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Product Liability
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April 12, 2024
Abbott Labs Gets Price Claims Tossed In Baby Formula MDL
An Illinois federal judge on Friday threw out a suit from parents alleging that Abbott Laboratories benefited from increased prices during a shortage of baby formula kicked off when one of its facilities was shut down, saying they haven't shown that the company's profits during that time were unjustly retained.
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April 12, 2024
Bimbo Beats False Ad Suit Over 'All Butter' Entenmann's Cake
Bimbo Bakeries defeated a proposed class action alleging its Entenmann's brand "All Butter" loaf cake is misleading to customers since the butter taste is partially sourced from artificial vanillin, after a Maryland federal judge said Friday the claims are preempted by the U.S. Food Drug and Cosmetic Act.
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April 12, 2024
Gas Co. Accuses Tech Partner Of 'Snake Oil Salesman' Tactics
A Houston natural gas company asked a federal court Thursday to revoke a state settlement agreement between it and a partner who allegedly provided it with faulty monitoring equipment, calling the company a "modern-day snake oil salesman" that retaliated when it was "called on its failures."
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April 12, 2024
Mercedes-Benz Gets Fraud Claims Clipped In Brake Suit
A Washington federal judge has thrown out the bulk of a man's claims in a proposed class action alleging Mercedes-Benz USA LLC sold vehicles with defective brake sleeves that can cause corrosion, finding he hasn't adequately pled that the company fraudulently hid the existence of the alleged defect.
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April 12, 2024
'Ghost Gun' Cos. Ink $1.3M Deal To End Philly's Safety Suit
The city of Philadelphia filed a $1.3 million settlement agreement Friday with two companies that sold kits and parts for so-called "ghost guns," touting it as a victory in reducing the number of unregulated firearms in the region.
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April 11, 2024
Gerber, Others Must Face Calif. MDL Over Baby Food Toxins
A group of baby food manufacturers, including Gerber Products Co., Hain Celestial Group Inc. and Beech-Nut Nutrition Co., must face consolidated lawsuits alleging that heavy metals in their products cause autism spectrum disorder and other conditions in California federal court, the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation ruled Thursday.
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April 11, 2024
NJ Climate Suit Goes 'Far Beyond' Boundaries, Oil Cos. Say
Six oil companies and an energy trade group told a judge Thursday that New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin is attempting to stretch the state's tort law "far beyond" any manageable boundaries in attempting to hold them liable for allegedly misleading Garden State residents about the climate impacts of fossil fuels.
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April 11, 2024
Shops Fight Altria Unit's Bid To Block Flavored Vape Sales
A group of smoke shops urged a California federal judge to reject a bid by vape manufacturer NJOY, a subsidiary of tobacco giant Altria Group, Inc., seeking to block the retailers from selling Elf Bar branded flavored vapes, arguing that consumers won't flock to NJOY's tobacco flavored products even if Elf Bar is off the market.
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April 11, 2024
FDA Commissioner Says Congress Must Act On Hemp, CBD
The commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said Thursday that the agency did not consider hemp-derived CBD safe enough to be sold lawfully as a dietary supplement, and urged Congress to create a new pathway to regulate the substance.
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April 11, 2024
9th Circ. Nixes 'Super Snap Removals' In Dexcom Suits
The Ninth Circuit won't let Dexcom Inc. remove three suits alleging its glucose monitoring system is defective to federal court, saying its "super snap removal" motions were premature as they were filed before any of the cases actually commenced.
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April 11, 2024
Pacific Pipeline To Pay Calif. Landowners $70M Over Oil Spill
A class of landowners urged a California federal judge to sign off on a $70 million deal with Pacific Pipeline Co. to resolve litigation stemming from the rupture of an onshore pipeline that leaked 140,000 gallons of crude oil near Santa Barbara, California, according to a motion for settlement approval entered Wednesday.
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April 11, 2024
Pool Co. Gets Rival's Assets Frozen After False Ads Verdict
A North Carolina federal judge on Thursday temporarily froze the assets of a Chinese manufacturer of pool products and its American subsidiary after they were hit with a multimillion-dollar verdict for false advertising and unfair business practices, citing a concern they may move assets to try and duck payment.
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April 11, 2024
Ohio Judge Axes Norfolk's Derailment Cleanup Cost Defenses
An Ohio federal judge has struck several of Norfolk Southern Corp.'s defenses against the government's environmental cleanup cost suit arising from the train derailment in East Palestine but said it is too early to rule on the company's argument that the Comprehensive Environmental Response Compensation and Liability Act claims are preempted by federal rail statutes.
