After four years of WAMCA, it is time to take stock.
This new edition of WAMCA whitepaper is authored by Deminor General Counsel Netherlands Joeri Klein, Finch Dispute Resolution Partner, Koen Rutten and with assistance from Caspar Vermande. The available data has been analyzed in detail to understand the real impact of years of WAMCA.
The Dutch Act on the Resolution of Mass Damage in Collective Action or "WAMCA" has been in force for four years. Since 1 January 2020, this law has made it possible to claim damages on an opt-out basis in the Netherlands. This new, third quantitative analysis compares developments regarding the WAMCA in 2023 with those in 2020, 2021, and 2022.
At the beginning of 2023, we anticipated more WAMCA lawsuits due to privacy violations, personal injury cases, and issues related to "ESG" (primarily climate). We also expected an increase in securities litigation, especially for private investors. Based on our third quantitative analysis, we can now confirm that indeed a steep increase occurred in privacy related WAMCA cases in 2023. However, no securities related WAMCA cases were filed in 2023 and only one ESG related case and only one personal injury case.
The following questions are addressed in the 2023 analysis:
- Have more class actions been initiated in 2023 compared
to 2020, 2021, and 2022 or has there been a decrease? - What is the average processing time between the
initiation of WAMCA proceedings and a decision
on the admissibility of the plaintiff(s) and the
designation of the exclusive representative/lead
plaintiff? - What is the overall average processing time of
proceedings under the WAMCA? - In how many cases have the appellate courts ruled
in WAMCA proceedings? - How often are WAMCA proceedings seeking damages
and what are the amounts claimed? - How many claims have been admitted or rejected
under WAMCA to date? - For what types of cases were WAMCA proceedings
initiated in 2023 and what types of defendants
were involved? Is this in line with 2020, 2021,
and 2022 or is there a shift? - How many WAMCA proceedings are funded externally?
Does litigation funding result in a spur in
class actions under the WAMCA? - What can be expected from the WAMCA in 2024?