Rule 23(b)(2) permits class actions for declaratory or injunctive relief where 'the party opposing the class has acted or refused to act on grounds generally applicable to the class.' Civil rights cases against parties charged with unlawful, class-based discrimination are prime examples. Adv. Comm. Notes, 28 U. S. C. App., p. 697; see Kaplan, Continuing Work 389 (subdivision (b)(2) 'build[s] on experience mainly, but not exclusively, in the civil rights field').
Under Rule 23(b)(2), a class may be certified when 'the party opposing the class has acted or refused to act on grounds generally applicable to the class,' and the representatives are seeking 'final injunctive relief or corresponding declaratory relief.' Fed R. Civ. P. 23(b)(2); Doe v. Guardian Life Ins. Co. of America, 145 F.R.D. 466, 477 (N.D. Ill. 1992); Wright, Miller & Kane § 1775, at 477. The primary limitation imposed by this subsection is that injunctive or declaratory relief must predominate as the remedy being sought on behalf of the class. See Clay v. American Tobacco Co., 188 F.R.D. 483, 494 (S.D. Ill. 1999); Doe, 145 F.R.D. at 477; Wright, Miller & Kane § 1775, at 444-48. The subsection is not fulfilled ...