Mealey's Class Actions
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October 07, 2024
U.S. High Court Hears Arguments On Jurisdiction After Amended Class Complaint
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Eighth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals’ determination that an amended class complaint no longer belonged in federal court after all references to federal law have been eliminated “is an extreme outlier” and “conflicts with the text and structure of [28 U.S. Code] Section 1367 and with more than a century of precedent,” an attorney representing the makers of prescription pet food argued Oct. 7 before the U.S. Supreme Court.
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October 07, 2024
Settlement With ‘Landmark’ $10M Recovery Gets Initial OK In Mortality Table Row
CHICAGO — An Illinois federal granted preliminary approval to a class settlement including what retirees said would be a “landmark recovery” of $10 million on Oct. 4; the proposal in the Employee Retirement Income Security Act suit over allegedly outdated mortality tables used to calculate joint and survivor annuity (JSA) benefits in two Citgo Petroleum Corp. pension plans also includes up to $4.75 million for attorney fees, expenses and service awards.
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October 07, 2024
U.S. Supreme Court Denies Debtor’s Petition On Intangible Harm, Standing
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Supreme Court on Oct. 7 denied a debtor’s petition for a writ of certiorari concerning standing in a lawsuit over the transmission of debtors’ personal data to a third party.
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October 07, 2024
U.S. High Court Won’t Weigh In On Class Arbitration, Severing Claims Dispute
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Supreme Court on Oct. 7 declined to answer questions presented in a petition by the operator of household rental stores that concern a court’s right to refuse to sever and compel arbitration of individual portions of a claim.
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October 07, 2024
Negligence Claims Against Indiana University To Proceed In Data Breach Incident
FORT WAYNE, Ind. — A federal judge in Indiana determined that claims of negligence and breach of contract alleged against a private university in a data breach suit can proceed because the plaintiffs seek damages for more than just economic losses and because dismissal of the breach of contract claim would be premature.
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October 07, 2024
2 California Municipalities: Energy Companies Conspired To Violate Antitrust Law
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Two California municipalities sued multiple oil and gas companies in New Mexico federal court contending that they have engaged in a conspiracy with Wall Street investors, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and others to restrict the production of crude oil, which the municipalities say constitutes a “per se unlawful restraint of trade under numerous state antitrust and competition laws.”
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October 04, 2024
Consumer Says Synthetic Nicotine E-Cig Maker Deceptively Marketed To Youth
NEW YORK — An e-cigarette consumer filed a putative nationwide class action against the manufacturer of Puff Bar e-cigarettes in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, arguing that it unfairly markets its flavored, disposable, synthetic nicotine products to young people and deceptively labels the nicotine content of its products.
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October 04, 2024
Panel Affirms No Coverage Owed For Class Actions Alleging Employees Were Underpaid
PHILADELPHIA — The Third Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on Oct. 3 affirmed a lower federal court’s ruling that an insurance policy’s “wage and hour violation” exclusion barred coverage for two underlying class lawsuits alleging that the insured conducted an unlawful scheme of underpaying some of its employees.
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October 04, 2024
High Court Will Review 2nd Circuit ERISA Prohibited Transaction Ruling
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Supreme Court on Oct. 4 granted a certiorari petition regarding a Second Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals ruling involving what is necessary to state an Employee Retirement Income Security Act prohibited transaction claim for a transaction between a plan fiduciary and a party in interest.
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October 04, 2024
U.S. High Court Grants Chiropractic Practice’s TCPA FCC Rule Petition
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Supreme Court on Oct. 4 granted a chiropractic practice’s petition for a writ of certiorari seeking a decision on whether the Federal Communications Commission’s interpretation of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act’s (TCPA) prohibited faxes must be accepted.
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October 03, 2024
Retirees: $10M Would Be ‘Landmark Recovery’ In Actuarial Equivalence Case
CHICAGO — Saying it would be a “landmark recovery,” retirees who filed an Employee Retirement Income Security Act suit over allegedly outdated mortality tables used to calculate joint and survivor annuity (JSA) benefits in two Citgo Petroleum Corp. pension plans on Oct. 2 asked an Illinois federal court for preliminary approval of a $10 million class settlement plus up to $4.75 million for attorney fees, expenses and service awards.
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October 03, 2024
Putative Class Plaintiff Drops Defendant From Nicotine Pouch Youth Marketing Suit
HARTFORD, Conn. — A consumer bringing a putative class action suit accusing Philip Morris International Inc. (PM) of violating Florida consumer protection statutes by targeting youth and deceptively advertising Zyn nicotine pouches as a “safer and healthier alternative to smoking” on Oct. 2 filed a notice of voluntary dismissal of co-defendant Swedish Match North America LLC after it moved to dismiss for lack of jurisdiction.
