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Product Liability
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May 10, 2013
Dannon Beats False Ad Suit Claiming Activia Isn't Yogurt
The Dannon Co. Inc. on Thursday escaped a putative class action alleging Activia Yogurt cut with a milk protein is adulterated and no longer actually yogurt, after a New York federal judge determined the additive has not been prohibited by federal regulators.
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May 10, 2013
Chemical Co. CEO Cops To Charges Over Employee Death
The CEO of defunct Port Arthur Chemical and Environmental Services LLC pled guilty in Texas federal court Thursday to failing to protect an employee who died from inhaling poisonous gas, with criminal charges still pending against the company.
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May 9, 2013
Crane Collapse Deals Should Be Unsealed, Appeals Court Says
A New York appeals court on Thursday affirmed a trial judge's order unsealing settlements of seven wrongful death cases arising out of a 2008 crane collapse in Manhattan, finding the information might help construction companies, insurers and other parties to make “informed decisions” about whether to settle their cases.
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May 9, 2013
Novartis Expert Denies Zometa Caused Bone Death In NJ Trial
Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp. couldn't win a midtrial judgment Thursday in a New Jersey lawsuit in multicounty litigation over its bone drug Zometa, but did begin calling witnesses to combat claims that it failed to adequately disclose risks of jaw bone death and that the drug was responsible for the plaintiff's jaw problems.
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May 9, 2013
3rd Circ. Nixes J&J Benecol False Ad Suit
The Third Circuit on Thursday affirmed the dismissal of a putative class action alleging Johnson & Johnson misrepresented the health benefits of its Benecol brand of butter and margarine substitutes with deceptive labels, saying the claims were precluded by the Nutrition Labeling and Education Act.
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May 9, 2013
Lawmakers Press Supplement Cos. About DMAA Sales
Three Republican lawmakers questioned General Nutrition Centers Inc. and USPlabs LLC on Wednesday about their continued sale of workout supplements containing DMAA, an ingredient declared illegal and potentially unsafe by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
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May 9, 2013
Abbott, AbbVie Hit With $2.2M Verdict In Humira Suit
A Chicago jury slapped Abbott Laboratories and AbbVie Inc. with a $2.2 million verdict Thursday in a suit brought by a man whose wife allegedly suffered a life-threatening fungal infection as a result of taking the blockbuster arthritis drug Humira.
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May 9, 2013
Amended $23M Ticketmaster Service Fee Deal Wins Approval
A California federal judge on Wednesday gave preliminary approval to Ticketmaster's $23 million class settlement with customers who claimed they were duped into joining a costly online coupon service, after the ticketing giant amended the deal's attorney fee provision to address the judge's reservations with the deal.
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May 9, 2013
Whirlpool Hit With Class Action Over Dishwasher Defect
Whirlpool Corp. on Monday was hit with a proposed class action in California federal court, accusing it of misrepresenting its Maytag-brand dishwashers as reliable, despite a defective design resulting in frequent and expensive control panel repairs.
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May 9, 2013
Plainitffs' Firms Push 11th Circ. To Uphold Engle Findings
More than 30 law firms representing plaintiffs in Engle tobacco litigation urged the Eleventh Circuit on Wednesday to reject R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co.'s contention that the cases violate its due process rights, arguing that such a finding would threaten their clients' own due process rights.
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May 9, 2013
Compounder Oversight Bill Needs Tweaks, FDA Official Says
A proposed bill allowing the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to directly regulate certain compounding pharmacies would give the agency most of the authority it requires to help prevent future disease outbreaks, but some loopholes still need closing, a senior FDA official told lawmakers Thursday.
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May 9, 2013
Quinn Emanuel To Open 1st Aussie Office In June
Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP will expand to Australia in June, launching an office in Sydney that will be headed by a longtime Quinn Emanuel partner and a partner from Herbert Smith Freehills LLP seasoned in insurance, product liability, securities and entertainment litigation, the firm said Thursday.
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May 9, 2013
Q&A With Greenberg Traurig's David Weinstein
I am a proponent of courts using their inherent authority to implement effective case-management tools to address complexities and reduce the potential for abuse in mass tort litigation, says David Weinstein, managing shareholder with Greenberg Traurig LLP.
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May 8, 2013
Ford, Chrysler Safety Probes Halted Following Recalls
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said this week it has closed two investigations into the safety of certain automobiles from the Ford Motor Co. and Fiat SpA unit Chrysler Group LLC, after the carmakers agreed to recall potentially affected vehicles.
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May 8, 2013
Preemption No Savior For Monster In Energy Drink Fight
Monster Beverage Corp. may find it tough to persuade a California federal judge that the city of San Francisco's attempts to restrict the marketing of the company's caffeinated energy drinks are preempted by federal law, attorneys say, as the state's courts have recently allowed more state-law claims targeting advertising for food and beverages to move forward.
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May 8, 2013
Travelers Wants Money Back For Honeywell Asbestos Defense
Travelers Casualty and Surety Co. has sued several insurers and Honeywell International Inc. in New Jersey court seeking coverage contributions and retrospective premiums in connection with underlying asbestos, silica and mixed dust claims against Honeywell and a kiln maker.
