Try our Advanced Search for more refined results
Product Liability
-
September 09, 2024
6th Circ. Affirms Ax Of '100% Raw' Honey-Labeling Fight
The Sixth Circuit has affirmed a decision tossing consumers' proposed class action over Strange Honey Farm LLC's "100% raw Tennessee honey" labels, finding that while the appellate court has jurisdiction to hear the consumers' appeal, the lower court rightly dismissed the "conclusory" allegations without leave to amend.
-
September 09, 2024
X Corp. Could Expose Donors To Death Threats, Per Watchdog
Watchdog Media Matters for America claims that for X Corp. to compel production of its donor lists would breach the First Amendment, saying in a Friday brief in a Texas federal court that if the documents go public, its donors would receive violent threats and other abuse.
-
September 09, 2024
Norfolk Southern CEO Shaw Faces Misconduct Probe
Norfolk Southern Corp. is investigating CEO Alan Shaw over allegations of misconduct, casting uncertainty over his future at the rail giant just months after a proxy fight with an activist investor.
-
September 09, 2024
5th Circ. Lets BP Keep Deepwater Horizon Cleanup Suit Win
The Fifth Circuit won't upend BP's win in a suit by a boat captain alleging he was injured while helping with the cleanup of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, finding the trial court rightly excluded his expert for failing to prove that exposure to the chemicals could have caused his claimed injuries.
-
September 09, 2024
Riddell Helmet Design Contributed To Brain Injury, Suit Says
The parents of a high school football player who suffered a life-altering injury that left him reliant on a wheelchair have filed a federal product liability suit in Texas against Riddell Inc., the maker of the allegedly defective helmet he was wearing when he was hurt.
-
September 09, 2024
Baltimore Strikes $80M Opioid Settlement With Teva
Teva Pharmaceuticals will pay Baltimore $80 million to resolve claims that the company inflamed the city's opioid crisis, the city of Baltimore announced Monday ahead of a trial slated to begin next week against the remaining defendants in the Maryland state court litigation.
-
September 09, 2024
Ohio Train Derailment Plaintiffs Seek Final OK Of $600M Deal
Residents and others affected by the Norfolk Southern train derailment and toxic chemical spill in East Palestine, Ohio, last year are asking an Ohio federal court for final approval of a $600 million settlement, including a $162 million payout for their attorneys.
-
September 09, 2024
Orrick Trial Pro Jumps To King & Spalding In Miami
A former Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP partner and trial attorney has made his new home in King & Spalding LLP's product liability and mass torts practice group in Miami, the firm announced Monday.
-
September 09, 2024
Ore. Seeks Dismissal Of Psilocybin Disabilities Suit
Oregon's health regulator has asked a federal judge to dismiss a lawsuit challenging aspects of the state's pioneering regulated psilocybin treatment program, saying that the program's illegality under federal law makes the lawsuit untenable.
-
September 06, 2024
Calif. Takes AI Reins With Looming Safety, Transparency Laws
A pair of groundbreaking legislative proposals aimed at ensuring the safe and transparent deployment of artificial intelligence systems are headed to the California governor's desk, raising questions about whether lawmakers are taking the right approach to regulating the emerging technology and how the state's privacy regulator will respond.
-
September 06, 2024
Arkema Calls Timing 'Suspect' In Bid To Lift NJ PFAS Suit Stay
Chemical company Arkema Inc. is arguing that if rival Solvay is allowed to sue it, the litigation could upend an impending settlement worth up to $108 million it negotiated with the state of New Jersey that would end claims over "forever chemical" contamination at a facility both companies owned.
-
September 06, 2024
Health-Ade Settles Suit Over 'Forever Chemicals' In Kombucha
A consumer who filed a proposed class action against popular kombucha-maker Health-Ade LLC claiming the beverages contained "forever chemicals" has apparently settled her claims against the company, according to an order issued by a New York federal judge.
-
September 06, 2024
DuPont Spinoff Must Explain Record Policy For Missing Docs
A discovery referee for North Carolina's Business Court is ordering a DuPont spin-off to share its document retention policy with the attorney general after dozens of boxes of information the state wanted for a lawsuit over PFAS pollution were not made available from storage facilities.
-
September 06, 2024
Abbott Hit With False Ad Suit Over Toddler Nutrition Drink
A proposed class of consumers is suing Abbott Laboratories in California federal court, alleging that it misleads buyers by claiming its toddler drinks provide a number of health benefits when in fact they are harmful and contain added sugars.