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October 03, 2024
Judge Orders Further Briefing In OnlyFans Unfair Renewals Suit
SAN FRANCISCO — A California federal judge on Oct. 2 directed putative class plaintiffs accusing an adult entertainment website of violating California’s unfair competition law (UCL) by improperly charging them automatic renewal fees to file an amended complaint modifying their allegations regarding the defendants’ purposeful targeting of California, which the judge will consider before ruling on a motion to dismiss.
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October 03, 2024
Judge Strikes Renewed Jury Demand In ERISA Suit Over NYU Retirement Plans
NEW YORK — Striking a jury demand asserted in a second amended complaint filed in a long-running Employee Retirement Income Security Act class action over New York University (NYU) retirement plan fees and funds, a New York federal judge ruled in part that the amendments did not revive the plaintiffs’ right to a jury trial.
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October 03, 2024
Vermont Health Provider Pays $540,000 To Settle Data Breach Class Claims
BURLINGTON, Vt. — A federal judge in Vermont granted final approval of a $540,000 settlement to be paid by an integrated health provider in that state, ending a class suit by a patient over a 2022 data breach that allegedly exposed the personal information of more than 60,000 people.
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October 02, 2024
Federal Judge Allows Nondrowsy Label Dispute To Move Forward But Limits Claims
CHICAGO — An Illinois federal judge ruled that a woman “overslept on her rights” to pursue breach of warranty claims against the maker of a nondrowsy cold medicine but also found that her claims are not preempted by federal law and that she can, for the time being, represent a nationwide class of purchasers.
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October 02, 2024
Judge: No Jurisdiction For Artist’s Class Copyright Claims Against Online Store
NEW YORK — A New York federal judge on Oct. 1 issued an opinion confirming an August “bottom-line” order dismissing a putative class action complaint brought by an artist alleging that an e-commerce company infringed on his copyrighted work and that of many other artists, holding that the New York federal court does not have personal jurisdiction based in part on customers’ locations.
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October 02, 2024
2nd Circuit Upholds Dismissal Of Securities Suit For Failure To Prove Scienter
NEW YORK — A federal district court in New York correctly dismissed an investor’s putative class complaint asserting securities law violations against a biotechnology company and its principals for failing to adequately plead scienter against any of the defendants, a Second Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel found in affirming the ruling.
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October 02, 2024
Judge Won’t Certify Class Allegedly Deceived By ‘Veterinary’ Pet Food
SAN FRANCISCO — A California federal judge denied motions by self-described “pet parents” for certification of classes accusing three veterinary pet food-makers of violating California’s unfair competition law (UCL) and other laws by deceptively enforcing a prescription requirement for their products, which the consumers say deceived them into believing that the products are subject to federal regulation and safety inspections.
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October 02, 2024
Brokerages, MLSs Opt Into NAR Commission Settlement, Agree To Pay More Than $30M
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A federal judge in Missouri in an Oct. 1 docket entry granted a preliminary approval of more than $30 million in settlements by brokerages and non-Realtor multiple listing services (MLSs) that are opting into the National Association of Realtors’ (NAR) settlement in a real estate commission class lawsuit accusing NAR and other real estate franchises of conspiring to artificially inflate the cost of commissions in residential real estate transactions.
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October 02, 2024
Notice Of Settlement Filed In Class Suit Over Payoff Statements’ ‘Release Cost’
MIAMI — A mortgage servicer and two borrowers on Oct. 1 filed a joint notice in a federal court in Florida stating that they have reached a settlement in a putative class lawsuit in which the servicer is accused of violating the Fair Debt Collection Act (FDCA) and Florida law by including a $22.50 “release cost” on its uniform payoff statements.
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October 02, 2024
LensCrafters’ $39M Settlement Of Consumers’ Overpayment Claims Granted Final OK
NEW YORK — A $39 million settlement between Luxottica Retail North America, doing business as LensCrafters, and consumers who allege that they were given false information about the company’s AccuFit system that caused them to overpay for prescription eyeglasses in violation of California, Florida and New York laws was granted final approval by a federal judge in New York.
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October 02, 2024
Investors’ Securities Action Against Tupperware Stayed After Bankruptcy Filing
ORLANDO, Fla. — A federal judge in Florida has stayed a putative class action brought against Tupperware Brands Corp. and certain of its executives and directed the clerk to administratively close the file after the company notified the court that it filed for bankruptcy on Sept. 17.
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October 02, 2024
2nd Circuit Partly Revives Securities Suit Over After-Acquisition Statements
NEW YORK — Partly reviving a dismissed securities suit in a nonprecedential summary order, a Second Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel disagreed with the trial court on about half of the alleged misstatements that investors challenged on appeal.
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October 01, 2024
Summary Judgment Bid Fails In ERISA Class Action Over Mortality Tables
NEW YORK — Denying a summary judgment motion filed by a life insurer and related defendants in an Employee Retirement Income Security Act class action challenging the use of allegedly outdated mortality tables in calculating qualified joint and survivor annuity (QJSA) benefits, a New York federal judge said he was reserving expert disputes and other issues for a bench trial.