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Product Liability
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March 20, 2024
Breaking Down Each State's Climate Priority Policies
Forty-five states have now completed climate action plans outlining how they'll advance federal climate goals through policy and programs in coming years, with most focusing at least in part on real estate development as a way to reduce emissions.
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March 20, 2024
Law360 Announces The Members Of Its 2024 Editorial Boards
Law360 is pleased to announce the formation of its 2024 Editorial Advisory Boards.
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March 20, 2024
US Chamber's Litigation Funding Concerns Spur 2 State Laws
Amid concerns from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce about third-party litigation funding, including from potentially hostile foreign entities, state legislatures in Indiana and West Virginia have recently passed bills imposing restrictions on the practice.
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March 19, 2024
Activision, Rockstar Sued Over Addictive Video Games
Activision Blizzard Inc., Rockstar Games Inc., Epic Games Inc. and other major video game developers have been sued in Arkansas federal court over allegations that popular titles like Fortnite and Call of Duty are addictive by design and ruined the life of a 14-year-old child.
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March 19, 2024
Justices Lean Toward Insurer Standing In Ch. 11 Case
The U.S. Supreme Court appeared reluctant Tuesday to uphold a Fourth Circuit ruling that Truck Insurance Exchange lacked standing to oppose the proposed Chapter 11 reorganization plan of two manufacturers facing numerous asbestos claims, noting it's Truck that must ultimately cover the vast majority of such claims.
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March 19, 2024
Ford Pushes To Decertify Classes Amid Mustang Defect Trial
Ford Motor Co. urged a Florida federal judge Tuesday to undo classes of consumers in four states who allege they were misled when buying high-performance Mustangs, arguing that a jury heard testimony from the drivers this month that the "word was out on these cars" before purchases were made.
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March 19, 2024
Meta, Google, Others Can't Nix Buffalo, NY, Mass Shooting Suit
Social media giants can't escape a lawsuit seeking to hold them liable for a mass shooting in Buffalo, New York, where 10 died, a state court judge has ruled, accepting claims the platforms are "sophisticated products" that radicalized the killer rather than messaging boards protected under the Communications Decency Act.
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March 19, 2024
Gerber Says Vitamin C Not Used As Preservative In Baby Food
Gerber has said consumers who bought its baby food snack products with "no preservatives" labels got exactly what they bargained for, food with no ingredients that function as preservatives, asking a New York federal judge to toss a false-ad suit.
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March 19, 2024
Cancer Patient Fights Monsanto's Philadelphia Roundup Win
A cancer patient alleging that he developed his illness after using the weed killer Roundup wants to overturn Bayer AG unit Monsanto's first win in Philadelphia's Roundup mass tort, arguing that the judge's erroneous evidentiary rulings caused him to lose the case.
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March 20, 2024
Future Of Judge-Shopping Reform Hazy After Rule Proposal
The policymaking body for U.S. courts provoked a stir last week when it proposed a rule designed to curb "judge shopping," with observers saying that the policy does address one type of the practice but that it remains to be seen if individual federal district courts will be willing to adopt even that limited reform.
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March 19, 2024
OptumRx Can't Get Motley Rice Disqualified From Opioid MDL
An Ohio federal judge has denied a bid by pharmacy benefit manager OptumRx to disqualify Motley Rice LLC from representing plaintiffs in the national opioid litigation, saying the company hasn't shown that the firm's prior representation of states investigating opioids puts the company at a disadvantage in the multidistrict litigation.
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March 19, 2024
Consumers Rip Nestle's Latest Early Win Bid In False-Ad Suit
A proposed class of bottled water drinkers have torn into Nestle Waters North America Inc.'s third attempt to shut down their claims that the company's Poland Spring brand water is deceptively marketed because it is not actually spring water, arguing Nestle's early win bid "strains or ignores a mountain of evidence."
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March 18, 2024
Gasket Maker That Sued Asbestos Lawyers Faces SC Trial
A major gasket maker that has previously sued asbestos lawyers for unfairly targeting it went to trial in South Carolina on Monday against claims by a mesothelioma patient's widow that the company skipped necessary safety testing.
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March 18, 2024
Doc Production Is 'Not That Hard,' MDL Judge Tells Snap's Atty
A California magistrate judge laid out incentives Monday to spur depositions and document production in multidistrict litigation over social media's allegedly addictive design, rejecting defense counsel's arguments the incentives are "lopsided," and telling Snap's counsel document production is "not as hard as you're saying it is."
