Two pending cert petitions are attracting significant interest from the business community and the plaintiffs' bar. The petitions, which seek review of class certification decisions from the 6th and 7th Circuit, are important because they call on the Court to reign in circuit courts that have appeared to depart from the seminal Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. v. Dukes and Comcast Corp. v. Behrend decisions.

These cases involve allegations that plaintiffs' front-loading washing machines are susceptible to mold. But the key issue is whether a product defect case can proceed as a class action even if a majority of class member purchasers have not experienced any problem. The 6th and 7th Circuit's decisions suggest that they can.

If the cert petitions filed last month are granted, it would mean a second appearance for Whirlpool Corp. v. Glazer (6th Cir.) and Butler v. Sears, Roebuck and Co. (7th Cir.) in the nation's highest court. In their first round last spring, the Supreme Court vacated the appellate court opinions and remanded the cases for further consideration in light of Comcast. Now that both the 6th and 7th Circuit panels reaffirmed their class certification rulings, the Supreme Court that decided Wal-Mart and Comcast is poised for a third watershed interpretation of Rule 23. Omne trium perfectum.