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Class Action
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May 24, 2013
Apple Faces New Water Damage Suit Weeks After $53M Deal
Apple was slapped in California federal court on Friday with a fresh class action suit accusing it of wrongfully refusing to provide warranty coverage for their devices less than six weeks after settling a virtually identical lawsuit for $53 million.
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May 24, 2013
TCPA Class Action Surge Shows No Signs Of Abating
The recent explosion of consumer class actions under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act is unlikely to die down anytime soon, as plaintiffs continue to be enticed by uncapped damages and unclear statutory language that allows them to easily accuse large corporations like The Coca-Cola Co. of unwanted contact, attorneys say.
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May 24, 2013
Conceptus Investor Can’t Block $1.2B Bayer Acquisition
A Delaware Chancery judge refused Friday to block Bayer AG’s imminent $1.2 billion acquisition of contraception maker Conceptus Inc., saying a putative shareholder class action alleging the deal undervalues Conceptus didn’t contain claims plausible enough to merit an accelerated schedule.
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May 24, 2013
JPML Head Says New Mix Of Cases Makes Panel More Picky
The U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation has rejected a higher percentage of centralization requests in recent years, a trend the head of the panel told Law360 was due in part to a rise in patent cases and other types of litigation he said were more likely to center on individual issues.
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May 24, 2013
First Data Lambastes $7B Interchange Fee Antitrust Deal
Global payment processing company First Data Corp. moved Friday to opt out of the $7 billion interchange fee class action settlement, saying that it shouldn't be forced to give up its right to bring antitrust claims against Visa Inc. and MasterCard Inc.
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May 24, 2013
1st Circ. Revives CVS Shareholder Fraud Class Action
The First Circuit on Friday revived a CVS Caremark Corp. shareholder class action accusing the company and three former top executives of falsely touting that CVS and Caremark were successfully integrated when, in fact, the integration was going poorly and drove off several large customers.
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May 24, 2013
Visa, MasterCard Sue Opponents Of $7B Swipe Fee Deal
Visa Inc., MasterCard Inc. and several major lenders, including Bank of America NA, struck back Friday at retail trade associations objecting to a proposed $7.25 billion settlement over allegedly excessive credit card fees, asking a New York federal judge in a complaint to find their fee-setting practices lawful.
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May 24, 2013
Greenberg Traurig Settles Atty's $200M Gender Bias Action
Greenberg Traurig LLP has settled a proposed $200 million employee gender bias class action alleging the firm discriminated against its female shareholders, according to joint motions to dismiss filed by the parties in New York and Pennsylvania federal courts on Friday.
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May 24, 2013
Dow Wants To Ice $1.2B Antitrust Award During Appeal
The Dow Chemical Co. asked a Kansas federal court on Thursday to hold off on enforcing a $1.2 billion judgment while it appeals the court's refusal to overturn the verdict or class certification in the antitrust multidistrict litigation.
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May 24, 2013
Law360 Names 10 FCPA Powerhouse Firms
Many savvy law firms boast their expertise in Foreign Corrupt Practices Act matters, but an elite group of 10 firms have emerged as true leaders in the fast-growing field, earning them a spot on Law360’s inaugural list of FCPA Powerhouses.
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May 24, 2013
Claims Pared From Pool-Product Antitrust Suit
A Louisiana federal judge on Friday tossed some antitrust claims against Pool Corp. and manufacturers of swimming pool equipment brought by a putative class of indirect purchasers who allege the companies conspired to restrict the supply of pool products to Pool's rivals.
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May 24, 2013
Judge Admits To Goof, Reverses Chubb Duty-To-Defend Order
A Georgia federal judge on Wednesday admitted that he made a careless error when he declared that a Chubb Group unit must defend DS Waters of America Inc. against allegations that it illegally recorded customer calls.
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May 24, 2013
Flonase Users Seek Sanctions For Foes Of $35M Antitrust Deal
Flonase purchasers urged a Pennsylvania federal court Thursday to sanction objectors to a $35 million class action settlement of allegations that GlaxoSmithKline PLC improperly delayed market entry of a generic nasal spray, saying the two objectors and their attorneys ignored a court order.
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May 24, 2013
Smart Tech Gets Nod On $15M Deal With Investors Over IPO
A New York federal judge on Thursday gave preliminary approval to Smart Technologies Inc.’s $15.2 million class action settlement with shareholders over allegations that it misled investors ahead of a $660 million initial public offering.
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May 24, 2013
Capsule Seller Can't Duck Suit Over Testosterone Claims
A California federal judge on Thursday rejected Windmill Health Products LLC's bid to dismiss a putative class action accusing it of falsely advertising that its Iso-Test capsules boost testosterone, finding the company failed to show the suit was preempted by the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act.
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May 24, 2013
Gov't Staffing Contractor Dodges Credit Report Class Action
A Virginia judge dismissed a putative class action accusing government staffing contractor SOS International Ltd. of improperly using credit reports to screen job candidates on Thursday, saying the plaintiff was not actually denied employment on the basis of a negative report.
