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May 15, 2026
SAN FRANCISCO — ChatGPT advised a 19-year-old college student to take a combination of drugs that ultimately led to his accidental overdose death, his parents allege in a California lawsuit alleging strict liability, negligence, practice of medicine without a license and violation of the California unfair competition law (UCL).
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May 15, 2026
OAKLAND, Calif. — A California federal judge denied a motion for reconsideration filed by users of Dropbox Inc. seeking to revisit an order compelling arbitration in a putative class action over an alleged Dropbox data breach, finding that a user agreement prompt satisfied the online contract-formation test because a “reasonably prudent internet user” would understand that clicking “‘I agree’” assents to both the document being signed and Dropbox’s terms of service.
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May 15, 2026
SAN JOSE, Calif. — The dynamic outputs created by artificial intelligence chatbots are not suitable targets for products liability actions, and a father has not alleged any basis for his California unfair competition law (UCL) claims, Google LLC and Alphabet Inc. argue in a May 15 motion seeking to dismiss a suit attempting to hold them liable for his son’s suicide.
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May 15, 2026
LOS ANGELES — A cosmetic company insured and its commercial general liability insurer told a California federal court that they have reached a conditional settlement of the insured’s action seeking coverage for three underlying putative class action lawsuits alleging that the company deceptively sold beauty products by failing to disclose the dangerous risks and side effects of lash enhancement serums’ “key ingredient.”
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May 15, 2026
SAN FRANCISCO — A California federal judge dismissed a putative class action accusing a mattress company of falsely advertising its products as “Made in the U.S.A.” when the products are in part made of materials sourced outside the United States, finding that the mattresses were not sufficiently alleged to contain more than 5% imported material and therefore fell within a safe harbor provision in California labeling laws.
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May 13, 2026
LOS ANGELES — A California federal judge denied a homeowners insurer’s motion to dismiss bad faith, declaratory relief and unfair competition law (UCL) claims alleged by insureds who seek coverage for damages to their home and contents caused by wildfire smoke and ash because the insureds adequately allege that the insurer withheld benefits in bad faith, that a coverage dispute exists and that ongoing coverage may be owed.
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May 13, 2026
RIVERSIDE, Calif. — Wal-Mart Stores Inc. will pay $2.25 million to settle wage, California unfair competition law and Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) claims brought by a distribution center worker on behalf of himself and other workers, according to an order granting final approval of the class settlement signed by a federal judge in California.
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May 12, 2026
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A California federal judge on May 11 dismissed with prejudice a putative class complaint against Nestlé Health Science US Holdings Inc. for violating California’s unfair competition law (UCL) and other laws by allegedly misrepresenting a breakfast drink as healthy and containing protein on its front label when it actually contained more sugar than protein per serving, finding that the claims are preempted because the consumer’s theory contradicts federal labeling requirements.
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May 08, 2026
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Supreme Court denied a consumer’s petition for a writ of certiorari seeking review of a Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals decision holding that federal courts must give defendants, when opposing remand by plaintiffs who seek only equitable relief, an opportunity to keep their case in federal court by waiving the adequate-remedy-at-law defense, which the consumer had argued violates a nonwaivable “structural limitation” on federal jurisdiction.
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May 07, 2026
SAN DIEGO — A California federal judge dismissed a consumer’s suit for lack of subject matter jurisdiction after finding that he failed to show that he was injured by a vacuum cleaner company allegedly starting its warranty period from the date of purchase, thereby allegedly “shorting” his warranty by the 13 days it took for the product to be delivered, but agreed that such claims could plausibly give rise to an injury.
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May 07, 2026
LOS ANGELES — A California federal judge entered an in-chambers order closing a putative class action against the maker of “fruit spreads” that plaintiffs claimed were deceptively labeled as “natural” in violation of California’s unfair competition law (UCL) and other laws when they in fact contain artificial citric acid, after the parties jointly stipulated to voluntary dismissal.
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May 07, 2026
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Supreme Court on May 6 denied Apple Inc.’s application to stay a Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals reversal of its order staying a mandate regarding a contempt judgment against Apple over anticompetitive practices on its App Store in an antitrust dispute with Epic Games Inc.
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May 06, 2026
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Epic Games Inc. on May 6 filed a response to Apple Inc.’s application in the U.S. Supreme Court seeking to stay a Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals’ reversal of its order staying a mandate regarding a contempt judgment against Apple over anticompetitive practices on its App Store in an antitrust dispute with Epic.
