, provides in pertinent part as

follows:
'Any action to enforce any cause of action (under the antitrust laws) shall be
forever barred unless commenced within four years after the cause of action
accrued.'

The section contains the additional proviso that

'whenever the running of the statute of limitations . . . is suspended hereunder,
any action to enforce such cause of action shall be forever barred unless
commenced either within the period of suspension or within four years after the
cause of action accrued.'

The petitioners had earlier argued that since there was a four-day hiatus

between the entry of judgment on the pleas of nolo contendere in the criminal
actions and the commencement of the Government civil suit, the tolling period
provided by 5(b) should have begun to run from the termination of the
criminal proceedings. This contention was rejected in Maricopa County v.
American Pipe & Construction Co., supra, 303 F.Supp., at 8386, and has not
been pressed here.
5

Subdivision (c)(1) of Rule 23 provides:

'As soon as practicable after the commencement of an action brought as a class
action, the court shall determine by order whether it is to be so maintained. An
order under this subdivision may be conditional, and may be altered or
amended before the decision on the merits.'

The 'Prerequisites to a class action' listed in subdivision (a) of Rule 23 are as

follows:
'One or more members of a class may sue or be sued as representative parties
on behalf of all only if (1) the class is so numerous that joinder of all members
is impracticable, (2) there are questions of law or fact common to the class, (3)
the claims or defenses of the representative parties are typical of the claims or
defenses of the class, and (4) the representative parties will fairly and
adequately protect the interests of the class.'

While the memorandum in support of the order denying class action status was
dated December 17, 1969, the order itself was filed on December 4, 1969.

'Intervention of Right. Upon timely application anyone shall be permitted to

intervene in an action: (1) when a statute of the United States confers an
unconditional right to intervene; or (2) when the applicant claims an interest
relating to the property or transaction which is the subject of the action and he
is so situated that the disposition of the action may as a practical matter impair
or impede his ability to protect that interest, unless the applicant's interest is
adequately represented by existing parties.'

'Permissive intervention. Upon timely application anyone may be permitted to

intervene in an action: (1) when a statute of the United States confers a
conditional right to intervene; or (2) when an applicant's claim or defense and
the main action have a question of law or fact in common. When a party to an
action relies for ground of claim or defense upon any statute or executive order
administered by a federal or state governmental officer or agency or upon any
regulation, order, requirement, or agreement issued or made pursuant to the
statute or executive order, the officer or agency upon timely application may be
permitted to intervene in the action. In exercising its discretion the court shall

consider whether the intervention will unduly delay or prejudice the

adjudication of the rights of the original parties.'
10

As originally filed, the respondents' motions to intervene included allegations

based on events occurring during the four years prior to December 12, 1969,
the date of the filing of the motions. The denial of leave to intervene did not
apply to these allegations, which were still timely as to the respondents even
under the District Court's order, and the order was thus not appealable as a final
order under 28 U.S.C. 1291. Furthermore, in the same order the court
declined to certify the question of the tolling effect of the class action as an
appealable order under 28 U.S.C. 1292(b). 50 F.R.D. 99, 109110. The
respondents subsequently amended their complaint to confine its allegations to
events more than four years prior to the filing of their motions, thereby making
the court's order final as to them and permitting immediate appeal under 28
U.S.C. 1291.

11

Original Rule 23 provided as follows:

'(a) Representation. If persons constituting a class are so numerous as to make
it impracticable to bring them all before the
court, such of them, one or more, as will fairly insure the adequate
representation of all may, on behalf of all, sue or be sued, when the character of
the right sought to be enforced for or against the class is
'(1) joint, or common, or secondary in the sense that the owner of a primary
right refuses to enforce that right and a member of the class thereby becomes
entitled to enforce it;
'(2) several, and the object of the action is the adjudication of claims which do
or may affect specific property involved in the action; or
'(3) several, and there is a common question of law or fact affecting the several
rights and a common relief is sought.
'(b) Secondary action by shareholders. In an action brought to enforce a
secondary right on the part of one or more shareholders in an association,
incorporated or unincorporated, because the association refuses to enforce
rights which may properly be asserted by it, the complaint shall be verified by
oath and shall aver (1) that the plaintiff was a shareholder at the time of the
transaction of which he complains or that his share thereafter devolved on him
by operation of law and (2) that the action is not a collusive one to confer on a
court of the United States jurisdiction of any action of which it would not
otherwise have jurisdiction. The complaint shall also set forth with particularity

the efforts of the plaintiff to secure from the managing directors or trustees and,
if necessary, from the shareholders such action as he desires, and the reasons
for his failure to obtain such action or the reasons for not making such effort.
'(c) Dismissal or compromise. A class action shall not be dismissed or
compromised without the approval of the court. If the right sought to be
enforced is one defined in paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) of this rule notice of
the proposed dismissal or compromise shall be given to all members of the
class in such manner as the court directs. If the right is one defined in
paragraphs (2) or (3) of subdivision (a) notice shall be given only if the court
requires it.'
12

See, e.g., Kalven & Rosenfield, The Contemporary Function of the Class Suit,
8 U.Chi.L.Rev. 684 (1941); Developments in the LawMultiparty Litigation in
the Federal Courts, 71 Harv.L.Rev. 874, 935 (1958); 2 W. Barron & A.
Holtzoff, Federal Practice & Procedure & 568 (C. Wright ed. 1961).

