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Product Liability
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March 26, 2024
Combat Arms Earplugs Settlement Moves To Final Resolution
More than 249,000 U.S. service members who claimed they suffered permanent hearing loss due to 3M's allegedly faulty combat earplugs have signed onto the $6 billion settlement, boasting "more than 99%" participation, according to a Tuesday announcement by the company.
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March 26, 2024
Opioid Public Nuisance Claims 'Unique,' Ohio High Court Told
Counsel for two Ohio counties that won a $650 million verdict against Walmart, CVS and Walgreens told the Ohio Supreme Court on Tuesday that opioids are a "unique" problem during oral arguments about whether the counties' public nuisance claims are blocked by the state's product liability law.
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March 26, 2024
Widow Gets $1.75M Verdict In SC Asbestos Death Suit
A South Carolina jury has awarded a widow $1.75 million in damages from gasket-maker John Crane Inc. in a suit over her husband's death from asbestos-related mesothelioma, finding the company negligent.
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March 26, 2024
Fishers Say Tire Cos. Can't Escape Salmon ESA Suit
Fishing groups are fighting tire companies' attempt to dismiss an Endangered Species Act suit over the use of a rubber additive known as 6PPD, which harms salmon, telling a California federal judge the companies are trying to delay accountability.
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March 26, 2024
BP, Chevron And Others Hit With Climate Change Suit In Pa.
Bucks County in Pennsylvania has sued BP, Chevron, ExxonMobil and other major oil companies for allegedly deceiving the public about the dangers of fossil fuel pollution, claiming that climate change has caused increasingly severe weather leading to property damage in the county.
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March 26, 2024
Boeing Can't Exit Wash. Worker's Birth Defect Suit
A Washington state judge has declined to throw out a lawsuit accusing Boeing of exposing a factory worker to chemicals that caused birth defects in his child, after casting doubt last month on the company's assertion it had no legal duty to protect employees' future children from foreseeable harm.
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March 26, 2024
Late Navy Lt.'s Dad Says Northrop Lied About Aircraft Safety
The father of a U.S. Navy lieutenant who died during an aviation training mission alleges Northrop Grumman Corp. lied to the Navy about the safety of its advanced Hawkeye aircraft despite receiving hazard reports on engine failures dating back to 2015.
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March 26, 2024
K&L Gates Consumer Products Chair Joins Venable In LA
Venable LLP said Monday that the co-chair of K&L Gates LLP's commercial litigation practice and chair of its consumer products and beauty and wellness practice groups has joined the firm's Los Angeles office as a partner.
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March 25, 2024
Judge Skeptical Of Ark. Social Media Law But Doesn't Block It
An Arkansas federal judge appeared skeptical that the state's law limiting minors' social media access would survive a recent constitutional challenge but has allowed the state to continue with limited discovery on whether the law sufficiently targets only platforms that allegedly cause the most harm to underage users.
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March 25, 2024
Full 10th Circ. Stands By Revival Of Valero Pipeline Leak Suit
The full Tenth Circuit refused to budge from a panel's February decision that partly revived an Oklahoma cattle ranch's lawsuit seeking to hold Valero Energy Corp. liable for a pipeline leak that allegedly contaminated the ranch property.
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March 25, 2024
J&J Exec 'Shocked' Over Atty's Ties With Talc Plaintiffs
Johnson & Johnson's vice president of litigation said on Monday he was "utterly shocked and appalled" upon learning an attorney who served as the company's outside counsel was working with its adversary Beasley Allen Law Firm and one of its attorneys in litigation over the alleged link between the company's talcum powder products and ovarian cancer.
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March 25, 2024
What To Watch As Opioid Litigation Goes To Ohio High Court
The Ohio Supreme Court on Tuesday will become only the second state high court to hear oral arguments on whether the opioid epidemic is a public nuisance, the controversial legal theory underpinning numerous suits across the country including a $650 million award that two Ohio counties won against Walmart, CVS and Walgreens.
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March 25, 2024
Solar Co. Downplayed Exposed Wire Issue, Investors Claim
Energy company Shoals Technologies Group Inc. has been hit with a proposed class action alleging it downplayed the cost of repairing exposed wires for customers and that investors were blindsided when the company finally revealed it would need to spend at least $60 million to fix the issue.
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March 25, 2024
Prior Deal Bars Issues-Only Classes In NCAA Football MDL
An Illinois federal judge has denied a bid by former NCAA football players for issue-only classes in multidistrict litigation over concussion injuries, saying a settlement from a prior MDL specifically prohibits issue-only classes.