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May 06, 2026
SAN FRANCISCO — A California federal judge remanded a putative class action against Crayola LLC brought by consumers who claim that it deceptively labeled its markers, glue sticks and chalk as “non-toxic” in violation of California’s unfair competition law (UCL), after finding that the plaintiffs did not plausibly allege standing to seek injunctive relief under Article III of the U.S. Constitution.
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May 06, 2026
SAN JOSE, Calif. — The plaintiffs representing a putative class of consumers who say they were misled into overpaying for Apple Inc.’s latest iPhone models based on Apple’s misrepresentations about the artificial intelligence capabilities that the iPhone 16’s “Apple Intelligence” and Siri software would offer moved May 5 for preliminary approval of a $250 million settlement, with an estimated $70 million in attorney fees, to resolve their claims that Apple violated California’s unfair competition law (UCL) and other laws.
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May 06, 2026
PASADENA, Calif. — Nestle USA Inc.’s petition for panel rehearing and rehearing en banc was denied by the Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals after a divided panel in January affirmed a trial court’s certification of two California classes of consumers in a case accusing the company of labeling that falsely implies that its chocolate products are produced without child labor and deforestation in violation of California’s unfair competition law (UCL) and Consumers Legal Remedies Act (CLRA).
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May 05, 2026
LOS ANGELES — The United States of America filed a statement of interest in a lawsuit filed by California homeowners affected by the Los Angeles wildfires against their insurers for violations of the state’s Cartwright Act and unfair competition law (UCL), negligence and fraud, noting that although the action asserts only state competition law claims, the United States has a strong interest because the alleged conduct by the insurers “presents a serious concern under the federal antitrust laws.”
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May 05, 2026
SAN FRANCISCO — Two consumers on May 4 filed a complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California on behalf of a putative nationwide class against a New Jersey company that sells tomatoes labeled as “Certified” and “San Marzano,” alleging that the tomatoes are not from the San Marzano region and are deceptively labeled in violation of California’s unfair competition law (UCL) and seeking $25 million in restitution.
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May 04, 2026
SAN FRANCISCO — A California federal magistrate judge granted a sugarcane grower’s motion to dismiss putative class claims against it seeking restitution and disgorgement without leave to amend, but declined to dismiss claims that it used “greenwashing” to deceptively market its sugar as environmentally friendly when it is not, in violation of California’s unfair competition law (UCL).
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May 01, 2026
WILMINGTON, Del. — A Delaware state judge on April 30 denied a motion by Fox News Network (FNN) to dismiss a lawsuit brought against it for defamation per se by California Gov. Gavin Newsom regarding FNN’s claim on-air that the governor “lied” about not having a phone call with President Donald J. Trump in June 2025 and denied FNN’s request for attorney fees based on Newsom’s withdrawal of a claim for violation of California’s unfair competition law (UCL).
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May 01, 2026
CHICAGO — An Illinois federal judge denied a food company’s motion to dismiss a putative class action lawsuit against it alleging violations of consumer protection laws of several states, including California’s unfair competition law (UCL), by labeling its frozen fish products as containing “100% Whole Fish” when the fish is allegedly “pumped” with water and an inorganic salt compound, writing that the plaintiffs adequately alleged the labels could deceive a reasonable consumer.
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April 30, 2026
SAN FRANCISCO — A California federal judge dismissed a lawsuit by controversial social media influencers Andrew Tate and his brother Tristan seeking more than $50 million from Meta Platforms Inc. for terminating their social media accounts and allegedly defaming them in violation of California’s unfair competition law (UCL) and other laws without leave to amend, opining that the Tates failed to allege facts overcoming Meta’s immunity as a digital publisher.
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April 30, 2026
SAN FRANCISCO — Samuel Altman and various OpenAI entities took no action even as employees warned them that a ChatGPT user posed a real-world threat. It was a prescient warning brought to life when just months later the user allegedly killed eight people as part of a school shooting in British Columbia, families claim in a series of seven complaints filed April 29 alleging negligence, strict product liability and violation of the California unfair competition law (UCL).
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April 29, 2026
SAN FRANCISCO — Two consumers and a baby food company on April 27 filed a joint notice of settlement, informing a California court that they are finalizing an agreement to permanently resolve the consumers’ claims that the company improperly labeled baby food in violation of state laws that adopt federal labeling standards, which the U.S. Supreme Court declined to review in April 2025.
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April 24, 2026
SAN JOSE, Calif. — A California federal magistrate judge granted a request to proceed anonymously by a Jane Doe plaintiff seeking to represent “Jeffrey Epstein survivors” whose personally identifiable information was disclosed by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) in her putative class action against the United States and Google LLC for violating federal privacy laws and California’s unfair competition law (UCL).