-
September 06, 2024
Calif. Gov. Targets Hemp Intoxicants With Emergency Ban
California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Friday announced emergency regulations banning products derived from industrial hemp that contain any intoxicating cannabinoids, and setting an age minimum of 21 years to purchase hemp products.
-
September 06, 2024
'Insanity Tolling' May Save Ford Rollaway Claims, Panel Says
A split Michigan appellate panel has revived a lawsuit against Ford Motor Co. from a woman who was run over by her Ford Escape, finding her debilitating stress and depression may entitle her to an exception to the statute of limitations.
-
September 06, 2024
State Law Claims Chopped From Jeep Windshield Defect Suit
A New Jersey federal judge has dismissed all state law consumer protection claims from a proposed class action alleging FCA US LLC sold Jeep vehicles with defective windshields, finding the plaintiffs' allegations that they did "online research" about the vehicles are not enough to show the company made any misrepresentations.
-
September 06, 2024
Boeing Loses Bid To Toss Investor Suit Over Blowout
A Virginia federal judge gave the green light to Boeing investors to continue their securities fraud proposed class suit against the company over one of its planes' midair door blowout in January, rejecting the aerospace giant's motion to dismiss and telling Boeing it had a "real problem" on its hands.
-
September 06, 2024
SEC Accuses Fla. Men Of Mass Tort Litigation Financing Fraud
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Friday accused a father and son from Florida of running a fraudulent litigation funding scheme by promising investors returns from financing mass tort litigation they were not actually funding.
-
September 05, 2024
Lawmakers, AGs Urge Justices To OK Denial Of E-Cig Apps
A coalition of state attorneys general and a group of Democratic Congress members are backing the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in its fight to persuade the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn a decision striking down the denials of applications to market flavored vapes.
-
September 05, 2024
Law Firms Appeal Atty Fee Denial In Opioid Settlements
Two law firms, Goldstein & Russell PC and Kelley & Ferraro LLP, have claimed in an appeal to the Sixth Circuit that they were improperly shut out of the $2.13 billion attorney fee pool created by recent national opioid settlements with major pharmaceutical companies and pharmacy chains.
-
September 05, 2024
NM AG Sues Snapchat Over Child 'Sextortion' And Abuse
New Mexico's attorney general on Thursday announced he has sued Snap Inc., alleging the social media company's policies and algorithm promote child sexual exploitation and the spread of child sexual abuse material.
-
September 05, 2024
Clubman Talc Settles Prominent Developer's Asbestos Claims
The company behind Pinaud Clubman talcum powder products has settled claims that its merchandise contained asbestos and caused cancer in a real estate developer described by attorneys for co-defendant Johnson & Johnson as the "Donald Trump of Springfield, Massachusetts."
-
September 05, 2024
Asbestos Claimants Want A Say In 4th Circ. 'Two-Step' Appeal
Asbestos cancer survivors and the estates of victims with pending claims against Aldrich Pump LLC, DBMP LLC and Murray Boiler LLC have asked the Fourth Circuit's permission to file an amicus brief in an appeal centered on the separate Chapter 11 case of Georgia-Pacific unit Bestwall, saying they had been prevented from pursuing relief while Aldrich, DBMP and Murray pursue bankruptcy.
-
September 05, 2024
Dodge Ram Drivers Urge 6th Circ. To Revive Emissions Claims
Dodge Ram drivers pressed the Sixth Circuit to revive their proposed class action alleging Fiat Chrysler and engine manufacturer Cummins deceptively marketed their trucks as being more environmentally friendly than they actually were, saying a Michigan federal judge incorrectly found that their claims conflicted with federal law.
Expert Analysis
-
Opinion
New Rule 702 Helps Judges Keep Bad Science Out Of Court
A court's recent decision to exclude dubious testimony from the plaintiffs' experts in multidistrict litigation over acetaminophen highlights the responsibility that judges have to keep questionable scientific evidence out of courtrooms, particularly under recent amendments to Federal Rule of Evidence 702, says Sherman Joyce at the American Tort Reform Association.
-
SG's Office Is Case Study To Help Close Legal Gender Gap
As women continue to be underrepresented in the upper echelons of the legal profession, law firms could learn from the example set by the Office of the Solicitor General, where culture and workplace policies have helped foster greater gender equality, say attorneys at Ocean Tomo.
