Class Action

November 28, 2023
'This Is Solvable': Google, Epic Ordered To Midtrial Deal Talk

A California federal judge on Tuesday ordered top decision-makers at Google and Epic Games to try a second time to reach a settlement in their Play Store antitrust case as the monthlong trial nears its end, saying the fight is "solvable" and comparing their hesitation to a kid eating broccoli.
November 28, 2023
11th Circ. Won't Undo Mercedes 'Mars Red' Peeling Paint Deal

The Eleventh Circuit has upheld a Georgia federal judge's approval of a driver class settlement with Mercedes-Benz USA LLC and Daimler AG over an alleged paint defect, rejecting objectors' argument that the deal leaves most of the class without any benefits.
November 28, 2023
9th Circ. Won't Revive Shopify Consumer's Data Privacy Suit

The Ninth Circuit in a published opinion on Tuesday upheld a lower court's order dismissing a lawsuit accusing Shopify of collecting shoppers' sensitive information without permission, saying the court lacks jurisdiction since Shopify did not expressly aim its conduct toward California.
November 28, 2023
Hacked Ill. Casino Hit With Suit Over 'Reckless' Data Security

A casino in Chicago's northwest suburbs failed to encrypt or otherwise adequately safeguard patrons' Social Security numbers, financial account information and other personal data that was compromised in a "massive" August cyberattack, according to a proposed class action filed in Illinois federal court Monday.
November 28, 2023
Walmart Accused Of Wage Theft By App Delivery Drivers

Walmart misclassifies its app-based delivery workers as independent contractors and fails to provide them the guaranteed wages, breaks and benefits owed to employees, a worker alleged in a proposed class action removed to Washington federal court.
November 28, 2023
Zelle User Asks Judge Not To Rethink Trimming Fraud Suit

A New York federal judge shouldn't reconsider his decision to let a lawsuit proceed against Bank of America over its alleged refusal to reimburse fraud victims, the plaintiff in the suit said, arguing that her claim is still valid.
November 28, 2023
Roblox Hit With Securities Suit Over Lack Of Parental Controls

Online game platform Roblox Corp. and some of its executives face an investor's proposed class action alleging they concealed shortcomings affecting its parental restrictions after the company saw a sales slump when it added new controls.
November 28, 2023
EV Charging Co. Blink Gets Investor Fraud Suit Trimmed

A Florida federal judge has trimmed a proposed securities class action alleging Blink Charging Co., which operates electric-vehicle charging stations, misled investors about the size and functionality of its charging network, while allowing many of the suit's claims to proceed.
November 28, 2023
Soccer Star Ronaldo Hit With $1B Suit Over Binance Promo

Three men have filed a $1 billion proposed class action against soccer player Cristiano Ronaldo in Florida federal court that accuses the star forward of helping lure customers to the legally embattled crypto platform Binance.com.
November 28, 2023
Dollar General Hit With Investor Suit Over Understaffing Woes

Dollar General has been hit with a proposed class action by an investor alleging the discount retailer opened more stores and overcharged products to inflate the company's share price even though corporatewide staffing problems were ultimately causing merchandise losses on a grand scale, which in turn led to a drop in share prices after the issues became known.
November 28, 2023
RTX Shareholder Moves Jet Engine Stock Feud To Del.

An RTX Corp. stockholder has agreed to move from Connecticut to Delaware a proposed federal derivative suit accusing the former Raytheon jet engine-maker of failing to disclose reliability and fuel economy problems with a mainstay line of turbofan engines, costing the company billions.
November 28, 2023
Aetna Wins State Appeal In NJ Benefits Reimbursement Row

A New Jersey state appeals court dealt another win to Aetna Inc. on Tuesday in a multijurisdictional dispute by a woman claiming the insurer unlawfully demanded reimbursement from proceeds she obtained in her car accident lawsuit, rejecting her claims that Aetna failed to provide the proper paperwork leading to a delayed appeal.
November 28, 2023
Public Housing Tenant Sues NC Town Over Mold Infestation

A single mom of four is suing a small town in eastern North Carolina and a property management company on behalf of a proposed class of public housing residents who claim their apartments were overtaken by mold.
November 28, 2023
Ex-Va. Bank Worker Reaches $6M Deal To End ESOP Suit

