Try our Advanced Search for more refined results
Product Liability
-
August 09, 2024
Retailer Can't Pass Buck To Pool Maker In Child Drowning Suit
A Missouri federal judge trimmed the bulk of a couple's claims against the retailer that sold the pool in which their two-year-old daughter drowned, but ruled that the retailer couldn't escape strict liability claims under the state's "innocent seller" statute.
-
August 09, 2024
Full 2nd Circ. Axes Producer's Bid To Revive Blacklisting Suit
The Second Circuit won't take a second whack at its ruling that a stage workers union can't be held liable under antitrust laws for discouraging members from working with a Broadway producer following complaints about unpaid wages.
-
August 09, 2024
Rising Star: Seeger Weiss' Caleb Seeley
Caleb Seeley of Seeger Weiss LLP has advocated for plaintiffs facing the often life-altering effects of lapses in products used by millions of consumers, including in what is thought to be the largest mass tort in American history, earning him a spot among the product liability law practitioners under age 40 honored by Law360 as Rising Stars.
-
August 09, 2024
Ex-Mayer Brown Product Liability Atty Joins King & Spalding
King & Spalding LLP has hired a former Mayer Brown LLP partner for its product liability and mass torts practice group in New York.
-
August 08, 2024
Ga. Mom Cuts Game Maker From Video Game Addiction Suit
A Georgia mother suing various gaming companies alleging that they caused her teenager's mental disorders with their addictive designs and in-game purchases now seeks to drop claims she made against the maker of Fortnite.
-
August 08, 2024
Camp Lejeune Toxic Water Judge Flags Pretrial 'Difficulties'
A federal judge presiding over injury suits stemming from contaminated water at Camp Lejeune urged the federal government and plaintiffs' lawyers Thursday to resolve "ongoing difficulties" such as fact disputes ahead of bench trials, calling the parties' stipulations since the last status conference "less than robust."
-
August 08, 2024
Ford Hid High Warranty Costs From Investors, Suit Says
A Ford Motor Co. investor launched a putative securities fraud class action Thursday alleging the automaker hid quality issues dating back to 2022, only disclosing the higher-than-expected warranty costs in its recently released second quarter 2024 financial results.
-
August 08, 2024
9th Circ. Revives Negligence Claims In Uber Sex Assault Suit
The Ninth Circuit on Thursday revived a woman's negligence claim against Uber Technologies Inc. over her sexual assault by a suspended driver, saying the company had a duty of care because it contributed to the situation that led to her being assaulted.
-
August 08, 2024
J&J Settles Suit Alleging Sunscreen With Benzene Killed Boy
Johnson & Johnson has reached an agreement to end a personal injury suit by a father who claimed his 14-year-old son died from leukemia after prolonged exposure to its benzene-tainted sunscreen products, according to a settlement notice filed in North Carolina federal court Thursday.
-
August 08, 2024
Delta's Boies Attys Slam CrowdStrike's 'Blame The Victim' Ploy
Delta Air Lines' attorneys at Boies Schiller Flexner LLP on Thursday blasted CrowdStrike's "blame the victim" defense over last month's catastrophic global IT outage, and pledged to haul both the cybersecurity firm and Microsoft to court to recoup what Delta estimates to be over $500 million in revenue losses.
-
August 08, 2024
NHTSA Seeks Info On Tesla Cybertruck Crash
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says it's seeking information on a crash that involved a fatality with a Tesla Cybertruck that happened earlier this week in Texas.
-
August 07, 2024
10th Circ. Won't Undo Atty Fees In $1.5B Syngenta Corn Deal
The Tenth Circuit on Wednesday backed a Kansas federal judge's allocations of attorney fees to three law firms representing individual claimants in multidistrict litigation over Syngenta's genetically modified corn that was resolved by a $1.5 billion class settlement, finding that the firms' arguments strayed from the issue at hand.
-
August 07, 2024
Abbott Brass Trim But Can't Nix Investors' Formula Recall Suit
A Chicago federal judge on Wednesday substantially trimmed a derivative suit accusing Abbott Laboratories leaders of concealing known safety issues related to recalled infant formula but rejected the defendants' argument that tossing the suit in its entirety was in shareholders' "best interest."
-
August 07, 2024
Monsanto, PCB Plaintiffs Want It Both Ways, Judge Says
A Washington state court judge expressed frustration on Wednesday with counsel for both sides of a toxic tort against Monsanto, remarking during a summary judgment hearing that the parties can't "pick and choose" which parts of a recent appellate ruling apply to their case.
-
August 07, 2024
Kleenex Maker Wants Conn. PFAS Suit Tossed
Kimberly-Clark Corp. is urging a Connecticut federal judge to throw out a proposed class action, saying the suit relies on "speculation and conjecture" to claim its New Milford manufacturing facility and shuttered landfill polluted properties and exposed residents to toxic forever chemicals.
-
August 07, 2024
OnlyFans Claims Immunity In Suit Over Alleged Rape Video
The London-based parent company of OnlyFans urged a Florida federal court to toss a lawsuit brought by a woman alleging the internet content provider profited off a video that she says shows her being raped, saying the Communications Decency Act precludes liability for material uploaded by third parties.
