Civil Procedure—Environmental Class Actions: Economic Ramifications of the Rule 23 Nonaggregation Doctrine—Zahn v. International Paper Co., 414 U.S 291 (1973)

This note will examine the impact of Zahn v. International Paper Co. within the context of environmental litigation. It will briefly trace the history of the nonaggregation doctrine relied upon and reaffirmed by the Zahn majority, and describe the limitations imposed upon would-be federal plaintiffs by that doctrine. The note then will examine various alternative modes of adjudication, including the ancillary jurisdiction alternative suggested by dissenting Justice Brennan, which would have been preferable to the position adopted by the majority. Finally, and most importantly, the note will take a hard look at the deleterious economic effects of Zahn upon environmental plaintiffs, concluding that the inevitability of these economic effects justifies a result other than that reached by the Court