A former bank manager asked a Virginia federal court Tuesday to sign off on a $6 million deal to end her suit accusing her former employer of cheating retirees out of their benefits by draining their employee stock ownership plan for the benefit of bank executives.
November 28, 2023
Citrix Barred From Discussing OT Deal Terms With Employees

A North Carolina federal judge barred Citrix from communicating with employees about a $5.9 million overtime settlement after the workers' counsel asked for a protective order, agreeing that Citrix's human resources "plainly violated" the terms of the deal when they held meetings to discuss its terms.
November 28, 2023
Bakery Distributors Ask Supreme Court To Wait To Mull Case

Workers who delivered baked goods for Flowers Foods and two subsidiaries told the U.S. Supreme Court that the companies' petition to the high court to review a First Circuit decision denying them arbitration should wait for a similar case.
November 28, 2023
Law Firm Leaders Cautiously Optimistic Heading Into 2024

Major U.S. law firms are steadfast in their commitment to the pursuit of further growth despite ongoing economic uncertainty. Here’s what the leaders of four Leaderboard firms have to say about how the legal industry is preparing for next year.
November 28, 2023
The 2023 Law360 Pulse Leaderboard

Check out the Law360 Pulse Leaderboard to see which first-in-class firms made the list this year.
November 28, 2023
Lease Compliance Co., Ex-Worker Settle Unpaid OT Suit

A North Carolina-based lease management company and a former employee told a Texas federal court they had reached an agreement to end the worker's suit alleging the company failed to pay her overtime wages, asking the court to close the case.
November 27, 2023
3M, Other Cos. Beat 11 Million-Member PFAS Class At 6th Circ.

The Sixth Circuit on Monday vacated a district court's order certifying a class of 11 million Ohio residents who claim 3M, Chemours and other companies put their health at risk by manufacturing and selling products with "forever chemicals," instructing the lower court to toss the "ambitious" case.
November 27, 2023
Google's Android Monopoly Harms Users, Stanford Prof Says

A Stanford economics professor took the stand Monday in Epic Games' antitrust suit over Google's Android app store, saying it holds a monopoly on the market for smartphone operating systems and uses anticompetitive tactics to stifle rivals, meaning smartphone users and developers "have suffered as a result."
November 27, 2023
McDonald's Asks Justices To Review Workers' No-Poach Case

McDonald's asked the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday to review the Seventh Circuit's revival of a proposed class action alleging the company's since-discontinued no-poach provisions in franchisee agreements violated antitrust laws.
November 27, 2023
Target's 'Reef-Conscious' Sunscreen Is A Lie, Suit Alleges

Target was hit with a proposed class action on Monday in Florida federal court accusing the retailer of selling sunscreen that is falsely labeled as containing a "reef-conscious formula" when it actually uses ingredients that are harmful to coral reef ecosystems.
November 27, 2023
Perkins Coie Inks Prelim. Deal In Cryptocurrency Class Action

Perkins Coie LLP and a proposed class that sued the BigLaw firm for allegedly misappropriating $10 million in cryptocurrency reached a preliminary settlement to end the case for $4.5 million, according to a filing made in Washington state federal court on Monday.
November 27, 2023
Levi, Pomerantz Seek To Lead Insulin Pump Co. Investor Suit

Levi & Korsinsky LLP and Pomerantz LLP want to represent a proposed class of investors in a suit alleging insulin pump maker Tandem Diabetes Care Inc. and its executives misled the public about the company's growth prospects for the year amid inflation and an uptick in competition.

Editor's Picks

NFL Seeks To End Race-Based Concussion Tests After Outcry

The NFL said Wednesday it will push to end the use of "race-norming," which assumes Black former players start with lower baseline cognitive test scores, in assessing claims for payouts from the more than $1 billion concussion settlement amid allegations that it is discriminatory.