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May 8, 2013
House Panel Approves Prescription Drug Tracking Bill
Industry-supported legislation that would create a nationwide drug-tracing system was approved Wednesday by a House health subcommittee, although several Democrats complained that the legislation would preempt state tracing laws immediately but wouldn't fully go into effect for several years.
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May 8, 2013
Fla. Court Remands Order For Cooper Tire To Yield Docs
A Florida appeals court on Wednesday remanded an order for Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. to produce documents the company claims contain trade secrets, saying a lower court failed to follow legal requirements including providing specific findings of their necessity to the tire blowout case.
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May 8, 2013
Lawmakers Clamor For FDA Action On Arsenic In Juice
A pair of House lawmakers pressured the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday to release an industry guidance document setting voluntary standards for arsenic levels in fruit juice, citing concerns from a 2012 study revealing high amounts of the toxin in apple and grape beverages.
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May 8, 2013
J&J Hit With Class Action Over Aveeno 'Natural' Claims
Johnson & Johnson was hit Tuesday with a proposed class action in New York federal court accusing the company of misleading consumers by advertising its Aveeno line of personal care products as "natural" when they include several synthetic chemicals.
Expert Analysis
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Best Practices Of Conducting An Accident Investigation
When an accident claim arises, it is crucially important to follow a thorough accident investigation protocol to ensure that the company properly defends itself against an injury or death claim. Establishing an accident investigation team is one of the several practices companies should follow to minimize exposure in such claims or litigation, says Jen Mountcastle of Thompson Hine LLP.
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NY Cedents Enjoy More Protection And Authority
While some have stated that the New York Court of Appeals ruling in United States Fidelity & Guaranty Co. v. American Re-Insurance Co. was favorable to reinsurers, the decision actually provides further support for expanding the protections of the follow-the-settlement doctrine to post-settlement allocation decisions, say attorneys with Hunton & Williams LLP.
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A Breakdown Of Safer Consumer Products Act
Although the California Department of Toxic Substances Control has not finalized the regulations pursuant to the Safer Consumer Products Act, manufacturers are already budgeting millions of dollars for compliance expenditures. While manufacturers now face the burden of compliance, consumers should sit tight and patiently wait for the DTSC's final regulatory response before making product choice decisions, says Kimberly Bick of Irell & Manella LLP.
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6 Areas Often Underestimated In Law Firm Mergers
While mergers in other industries are driven by cost efficiencies or economies of scale, law firm mergers are typically focused on the potential to leverage clients and the overall quality of the attorney population, branding and market position. As a result, full disclosure of third-party vendor or support function operating costs can be a secondary concern until after the deal closes. Firms need to hit the ground running the moment the merger is inked, says Matthew Sunderman of HBR Consulting LLC.
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Proof Is On The Policyholders
Importantly, in Plant Insulation Co. v. Fireman’s Fund Insurance Co., the California Superior Court placed on the policyholder the burden of proving that an asbestos-related bodily injury is not within the completed operations hazard or products hazard — reinforcing that the burden is on the policyholder to prove coverage, say attorneys with Steptoe & Johnson LLP.
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Daubert-Style Gatekeeping In Calif.? Not Quite
Sargon Enterprises v. University of Southern California is probably a good development for those who are typically on the defensive end of questionable expert testimony in California, but the case leaves some hard questions about a confusing and conflicted body of law — the apparent transition to Daubert is not over yet, says Aaron Block of Alston & Bird LLP.
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Pharma Cos., Scan Your Drugs For Proper Barcodes
Recently, the Chinese State Food and Drug Administration released a notice addressing concerns over electronic barcoding, an initiative for the agency to better supervise the supply chain of pharmaceutical products. Though the notice intends to clarify ambiguities arising from imposing electronic barcodes on imported drugs, it will potentially increase the complexity of supply chain management by foreign pharmaceutical manufacturers, says Katherine Wang of Ropes & Gray LLP.
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A Food Industry Issue Menu For 2013: Part 2
Looking at trends in several aspects of food safety law — such as immigration, packaging requirements and environmental concerns — we expect to see a number of significant changes to the food and beverage industry this year, say attorneys with McGuireWoods LLP.
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6 Tips To Avoid Failure-To-Warn Claims
Warning claims are the last bastion of plaintiff attorneys. Even when the evidence shows that a product was manufactured properly and that the plaintiff clearly misused it, a lawyer still can argue that the misuse was foreseeable. As frustrating as this situation is, the risk can be reduced through certain best practices, says Andrew Cox of Thompson Hine LLP.
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Pseudo-Science Of 'Each-And-Every Exposure' Asbestos Claim
Plaintiffs in mesothelioma cases typically sue former manufacturers of asbestos-containing products on a theory that "each and every" exposure to asbestos contributed to causing cancer. Such was the case in Smith v. Ford Motor Co, which highlights the disconnect between plaintiffs' causation pronouncements and the scientific evidence provided and continues a long line of recent decisions laying bare the scientific deficiencies of the theory, say attorneys with Mayer Brown LLP.