13

See Advisory Committee's Note to Proposed Rule 23 of Rules of Civil

Procedure, 28 U.S.C.App., pp. 7765, 7768; 39 F.R.D. 98, 105106.

14

See n. 5, supra.

15

Subsection (b)(3) of Rule 23, allowing maintenance of a class action in

situations generally analogous to those covered by the 'spurious' class suit under
former Rule 23, provides that an action may be maintained as a class action 'if
the prerequisites of subdivision (a) are satisfied,' and in addition:
'the court finds that the questions of law or fact common to the members of the
class predominate over any questions affecting only individual members, and
that a class action is superior to other available methods for the fair and
efficient adjudication of the controversy. The matters pertinent to the findings
include: (A) the interest of members of the class in individually controlling the
prosecution or defense of separate actions; (B) the extent and nature of any
litigation concerning the controversy already commenced by or against
members of the class; (C) the desirability or undesirability of concentrating the
litigation of the claims in the particular forum; (D) the difficulties likely to be
encountered in the management of a class action.'

16

'In any class action maintained under subdivision (b)(3), the court shall direct to
the members of the class the best notice practicable under the circumstances,
including individual notice to all members who can be identified through
reasonable effort. The notice shall advise each member that (A) the court will
exclude him from the class if he so requests by a specified date; (B) the
judgment, whether favorable or not, will include all members who do not

request exclusion; and (C) any member who does not request sexclusion may, if
he desires, enter an appearance through his counsel.'
17

'The judgment in an action maintained as a class action under subdivision (b)(1)

or (b)(2), whether or not favorable to the class, shall include and describe those
whom the court finds to be members of the class. The judgment in an action
maintained as a class action under subdivision (b)(3), whether or not favorable
to the class, shall include and specify or describe those to whom the notice
provided in subdivision (c)(2) was directed, and who have not requested
exclusion, and whom the court finds to be members of the class.'

18

York v. Guaranty Trust Co., 143 F.2d 503 (CA2 1944), rev'd on other grounds,
326 U.S. 99, 65 S.Ct. 1464, 89 L.Ed. 2079; Escott v. Barchris Construction
Corp., 340 F.2d 731 (CA2 1965); DePinto v. Provident Security Life Insurance
Co., 323 F.2d 826 (CA9 1963); Union Carbide & Carbon Corp. v. Nisley, 300
F.2d 561 (CA10 1961).

19

Pennsylvania Co. for Insurances v. Deckert, 123 F.2d 979 (CA3 1941); Athas
v. Day, 161 F.Supp. 916 (D.Colo.1958). The cases arising under former Rule
23 are discussed and analyzed in Simeone, Procedural Problems of Class Suits,
60 Mich.L.Rev. 905 (1962); Note, Class Actions Under New Rule 23 and
Federal Statutes of Limitation: A Study of Conflicting Rationale, 13 Vill.L.Rev.
370 (1968).

20

The courts that have dealt with this problem under present Rule 23 have
reached this conclusion. Esplin v. Hirschi, 402 F.2d 94 (CA10 1968);
Philadelphia Elec. Co. v. Anaconda Am. Brass Co., 43 F.R.D. 452 (ED
Pa.1968).

21

In York v. Guaranty Trust Co., supra, the Court of Appeals for the Second
Circuit permitted joinder in a 'spurious' class suit on the reasoning that to rule
otherwise would create a 'trap for the unwary' who might refrain from
instituting suit on the supposition that their interests were represented in the
class suit. 143 F.2d, at 529. As a member of that court subsequently observed,
the contrary rule could be a 'trap' only for those who were aware of and relied
upon the commencement of the class suit. Escott v. Barchris Construction
Corp., 340 F.2d, at 735 (Friendly, J., concurring). See also Comment, Spurious
Class Actions Based upon Securities Frauds under the Revised Federal Rules of
Civil Procedure, 35 Fordham L.Rev. 295, 308309 (1966). In the present
litigation, the District Court found that only seven of the more than 60
intervenors were aware of and relied on the attempted class suit. 50 F.R.D., at
101 and n. 1.