Expert Analysis

Chancery's 'Unfair Deal, Fair Price' Ruling Part Of A Trend

The Delaware Court of Chancery's recent decision in In re: Straight Path Communications is the latest in a line of recent post-trial rulings by the court that seem to prioritize a fair price in determining damage awards — even when a transaction has been clouded by an unfair process, say attorneys at V&E.
An Informed Guide To Mastering Retirement Plan Forfeitures

When considering how to allocate departing retirement plan participants’ forfeitures, sponsors should consider recently filed lawsuits that allege Employee Retirement Income Security Act violations for using such funds to offset employer contributions, as well as proposed IRS guidance concerning how and when they must be used, says Eric Gregory at Dickinson Wright.
Kochava Ruling May Hint At Next Privacy Class Action Wave

The Southern District of California's recent ruling in Greenley v. Kochava and increasing complaints alleging that a consumer website is an illegal “pen register” due to the use of third-party marketing software tools foreshadow a new theory of liability for plaintiffs in privacy litigation, say attorneys at Crowell & Moring.
An Overview Of Circuit Courts' Interlocutory Motion Standards

The Federal Arbitration Act allows litigants to file an immediate appeal from an order declining to enforce an arbitration agreement, but the circuit courts differ on the specific requirements for the underlying order as well as which motion must be filed, as demonstrated in several 2023 decisions, says Kristen Mueller at Mueller Law.
The Case For Post-Bar Clerk Training Programs At Law Firms

In today's competitive legal hiring market, an intentionally designed training program for law school graduates awaiting bar admission can be an effective way of creating a pipeline of qualified candidates, says Brent Daub at Gilson Daub.
Attorneys Have An Ethical Duty To Protect The Judiciary

The tenor of public disagreement and debate has become increasingly hostile against judges, and though the legislative branch is trying to ameliorate this safety gap, lawyers have a moral imperative and professional requirement to stand with judges in defusing attacks against them and their rulings, says Deborah Winokur at Cozen O'Connor.
When Courts Engage In Fact-Finding At The Pleading Stage

It remains to be seen whether the Ninth Circuit's pleading-stage factual determination in a securities class action against Nvidia was sui generis or part of a trend, but the court has created a template for district courts to follow, says Jared Kopel at Alto Litigation.
3 Employer Strategies To Streamline Mass Arbitrations

Workers under arbitration agreements have gained an edge on their employers by filing floods of tedious and expensive individualized claims, but companies can adapt to this new world of mass arbitration by applying several new strategies that may streamline the dispute-resolution process, says Michael Strauss at Alternative Resolution Centers.
9th Circ. ERISA Ruling Informs DOL's New Fiduciary Proposal

The Ninth Circuit's reasoning in its recent Bugielski v. AT&T decision illustrates the importance of the U.S. Department of Labor's proposals to expand the reach of Employee Retirement Income Security Act third-party compensation disclosure rules and their effect on investment adviser fiduciaries, says Jeff Mamorsky at Cohen & Buckmann.
AI Can Help Lawyers Overcome The Programming Barrier

Legal professionals without programming expertise can use generative artificial intelligence to harness the power of automation and other technology solutions to streamline their work, without the steep learning curve traditionally associated with coding, says George Zalepa at Greenberg Traurig.
How The Netherlands Became A Hub For EU Class Actions

As countries continue to implement the European Union Collective Redress Directive, the Netherlands — the country with the largest class action docket in the EU — provides a real-world example of what class and mass litigation may eventually look like in the bloc, say lawyers at Faegre Drinker and Houthoff.
Transparency And Explainability Are Critical To AI Compliance

Although there is not yet a comprehensive law governing artificial intelligence, regulators have tools to hold businesses accountable, and companies need to focus on ensuring that consumers and key stakeholders understand how their AI systems operate and make decisions, say Chanley Howell and Lauren Hudon at Foley & Lardner.
Preparing Law Students For A New, AI-Assisted Legal World

As artificial intelligence rapidly transforms the legal landscape, law schools must integrate technology and curricula that address AI’s innate challenges — from ethics to data security — to help students stay ahead of the curve, say Daniel Garrie at Law & Forensics, Ryan Abbott at JAMS and Karen Silverman at Cantellus Group.
General Counsel Need Data Literacy To Keep Up With AI

With the rise of accessible and powerful generative artificial intelligence solutions, it is imperative for general counsel to understand the use and application of data for myriad important activities, from evaluating the e-discovery process to monitoring compliance analytics and more, says Colin Levy at Malbek.
Retailers: Beware Legislator And Regulator Junk Fee Focus

In light of the Biden administration’s recent focus on restricting so-called junk fee surcharges across industries, attorneys at Benesch discuss what retailers should know about several evolving developments, including a new California law, a proposed Federal Trade Commission rule, an expanding litigation landscape, and more.