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April 11, 2024
Birth Control Injury Claims Barred From Conn., Court Told
Connecticut state courts have no basis to exercise jurisdiction over three of the four companies targeted in product liability lawsuits brought by 103 women who claim their Filshie Clip birth control devices migrated within their bodies and caused injuries, counsel for the defendants told a Waterbury judge Thursday.
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April 11, 2024
Insurer Drops Suit After Evidence Clears Stihl In Fire Case
Pennsylvania National Mutual Casualty Insurance Co. agreed Wednesday to drop a lawsuit in North Carolina federal court seeking to hold Stihl Inc. liable for fire damages at a policyholder's home after evidence showed a hedge-trimmer battery didn't cause the fire.
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April 11, 2024
Judge Recommends State Court For Ore. County Climate Suit
A federal magistrate judge has said an Oregon county's climate change lawsuit against Chevron, Exxon Mobil and other fossil fuel companies should be sent back to state court, rejecting arguments that the complaint was fraudulently crafted to evade federal jurisdiction.
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April 11, 2024
Exploding Shower Door Injury Suit Must Stay In Fed. Court
A lawsuit seeking to hold a plumbing fixture company and Home Depot liable for injuries a child suffered when a shower door "exploded" will not be sent back to state court, a New Jersey federal judge ruled, saying an agreement to cap damages won't shake federal jurisdiction.
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April 11, 2024
US Sends Mixed Messages In Enbridge Line 5 Pipeline Dispute
The U.S. government sent mixed messages to the Seventh Circuit in weighing in on Enbridge's controversial Line 5 oil pipeline, saying a lower court was right to determine that the company is trespassing on tribal lands, but recommended that the case be remanded and that a tribe's public nuisance claim be dismissed.
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April 11, 2024
Conn. Attorney Accused Of Unreasonable Fees In VW Case
Connecticut's attorney disciplinary authority has accused an attorney of charging an unreasonable fee to a plaintiff in a 2022 defective product claim against Volkswagen of America and not providing documentation to support the fee, in violation of professional conduct rules.
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April 10, 2024
Hyundai, Kia Engine Fire Deal OK'd With 60% Atty Fee Cut
A California federal judge has given final approval to a settlement ending a second consolidated class-action litigation alleging Hyundai and Kia sold vehicles with defective engines prone to fires, while awarding plaintiffs' attorneys only $3.4 million of the $8.9 million they requested.
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April 10, 2024
Tribes Sue Social Platforms Over Native Youth Suicides
Two Native American tribes are suing social media giants, accusing them of relentlessly pursuing a strategy of "growth-at-all-costs" that has contributed to the disproportionately high rates of mental health crisis and suicide affecting Indigenous youth that is devastating Indian Country.
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April 10, 2024
Landmark PFAS Rule Faces Battles Over Costs And Science
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Wednesday issued the first-ever federal drinking water standards for "forever chemicals," something communities, environmental groups and politicians of both major political parties had been clamoring for. However, experts said the novel rulemaking will attract tough legal battles over implementation costs, supporting science and other elements.
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April 10, 2024
9th Circ. Mostly Affirms Industry Ban For COVID PPE Delays
A Ninth Circuit panel on Tuesday largely upheld a district court's ruling requiring personal protective equipment suppliers to pay over $3 million after finding that they misrepresented the shipping times of hand sanitizer products at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, while reversing the Federal Trade Commission's injunction against one of the companies' owners.
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April 10, 2024
Emissions Rules' Foes May Be Forced To Yield To Automakers
Potential challengers of vehicle emissions rules were shown they're not necessarily in the drivers' seat on the issue when the D.C. Circuit upheld California's authority to set its own greenhouse gas emissions standards and run a zero-emission vehicles program while citing the auto industry's peace with the regulations.
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April 10, 2024
Talc Death Liability Should Have Been Even Split, Panel Finds
A Pennsylvania appeals court on Wednesday partially reversed a $400,000 verdict in a mesothelioma suit against American International Industries, with a panel finding the trial court should have split the verdict in even thirds, rather than putting 50% of it on AII.
Expert Analysis
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Twitter Legal Fees Suit Offers Crash Course In Billing Ethics
X Corp.'s suit alleging that Wachtell grossly inflated its fees in the final days of Elon Musk’s Twitter acquisition provides a case study in how firms should protect their reputations by hewing to ethical billing practices and the high standards for professional conduct that govern attorney-client relationships, says Lourdes Fuentes at Karta Legal.
