Short answer. No. A class suit cannot be dismissed or compromised without the court's approval — a firm rule that applies regardless of how an ordinary case's dismissal is handled. It exists because a class action affects absent members who never personally appeared in court, and the court must check that any settlement or withdrawal is not simply struck behind their backs.
What the law says
a complaint shall not be dismissed at the plaintiff's instance save upon approval of the court and upon such terms and conditions as the court deems proper
Rule 17, Section 2 — Dismissal upon motion of plaintiff. Read the full provision →
What the law says
A class suit shall not be dismissed or compromised without the approval of the court.
Rule 17, Section 2 — Dismissal upon motion of plaintiff. Read the full provision →
Dismissal generally needs the court's blessing
Even outside the class-suit context, an ordinary complaint is not simply dropped once the plaintiff has second thoughts. The rule provides that, apart from situations covered elsewhere in the same rule, "a complaint shall not be dismissed at the plaintiff's instance save upon approval of the court and upon such terms and conditions as the court deems proper." So even a single, ordinary plaintiff withdrawing a case needs the court to sign off, and the court can attach conditions to that dismissal rather than simply letting the case disappear on the plaintiff's say-so.
The rule is absolute for class suits
For a class suit specifically, the rule leaves no room to maneuver: "A class suit shall not be dismissed or compromised without the approval of the court." There is no carve-out here for situations where the parties simply agree between themselves, and no lesser standard than the one that applies to an ordinary case. Whether the named plaintiffs want to walk away from the case entirely, or want to settle it for a payment or other consideration, the court's approval is required either way before that outcome takes legal effect.
Why absent class members change the calculus
A class suit is brought by a few named plaintiffs on behalf of a larger group who are not individually before the court and who may not even know the case is pending. If the named plaintiffs alone could dismiss the case or accept a settlement, the rest of the class would be bound by a decision they had no chance to weigh in on, and possibly by a settlement that benefits the named plaintiffs more than everyone else. Requiring court approval gives a neutral party the chance to check that the withdrawal or settlement is fair to the class as a whole, not just convenient for whoever is named in the caption.
What happens without that approval
A dismissal or compromise of a class suit reached without going through the court is not simply irregular paperwork — it is not the kind of dismissal or settlement the rule recognizes at all. Nothing in the text lets the named plaintiffs bind the class on their own signature. If you are a class member concerned that a case is being quietly settled or dropped, or a named plaintiff being asked to sign off on either outcome, the missing step is the court's own approval, not merely the other side's agreement.