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March 25, 2024
Chiquita MDL Parties Urge Fla. Judge To Ax Trial Testimony
Parties in the multidistrict litigation against Chiquita Brands urged a Florida federal judge Monday to exclude each other's witnesses ahead of the upcoming bellwether trials, saying they were not timely disclosed and have no direct knowledge of the claims in the case.
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March 25, 2024
Texas Co. Hit With COVID Products Ban, $37.6M Fine To FTC
A federal judge has ordered a Houston-area man and his company to pay the FTC nearly $37.6 million, writing that he "took advantage of consumers' desperation" during the COVID-19 pandemic and "consistently misled" customers about his ability to deliver personal protective equipment.
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March 25, 2024
Pool Co. Objects To Rival Counsel's Exit After $15M Verdict
A swimming pool equipment supply company that won a $15 million verdict against a competitor in North Carolina federal court is now attempting to block the rival's counsel from leaving the case, saying the company may use the loss of its attorneys as justification for delaying final judgment.
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March 25, 2024
High Court Won't Review Texas Oil Spill Liability Fight
The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday refused to consider if a mixture of petroleum and chemicals is considered "oil" under federal oil spill law and rejected companies' attempt to revive their suit against a storage terminal operator for polluting the Houston Ship Channel.
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March 25, 2024
Boeing CEO To Exit At Year's End Amid 737 Max Crisis
The Boeing Co. announced Monday that President and CEO Dave Calhoun will exit the company at the end of the year, and the chair of its board will also step down, as the American aerospace giant overhauls its leadership ranks amid an enduring 737 Max crisis.
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March 22, 2024
Robitussin Buyers' Lack Of Receipts Dooms Labeling Cert.
A New York federal judge on Thursday denied class certification in litigation claiming GlaxoSmithKline lied about the "Maximum Strength" label on certain Robitussin cough syrup products, saying although the plaintiffs' lack of receipts does not warrant GSK's bid for summary judgment, it's enough to dismiss the customers' request for certification.
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March 22, 2024
Up Next At High Court: Abortion, Jury Trials And Estate Tax
The U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments this week over the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's decision expanding access to popular abortion pill mifepristone as well as whether juries should determine a defendants' eligibility for repeat offender enhanced sentencing under the Armed Career Criminal Act and how long federal employees have to appeal adverse employment decisions.
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March 22, 2024
Youths Ask 9th Circ. To Allow Climate Trial To Proceed
Youth plaintiffs called on the Ninth Circuit to once again reject the U.S. government's renewed attempt to block a trial that's set to proceed in Oregon federal court over government policies they claim have exacerbated climate change and imperiled their futures.
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March 22, 2024
Social Media MDL Jury Issue Put On Hold For Justices' Ruling
A California federal judge said Friday that she will await the U.S. Supreme Court's anticipated decision in SEC v. Jarkesy before deciding whether states' claims in multidistrict litigation over social media platforms' allegedly addictive design must go to a jury, after the plaintiffs' counsel argued that the case before the high court could implicate tech companies' Seventh Amendment rights.
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March 22, 2024
Apple AirTag Judge Open To Injunctive Cert. In Stalking Suit
A California federal judge overseeing claims that Apple Inc. failed to safeguard its AirTag tracking device from being abused by stalkers said Friday it's "exceedingly unlikely" a proposed damages class will be certified, but a proposed class seeking injunctive relief is likely to snag certification, at least on some claims.
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March 22, 2024
Bestwall Says 'Texas Two-Step' Irrelevant To Asbestos Ch. 11
Bestwall, the bankrupt asbestos unit of Georgia-Pacific, told the U.S. Supreme Court Friday that a pre-bankruptcy corporate restructuring in Texas that separated its asbestos liability from the parent business should not matter in determining whether a bankruptcy court has jurisdiction over the subsidiary's asbestos injury claims.
Expert Analysis
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Series
The Pop Culture Docket: Judge Espinosa On 'Lincoln Lawyer'
The murder trials in Netflix’s “The Lincoln Lawyer” illustrate the stark contrast between the ethical high ground that fosters and maintains the criminal justice system's integrity, and the ethical abyss that can undermine it, with an important reminder for all legal practitioners, say Judge Adam Espinosa and Andrew Howard at the Colorado 2nd Judicial District Court.
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Calif. Right To Repair Law Highlights A Growing Movement
New legislation in California is a comprehensive victory for the "right to repair" movement — signaling that this push for legal reform represents a multifaceted challenge to the status quo not only on the consumer rights front, but also in the fields of copyright, software, antitrust and warranty law, says Courtney Sarnow at Culhane Meadows.