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March 18, 2024
Feds Try To Shake Off Youths' Constitutional Climate Suit
The government has asked a California federal judge to dismiss a group of children's lawsuit alleging the Constitution guarantees "a life-sustaining climate system" and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency allows unsafe levels of climate pollution.
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March 18, 2024
How A Car Crash And 20 Years Of Litigation Ended With $25M
A $25.5 million verdict returned by a Georgia jury for the family of a woman killed in a 2003 taxi crash was the result of decades of litigation perseverance, with more work ahead to help ensure that a similar tragedy does not occur, her family's lawyer told Law360.
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March 18, 2024
Bayer Beats False-Ad Suit Over 'Honey Lemon Zest' Cold Med
A New York federal judge on Monday tossed without leave to amend a proposed class action accusing Bayer Healthcare LLC of falsely claiming that its Alka-Seltzer Plus brand over-the-counter severe cold medication contains honey and lemon, saying the product's packaging reflects flavoring and not actual ingredients.
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March 18, 2024
4th Circ. Sends Opioid 'Nuisance' Question To W.Va. Top Court
The Fourth Circuit asked West Virginia's high court Monday to determine whether the state's public nuisance law can be used to target companies that shipped drugs to pharmacies in a community ravaged by addiction, a crucial question in litigation spawned by the opioid crisis.
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March 18, 2024
Conn. Pharmacy, FDA Say They've Settled Suit Over Probe
Medication compounding firm SCA Pharmaceuticals and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration together have asked a Connecticut federal judge to dissolve an emergency temporary restraining order blocking the agency from publishing comments related to its contested investigation of the pharmacy, with the parties saying they have executed a settlement.
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March 18, 2024
Amazon, Bumkins Accused Of Not Flagging 'Superbibs' Chemical
Amazon and baby products manufacturer Bumkins Finer Baby Products face a lawsuit in California state court alleging they sell DC Comics-themed "Superbibs" meant for feeding infants without warning customers as the law requires that they contain perfluorooctanoic acid, a "forever chemical" that may cause certain cancers and reproductive problems.
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March 18, 2024
Tesla Trial To Test Bounds Of Autonomous Cars' Future
An upcoming California trial seeking to hold Tesla accountable for the death of a driver who had been playing games on his cellphone while his vehicle was in Autopilot may force the auto industry to recalibrate its approach to advanced driver-assistance systems, as developers pushing fully autonomous transportation stare down the threat of new legal landmines, experts say.
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March 18, 2024
Apple Beats Most Claims In AirTag Stalking Suit, For Now
A California federal judge has dismissed the majority of a proposed class action accusing Apple of not doing enough to safeguard its AirTag tracking device from being abused by stalkers, saying that apart from a few negligence and product liability claims under Golden State law, the rest need to be reworked.
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March 18, 2024
Pabst Gets Calif. Judge To Can 'Olympia Beer' False Ad Suit
A California federal judge sided with Pabst Brewing Co. on Monday in a consumer's false advertising suit, finding that the label of its now-defunct Olympia Beer was unlikely to mislead a reasonable consumer into thinking the lager was brewed in Washington using Pacific Northwest water.
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March 18, 2024
Kimberly-Clark Gets OK For $6M Deal Over Tainted Wipes
A Texas federal court has granted final approval to a deal worth as much as $17 million — with $3.6 million going to plaintiff attorney fees — that would resolve claims that paper products manufacturer Kimberly-Clark sold flushable wipes contaminated with a bacteria particularly dangerous to those with weak immune systems.
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March 18, 2024
Plaintiffs Call For Sanctions Over PFAS MDL Deal Threat
A proposed class in multidistrict litigation against DuPont and others alleging they contaminated drinking water with PFAS chemicals is urging a South Carolina federal court to sanction attorneys for a California water service, saying they violated court rules in their latest objections to a settlement.
Expert Analysis
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Perspectives
Mallory Gives Plaintiffs A Better Shot At Justice
Critics of the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Mallory v. Norfolk Southern claim it opens the door to litigation tourism, but the ruling simply gives plaintiffs more options — enabling them to seek justice against major corporations in the best possible court, say Rayna Kessler and Ethan Seidenberg at Robins Kaplan.
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And Now A Word From The Panel: 55 Years Of The JPML
As the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation marks its 55th birthday, Alan Rothman at Sidley looks back at its history and finds that, while some features of MDL jurisprudence have changed over the decades, the most remarkable aspect of the panel's practice has been its consistency.