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May 23, 2013
Time Warner Accused Of Stiffing Workers On OT
A former Time Warner Cable Inc. call center employee filed a putative class action against the telecommunications giant Tuesday in California court, claiming the company has failed to pay employees proper overtime rates and wages they were owed upon termination.
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May 23, 2013
$4M Deal In Hair Product Formaldehyde Suit Nears Approval
A California judge on Thursday indicated he will approve a $4.3 million settlement of a consumer class action alleging the maker of the popular hair-straightening product Brazilian Blowout failed to disclose it emits formaldehyde gas, saying the parties had resolved his concerns about the proposed deal.
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May 23, 2013
11th Circ. Backs Wells Fargo Win In Mortgage Transfer Case
The Eleventh Circuit on Thursday dismissed a proposed class action brought by a mortgage holder who claimed Wells Fargo Bank NA violated the Truth in Lending Act by failing to notify her of a transfer in ownership of her mortgage loan.
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May 23, 2013
TCPA Damages Are Insurable, Ill. High Court Rules
Illinois’ highest court on Thursday ruled damages under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act are not punitive, making them insurable under Illinois law, in reviving a bid for coverage from Standard Mutual Insurance Co. for a $1.7 million settlement in an underlying TCPA class action.
Expert Analysis
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Fla. Case Makes TCPA Compliance More Confusing Than Ever
While we have been patiently awaiting further guidance from the Federal Communications Commission on a wide array of pending petitions for declaratory rulings on such points as the definition of an autodialer, Mais v. Gulf Coast Collection Bureau Inc. raises a question about whether such guidance will be binding on the courts, say Judy Harris of Reed Smith LLP and Robert Jackson of the Law Offices of Robert H. Jackson.
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When Rights Of Publicity Trump 1st Amendment
An important practice tip that flows from the Third Circuit's opinion in Ryan Hart v. Electronic Arts Inc. is that talismanic invocation of the First Amendment does not resolve the legal problem of balancing that amendment with competing rights such as the right of publicity, says Ronald Katz of Manatt Phelps & Phillips LLP.
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The Starstruck Medical Causation Trend
In the technical sense, medical causation answers whether an accused substance brought about some alleged disease. But rarely are the central causal allegations in major toxic torts purely courtroom affairs — publicity and politics now drive the litigation, with plaintiff verdicts begetting more publicity, says James Sabovich of Gibson Dunn & Crutcher LLP.
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Rise Of The Machines — Predictive Coding Goes Mainstream
The pros of using predictive coding far outweigh the cons. Given the heavy pressure on law firms and in-house counsel to reduce discovery costs, as well as the Justice Department's recent stance on the subject, it appears predictive coding will continue to emerge from the obscure world of legal technology to the mainstream of legal practice, say Michael Moscato and Myles Bartley of Curtis Mallet-Prevost Colt & Mosle LLP.
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5 Overlooked Reasons To Be Class Rep In An Antitrust Suit
In many circumstances in antitrust litigation, standing up as a class representative may be an effective way to protect the company’s interests while assuring that it and other victims of anti-competitive behavior receive the monetary recovery they deserve, say Kellie Lerner and Ryan Marth of Robins Kaplan Miller & Ciresi LLP.
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Recent Trends In M&A And Corporate Fiduciary Litigation
In 2012, shareholders challenged 93 percent of all merger and acquisition transactions with a value greater than $100 million and 96 percent of M&A transactions with a value greater than $500 million. In other words, it almost is inevitable nowadays that litigation will follow a merger or going private announcement — with an average of about five lawsuits per transaction, say attorneys with Arnold & Porter LLP.
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Libor Litigation Must Overcome Significant Obstacles
When U.S. District Judge Naomi Reice Buchwald dismissed a consolidated, multidistrict batch of antitrust and racketeering suits in Manhattan earlier this spring, she suggested plaintiffs seeking to recover from banking giants at the heart of the interest rate-fixing scandal might have better luck with securities fraud claims. But those plaintiffs will need to be lucky indeed. Two recent developments show that obstacles are inherent and, perhaps, insurmountable, say attorneys with Choate Hall & Stewart LLP.
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Tips For Your Rule 10b5-1 Trading Plan Policy
Now that investigations have been initiated by U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the SEC into possible abuses by corporate executives of Rule 10b5-1 trading plans, the private securities bar inevitably will follow suit and file litigation. Nevertheless, these plans continue to be an effective defense against allegations of insider trading, say attorneys with Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP.
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What Sponsors Must Know About Litigation On Church Plans
Recently, two firms have filed class actions against three Catholic Church-affiliated health care facilities, claiming that their pension plans should be subject to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act. These cases could have a profound effect on all church plan sponsors, regardless of whether they have previously obtained favorable church plan rulings, say attorneys with Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP.
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E-Discovery In The Cloud: Who Can Get Your Data?
Many lawyers are asking whether placing electronically stored information in the cloud could inadvertently waive the attorney-client privilege and whether the government or a civil litigant could obtain ESI directly from a cloud service provider. In answering these questions, there are a number of aspects of the cloud worth considering, say Timothy Broas and Matthew Saxon of Winston & Strawn LLP.