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Teach Your Witness About 'Good' And 'Bad' Testimony Words
To ensure honest and accurate testimony in trials and depositions, attorneys must take care to educate their witnesses about the problematic words opposing counsel may use, such as “always” and “must,” and the effective words they can use in response, like “potentially” and “depends,” say Steve Wood and Bill Kanasky at Courtroom Sciences.
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Balancing Justice And Accountability In Opioid Bankruptcies
As Rite Aid joins other pharmaceutical companies in pursuing bankruptcy following the onslaught of state and federal litigation related to the opioid epidemic, courts and the country will have to reconcile the ideals of economic justice and accountability against the U.S. Constitution’s promise of a fresh start through bankruptcy, says Monique Hayes at DGIM Law.
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Opinion
Newman Suspension Shows Need For Judicial Reform
The recent suspension of U.S. Circuit Judge Pauline Newman following her alleged refusal to participate in a disability inquiry reveals the need for judicial misconduct reforms to ensure that judges step down when they can no longer serve effectively, says Aliza Shatzman at The Legal Accountability Project.
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Lessons From Verizon's Cybersecurity FCA Self-Disclosure
A Verizon unit’s recent agreement to settle allegations of cyber-related False Claims Act violations illustrates the interplay between the government's prioritization of cybersecurity enforcement and the potential benefits of voluntarily disclosing cybersecurity failures, says Denise Barnes at Honigman.
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EPA's Final PFAS Rule Greatly Expands Cos.' Reporting Duties
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's recently released final regulation requiring reporting by entities that have manufactured or imported products containing per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances will require considerable time and attention from affected companies — including many that have not previously faced such obligations, say Lawrence Culleen and Judah Prero at Arnold & Porter.
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How And Why Your Firm Should Implement Fixed-Fee Billing
Amid rising burnout in the legal industry and client efforts to curtail spending, pivoting to a fixed-fee billing model may improve client-attorney relationships and offer lawyers financial, logistical and stress relief — while still maintaining profit margins, say Kevin Henderson and Eric Pacifici at SMB Law Group.
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New Calif. Hemp, CBD Rules Affect Nationwide Compliance
Because of its huge market share, it is imperative that operators in every state understand the nuances of California's hemp and CBD regulatory regime, including policies refined over the past year and pending legislation that would allow cannabis licensees to sell, manufacture and distribute hemp and CBD products, say Alexis Lazzeri and Meital Manzuri at Manzuri Law.
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Opinion
Judicial Independence Needs Defense Amid Political Threats
Amid recent and historic challenges to the judiciary from political forces, safeguarding judicial independence and maintaining the integrity of the legal system is increasingly urgent, says Robert Peck at the Center for Constitutional Litigation.
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How Law Firms Can Use Account-Based Marketing Strategies
Amid several evolving legal industry trends, account-based marketing can help law firms uncover additional revenue-generating opportunities with existing clients, with key considerations ranging from data analytics to relationship building, say Jennifer Ramsey at stage LLC and consultant Gina Sponzilli.
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Opinion
Science On Human Health Effects Of PFAS Is Still Inconsistent
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances have soared to the top of environmental regulatory agendas, and dominated environmental news headlines — but scientific research into causal relationships between PFAS exposure and adverse human health effects is still unclear and inconsistent, say Jeffrey Dintzer and Samantha Van Winter at Alston & Bird.
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Navigating Over-The-Counter Product Ads After FTC Warning
Attorneys at Hunton examine advertising substantiation requirements under both the Federal Trade Commission Act and Lanham Act, following recent FTC letters informing hundreds of companies that over-the-counter product marketing claims must be corroborated by scientific evidence.
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AGs' Distaste For Food Bill May Signal Other State Issues
States' recent opposition to a proposed federal law that would block them from regulating out-of-state agricultural production could affect issues beyond this narrow debate, such as the balance of state and federal regulatory power, reproductive rights post-Dobbs, and energy production and water use, say Christopher Allen and Stephen Cobb at Cozen O'Connor.
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Strategic Succession Planning At Law Firms Is Crucial
Senior partners' reluctance to retire, the rise of the nonequity partner tier and generational differences in expectations are all contributing to an increasing number of departures from BigLaw, making it imperative for firms to encourage retirement among senior ranks and provide clearer leadership pathways to junior attorneys, says Laura Leopard at Leopard Solutions.