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Cannabis Cos. Must Heed PFAS Risks In Products, Packaging
Cannabis businesses and ancillary service providers will have to grapple with evolving PFAS enforcement, litigation and regulations – most recently enacted in Minnesota – and take steps to mitigate risks posed by forever chemicals in their products and packaging, say Malina Dumas and Amy Rubenstein at Dentons.
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Insurance Insights From 5th Circ. Blue Bell Coverage Ruling
The Fifth Circuit's recent ruling that denied Blue Bell insurance coverage for the defense costs incurred from a shareholder lawsuit underscores the importance of coordination of different coverages and policies across programs, and the potential perils of seeking recovery for losses under nontraditional policies, say Geoffrey Fehling and Casey Coffey at Hunton.
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Courts Can Overturn Deficient State Regulations, Too
While suits challenging federal regulations have become commonplace, such cases against state agencies are virtually nonexistent, but many states have provisions that allow litigants to bring suit for regulations with inadequate cost-benefit analyses, says Reeve Bull at the Virginia Office of Regulatory Management.
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Micromobility Can Lead To Macro Liability For Cities, Cos.
E-bike and scooter manufacturers and rental operators, as well as the cities that host such services, must be aware of the major litigation risk associated with the growing number of serious accidents and injuries involving such micromobility devices — and should track emerging regulations in this area, says Arturo Aviles at Segal McCambridge.
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Tales From The Trenches Of Remote Depositions
As practitioners continue to conduct depositions remotely in the post-pandemic world, these virtual environments are rife with opportunities for improper behavior such as witness coaching, scripted testimony and a general lack of civility — but there are methods to prevent and combat these behaviors, say Jennifer Gibbs and Bennett Moss at Zelle.
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Time For Courts, Attorneys To Use Amended Evidence Rule
Though recent amendments to Federal Rule of Evidence 702, clarifying courts’ gatekeeping role in admitting expert witness testimony, will not formally go into effect until Dec. 1, practitioners should use the amendments now to weed out flawed jurisprudence of the past and prevent it moving forward, say Eric Lasker at Hollingsworth and Lawrence Ebner at the Atlantic Legal Foundation.
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Tide May Be Turning On Texas Two-Step Bankruptcy Strategy
Recent developments in several high-profile bankruptcy cases suggest that the use of the Texas Two-Step to shield solvent companies from tort claims may be falling out of favor, but until the U.S. Supreme Court hears one of these cases the strategy will remain divisive and the subject of increased scrutiny, say attorneys at Rivkin Radler.
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Level Up Lawyers' Business Development With Gamification
With employee engagement at a 10-year low in the U.S., there are several gamification techniques marketing and business development teams at law firms can use to make generating new clients and matters more appealing to lawyers, says Heather McCullough at Society 54.
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Mallory Ruling Leaves Personal Jurisdiction Deeply Unsettled
In Mallory v. Norfolk Southern Railway, a closely divided U.S. Supreme Court recently rolled back key aspects of its 2017 opinion in Daimler AG v. Bauman that limited personal jurisdiction, leaving as many questions for businesses as it answers, say John Cerreta and James Rotondo at Day Pitney.
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Handling Hostile Depositions: Keep Calm And Make A Record
When depositions turn contentious, attorneys should, among other strategies, maintain a professional demeanor and note any objectionable conduct on the record, thereby increasing chances of a favorable outcome for the client while preserving the integrity of the legal process, say attorneys at Steptoe & Johnson.
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EPA Draft Plastic Pollution Plan Offers Opportunities For Cos.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's recently released draft national strategy to prevent plastic pollution, if implemented as is, will have serious implications for waste collection and processing businesses, but also highlights growth opportunities for companies seeking to capitalize on the emerging circular economy, say attorneys at DLA Piper.
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Using Counterfactuals To Shift Jurors' Hindsight Bias
Counterfactuals can reduce or increase jurors’ hindsight bias by helping them imagine how events could have unfolded differently, but before attorneys make use of this key tool at trial, they should keep several important principles in mind, say Merrie Jo Pitera and David Metz at IMS Consulting, and John Ursu at Faegre Drinker.
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5 Ways Firms Can Rethink Office Design In A Hybrid World
As workplaces across the country adapt to flexible work, law firms must prioritize individuality, amenities and technology in office design, says Kristin Cerutti at Nelson Worldwide.