-
Opinion
Proposed Rule Could Impair MDL Flexibility, Harm Plaintiffs
While proposed Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 16.1 is intended to enhance the management of multidistrict litigation proceedings, its one-size-fits-all requirements could stifle the flexibility that judges need to address the varying circumstances of MDLs effectively, and jeopardize plaintiffs' ability to pursue justice, say Christopher Seeger and Jennifer Scullion at Seeger Weiss.
-
Googling Prospective Jurors Is Usually A Fool's Errand
Though a Massachusetts federal court recently barred Google from Googling potential jurors in a patent infringement case, the company need not worry about missing evidence of bias, because internet research of jury pools usually doesn’t yield the most valuable information — voir dire and questionnaires do, says Sarah Murray at Trialcraft.
-
A Look Into How Jurors Reach High Damages Awards
In the wake of several large jury awards, Richard Gabriel and Emily Shaw at Decision Analysis shed light on challenges that jurors have in deciding them, the nonevidentiary and extra-legal methods they use to do so, and new research about the themes and jury characteristics of high-damages jurors.
-
Opinion
Food Safety Bill Needed To Protect Kids From Heavy Metals
The recent announcement by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that hundreds of children may have been exposed to unsafe lead levels in applesauce highlights the continuing failure by Congress to pass legislation that would require baby food manufacturers to ensure safer levels of heavy metals in their products, says Vineet Dubey at Custodio & Dubey.
-
Opinion
3rd-Party Financiers Have Power To Drive Mass Tort Cases
The abnormal recovery premium presented by modern mass tort cases coupled with their deemphasized role for attorneys creates an opportunity for third-party financiers to both create and control these cases, says Samir Parikh at Lewis & Clark Law School.
-
Preparing For A New Wave Of Litigation Under Silicosis Rules
After the Division of Occupational Safety and Health of California issued an emergency temporary standard to combat noncompliance with assessments of workers' exposure to particles of crystalline silica, companies that manufacture, distribute or sell silica-containing products will need aggressive case-specific discovery to navigate a new wave of litigation, say attorneys at Dechert.
-
Managing Competing Priorities In Witness Preparation
There’s often a divide between what attorneys and witnesses want out of the deposition process, but litigation teams can use several strategies to resolve this tension and help witnesses be more comfortable with the difficult conditions of testifying, say Ava Hernández and Steve Wood at Courtroom Sciences.
-
Reimagining Law Firm Culture To Break The Cycle Of Burnout
While attorney burnout remains a perennial issue in the legal profession, shifting post-pandemic expectations mean that law firms must adapt their office cultures to retain talent, say Kevin Henderson and Eric Pacifici at SMB Law Group.
-
Opinion
Gilead Ruling Signals That Innovating Can Lead To Liability
A California appeals court's ruling last month in Gilead Life Sciences v. Superior Court of San Francisco that a drug manufacturer can be held liable for delaying the introduction of an improved version of its medication raises concerns about the chilling effects that expansive product liability claims may have on innovation, says Gary Myers at the University of Missouri School of Law.
-
Understanding And Working With The Millennials On Your Jury
Every trial attorney will be facing a greater proportion of millennials on their jury, as they now comprise the largest generation in the U.S., and winning them over requires an understanding of their views on politics, corporations and damages, says Clint Townson at Townson Litigation Consulting.
-
Series
Competing In Dressage Makes Me A Better Lawyer
My lifelong participation in the sport of dressage — often called ballet on horses — has proven that several skills developed through training and competition are transferable to legal work, especially the ability to harness focus, persistence and versatility when negotiating a deal, says Stephanie Coco at V&E.
-
Ch. 11 Ruling Highlights 'Two-Step' Challenges In 4th Circ.
A North Carolina bankruptcy court’s recent ruling in Bestwall’s Chapter 11 case, and the decision's interpretation of Fourth Circuit law, suggests that, compared to other circuits, it may be more difficult to dismiss so-called Texas Two-Step bankruptcy cases within the Fourth Circuit, say Brittany Falabella and Kollin Bender at Hirschler Fleischer.
-
Legal Issues Loom For Driverless Trucking
Companies' recent experiments with driverless trucking technology herald a transformation of the logistics sector — but stakeholders must reckon with increasing regulatory scrutiny, emerging liability issues, and concerns around ethical guidelines, insurance and standardization, say Zal Phiroz at Pier Consulting Group and Nicolas Bezada at Unishippers.