State Supreme Court Nixes Intel Class Action

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. - The Illinois Supreme Court ruled unanimously that two lower courts were wrong to allow a class action against Intel to proceed. The class action in Madison County was part of a nationwide, three-count class action using California laws to claim that Intel's Pentium 4 processor does not perform to expectations.

The first two counts in this case were filed under California law and the third count was an alternative under Illinois law.

Madison County Associate Judge Ralph Mendelsohn ruled in 2004 that Illinois law could not be applied to a nationwide class, so only Illinois residents would be allowed in the class.

In 2006, an appellate court overturned Mendelsohn, stating that California law, not Illinois law, was applicable for the class action.

The Illinois Supreme Court found that Mendelsohn was correct in applying Illinois law, but also ruled that the law does not allow the case to proceed as a class action. Supreme Court Judge Thomas Fitzgerald wrote, "Illinois law governs the issues of liability and damages in the present case; the action should not proceed as a class action."

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