22

The petition for certiorari did not, of course, present the question of whether

intervention as of right under Rule 24(a)(2) was properly denied by the District
Court, and we do not reach that question. Our conclusion as to the effect of the
commencement of a class suit on tolling the statute of limitations as to those
who subsequently move to intervene by permission under Rule 24(b)(2) would
apply a fortiori to intervenors as of right under Rule 24(a)(2).
23

As indicated, supra, at 543, Judge Pence based his conclusion that the number
of potential members was not so large as to make joinder impracticable on
inferences from his prior experience with similar antitrust litigation against the
same defendants. Not only would a district court's estimate of the expected
attrition among the class of plaintiffs be difficult for any individual plaintiff to
predict, but other federal courts have indicated that subsequent attrition will not
be considered as a factor affecting numerosity under Rule 23(a)(1) when
considered at the outset of the case. See, e.g., Iowa v. Union Asphalt &
Roadoils, Inc., 281 F.Supp. 391, 401 (SD Iowa 1968); 3B J. Moore, Federal
Practice 23.05, p. 23279 (2d ed.). Indeed, one commentator has observed that
'(t)he federal decisions under original Rule 23(a) reflect . . . contrariety of
opinion as to the meaning of 'bumerous." Id., at 23272.

24

The Advisory Committee's Note on Proposed Rule 23 observes on the issue

resolved here only that the question 'whether the intervenors in the nonclass
action shall be permitted to claim . . . the benefit of the date of the
commencement of the action for purposes of the statute of limitations (is) to be
decided by reference to the laws governing . . . limitations as they apply in
particular contexts.' 28 U.S.C.App., p. 7767; 39 F.R.D., at 104.

25

As Judge Friendly has noted, in certain situations the intervenors may raise
issues not presented in the class action complaint and to that extent the
defendants will not have received notice of the nature of the claims against
them. Escott v. Barchris Construction Corp., 340 F.2d, at 735 (concurring
opinion). This problem, however, will be minimized when, as here, the District
Court has already found that the named plaintiffs' claims typify those of the
class. Furthermore, under Rule 23(d)(3) 'the court may make appropriate orders
. . . imposing conditions on . . . intervenors.'

26

The Enabling Act empowering the Supreme Court to promulgate rules of

procedure commands that '(s)uch rules shall not abridge, enlarge or modify any
substantive right . . ..' 28 U.S.C. 2072.

27

In such situations the federal courts have generally looked to local law as the
source of a federal limitation period. 'Apart from penal enactments, Congress
has usually left the limitation of time for commencing actions under national
legislation to judicial implications. As to actions at law, the silence of Congress

has been interpreted to mean that it is federal policy to adopt the local law of
limitation. (Citations omitted.) The implied absorption of State statutes of
limitation within the interstices of the federal enactments is a phase of
fashioning remedial details where Congress has not spoken but left matters for
judicial determination within the general framework of familiar legal
principles.' Holmberg v. Armbrecht, 327 U.S. 392, 395, 66 S.Ct. 582, 584, 90
L.Ed. 743. See International Union, United Auto, Aerospace and Agricultural
Implement Workers of America (UAW), A.F.L.C.I.O. v. Hoosier Cardinal
Corp., 383 U.S. 696, 86 S.Ct. 1107, 16 L.Ed.2d 192. But see McAllister v.
Magnolia Petroleum Co., 357 U.S. 221, 78 S.Ct. 1201, 2 L.Ed.2d 1272.
28

The plaintiff in The Harrisburg initially claimed that federal maritime law
afforded him a substantive cause of action for wrongful death. The Court held
in that case that the federal maritime law did not extent to such suits. This
holding was overruled in Moragne v. States Marine Lines, Inc., 398 U.S. 375,
90 S.Ct. 1772, 26 L.Ed.2d 339.

29

Our conclusion that a judicial tolling of the statute of limitations does not
abridge or modify a substantive right afforded by the antitrust acts is consistent
with what scant legislative history there is on the limitation and tolling
provisions. Sections 4B and 5(b) of the Clayton Act were added to the antitrust
laws in 1955, long after the original substantive liabilities were established.
During debate a member of the House Judiciary Committee reporting the bill
was asked, '(A)m I correct in assuming that this limitation provided by this
amendment is strictly a procedural limitation and has nothing to do with
substance?' to which he replied: 'It was the specific purpose of the committee in
reporting this bill to in no way affect the substantive rights of individual
litigants. It is simply a procedural change and suggested with the thought of
setting up a uniform statute of limitations. That is the sole purpose.' 101
Cong.Rec. 5131 (1955) (remarks of Reps. Murray and Quigley).

30

The dissenting judge in the Court of Appeals based his conclusion on this
ground. 473 F.2d, at 584.

31

Rule 24(b) concludes, 'In exercising its discretion (as to whether to permit
intervention) the court shall consider whether the intervention will unduly
delay or prejudice the adjudication of the rights of the original parties.'
(Emphasis added.)

32

Furthermore, there is persuasive intrinsic evidence that Judge Pence ruled

against the respondents only on the issue of the applicability of the statute of
limitations. First, his original conclusion that joinder was a more practicable
remedy, 49 F.R.D., at 20, would be incongruous if immediately thereafter he

asserted that intervention was, in fact, impracticable. Second, as noted

previously, n. 10, supra, the District Court did not deny leave to intervene as to
those who confined the allegations of their complaints to events occurring less
than four years prior to the motions to intervene.