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ABA's Money-Laundering Resolution Is A Balancing Act
While the American Bar Association’s recently passed resolution recognizes a lawyer's duty to discontinue representation that could facilitate money laundering and other fraudulent activity, it preserves, at least for now, the delicate balance of judicial, state-based regulation of the legal profession and the sanctity of the attorney-client relationship, say attorneys at Ballard Spahr.
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2 High Court Cases Could Upend Administrative Law Bedrock
Next term, the U.S. Supreme Court will be deciding two cases likely to change the nature and shape of agency-facing litigation in perpetuity, and while one will clarify or overturn Chevron, far more is at stake in the other, say Dan Wolff and Henry Leung at Crowell & Moring.
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Tapping The Full Potential Of The Juror Questionnaire
Most litigators know that questionnaires can reveal biases that potential jurors would never reveal in voir dire, but to maximize this tool’s utility, attorneys must choose the right questions, interpret responses effectively and weigh several other considerations, say George Speckart and Steve Wood at Courtroom Sciences.
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Law Firm Professional Development Steps To Thrive In AI Era
As generative artificial intelligence tools rapidly evolve, professional development leaders are instrumental in preparing law firms for the paradigm shifts ahead, and should consider three strategies to help empower legal talent with the skills required to succeed in an increasingly complex technological landscape, say Steve Gluckman and Anusia Gillespie at SkillBurst Interactive.
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Conn. Regulators Are Coming For Unlawful Cannabis Sales
Regulatory and enforcement efforts against unlicensed cannabis sales in Connecticut have been ramping up this year, so it behooves retailers to prioritize compliance with all relevant statutes, lest they attract unwelcome scrutiny, says Eric Del Pozo at Shipman & Goodwin.
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9th Circ. Kellogg Ruling Offers Protein Claim Defense Tips
The Ninth Circuit's recent opinion dismissing consolidated false advertising class actions against Kellogg and Kashi should be required reading for manufacturers that include protein-related claims on their product labels because it significantly clarifies the viability of state law challenges to those claims, say Olivia Dworkin and Cortlin Lannin at Covington.
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The Basics Of Being A Knowledge Management Attorney
Excerpt from Practical Guidance
Michael Lehet at Ogletree Deakins discusses the role of knowledge management attorneys at law firms, the common tasks they perform and practical tips for lawyers who may be considering becoming one.
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Opinion
Purdue Ch. 11 Case Exemplifies Need For 3rd-Party Releases
In the Purdue Pharma Chapter 11 case, the U.S. Supreme Court will eventually decide whether the Bankruptcy Code authorizes a court to approve third-party releases, but removing this powerful tool would be a significant blow to the likelihood of future victims being made whole, says Isaac Marcushamer at DGIM Law.
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Mont. Kids' Climate Decision Reflects 3 Enviro Trends
A Montana district court's recent ruling in Held v. Montana represents a rare win for activist plaintiffs seeking to use rights-based theories to address climate change concerns — and calls attention to three environmental trends that are increasingly influencing climate litigation and policy, says J. Michael Showalter at ArentFox Schiff.
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3 Lessons From Mock Trials That Attys Can Use In Practice
The hordes of data gleaned from mock trial competitions can isolate the methods that maximize persuasion, providing key principles that attorneys in every practice area can incorporate into their real-world trial work, say Spencer Pahlke at Walkup Melodia and Justin Bernstein at UCLA.
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To Hire And Keep Top Talent, Think Beyond Compensation
Firms seeking to appeal to sophisticated clients and top-level partners should promote mentorship, ensure that attorneys from diverse backgrounds feel valued, and clarify policies about at-home work, says Patrick Moya at Quaero Group.
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Retailers Face Compliance Issues As PFAS Regulations Grow
As per- and polyfluoroalkyl substance legislation, and the potential for litigation, continues to evolve and spread nationally, retailers should focus on supply chain management, inventory audits and maintaining strong internal standard operating procedures as a way to manage compliance and minimize risk, say attorneys at Dentons.
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Perspectives
More States Should Join Effort To Close Legal Services Gap
Colorado is the most recent state to allow other types of legal providers, not just attorneys, to offer specific services in certain circumstances — and more states should rethink the century-old assumptions that shape our current regulatory rules, say Natalie Anne Knowlton and Janet Drobinske at the University of Denver.
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Identifying Trends And Tips In Litigation Financing Disclosure
Growing interest and controversy in litigation financing raise several salient concerns, but exploring recent compelled disclosure trends from courts around the country can help practitioners further their clients' interests, say Sean Callagy and Samuel Sokolsky at Arnold & Porter.