Law 360’s Emily Field reports that the Third Circuit on Wednesday vacated a lower court’s order denying class certificationto plaintiffs who allege Zions Bancorp. was complicit in a series of schemes by telemarketers to gain access to customers’ bank accounts and charge excessive fees, saying the court held the plaintiffs to an excessively high standard of proof.

In a published, detailed opinion, the circuit panel ruled that the district court misunderstood the burden of proof placed on a plaintiff seeking class certification. The judge had held plaintiff Reynaldo Reyes to a standard of absolute proof when he concluded there was insufficient commonality among the proposed class members, the circuit panel said. “It is the most important consumer protection decision to come down this year,” Howard Langer told Law360.