-
August 07, 2024
Teva Finds Some Big-Pharma Friends In Inhaler Patent Fight
Two large pharmaceutical companies have weighed in to ask the Federal Circuit to overturn a ruling that found that Teva's branded drugmaking operation misused a key federal patent database in order to block the release of competing generic asthma inhalers.
-
August 07, 2024
Titan Victim's Family Sues For $50M Over Sub's Design Flaws
The family of a French explorer who was killed when the Titan submersible imploded during an expedition to the wreck of the Titanic is seeking $50 million from the sub's operator over claims it purposely concealed the vessel's flaws, according to a wrongful death lawsuit lodged in Washington state court.
-
August 07, 2024
NTSB Hearing Probes FAA Review, Boeing Quality Control
The Federal Aviation Administration maintained that it is appropriately overseeing Boeing even after years of audits revealed multiple instances of unauthorized work on the aircraft builder's production line, as the National Transportation Safety Board on Wednesday scrutinized company safety and quality control programs during an investigation of the 737 Max 9 jet door plug blowout.
-
August 07, 2024
Gun Cos. Exit Mexico's Suit As Judge Cites 'Thin' Mass. Ties
A Massachusetts federal judge on Wednesday dismissed six U.S. gun companies from a suit over Mexican cartel violence after finding the alleged conduct has virtually no ties to the Bay State.
-
August 07, 2024
Delta Faces Class Action For 'Disastrous' IT Outage Response
Four customers hit Delta Air Lines Inc. with a proposed class action, claiming its "disastrous" response to a massive IT outage last month left them and thousands of others stranded and forced to pay for other flights, accommodations, rental cars and meals, with the airline refusing or ignoring refund requests.
-
August 07, 2024
'The Eggs Are Fresh From A Farm': Kroger Fries False Ad Suit
Kroger defeated a proposed class action accusing it of misleading customers into thinking its "farm fresh eggs" came from free-roaming hens on grassy fields, despite coming from caged hens, after an Illinois federal judge said Wednesday the term "means precisely what it says: the eggs are fresh from a farm."
-
August 07, 2024
7th Circ. Keeps 3M PFAS Pollution Suit In State Court
The Seventh Circuit on Wednesday rejected 3M's bid to send back to federal court a lawsuit brought by the state of Illinois alleging that the company polluted local waters with toxic "forever chemicals," saying a federal government contractor defense would be "wholly irrelevant" to the state's case.
-
August 07, 2024
Law Firms Fight J&J Bid To Revive Talc Subpoenas
The Beasley Allen Law Firm, the steering committee of talc plaintiffs suing Johnson & Johnson, and a third-party law firm urged the New Jersey federal court this week to reject a bid from the pharmaceutical company to reinstate subpoenas seeking evidence of alleged third-party litigation funding.
-
August 07, 2024
NJ AG, Data Biz Say Judicial Privacy Law Is Constitutional
The New Jersey Office of Attorney General stepped in to defend the judicial privacy measure Daniel's Law this week, arguing alongside a data privacy company in federal court that a group of data brokers accused of violating it are relying on "hypotheticals and edge cases" to claim the law is unconstitutional.
Expert Analysis
-
Firms Must Rethink How They Train New Lawyers In AI Age
As law firms begin to use generative artificial intelligence to complete lower-level legal tasks, they’ll need to consider new ways to train summer associates and early-career attorneys, keeping in mind the five stages of skill acquisition, says Liisa Thomas at Sheppard Mullin.
-
A Plaintiffs-Side Approach To Cochlear Implant Cases
As the number of cochlear implants in the U.S. continues to grow, some will inevitably fail — especially considering that many recalled implants remain in use — plaintiffs attorneys should proactively prepare for litigation over defective implants, says David Shoop at Shoop.
-
Think Like A Lawyer: Always Be Closing
When a lawyer presents their case with the right propulsive structure throughout trial, there is little need for further argument after the close of evidence — and in fact, rehashing it all may test jurors’ patience — so attorneys should consider other strategies for closing arguments, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.
-
Series
Playing Chess Makes Me A Better Lawyer
There are many ways that chess skills translate directly into lawyer skills, but for me, the bigger career lessons go beyond the direct parallels — playing chess has shown me the value of seeing gradual improvement in and focusing deep concentration on a nonwork endeavor, says attorney Steven Fink.
-
Litigation Inspiration: Attys Can Be Heroic Like Olympians
Although litigation won’t earn anyone an Olympic medal in Paris this summer, it can be worthy of the same lasting honor if attorneys exercise focused restraint — seeking both their clients’ interests and those of the court — instead of merely pursuing every advantage short of sanctionable conduct, says Bennett Rawicki at Hilgers Graben.
-
Updated Federal Rules Can Improve Product Liability MDLs
The recent amendment of a federal evidence rule regarding expert testimony and the proposal of a civil rule on managing early discovery in multidistrict legislation hold great promise for promoting the uniform and efficient processes that high-stakes product liability cases particularly need, say Alan Klein and William Heaston at Duane Morris.
-
Lean Into The 'Great Restoration' To Retain Legal Talent
As the “great resignation,” in which employees voluntarily left their jobs in droves, has largely dissipated, legal employers should now work toward the idea of a “great restoration,” adopting strategies to effectively hire, onboard and retain top legal talent, says Molly McGrath at Hiring & Empowering Solutions.
-
How Cannabis Rescheduling May Alter Paraphernalia Imports
The Biden administration's recent proposal to loosen federal restrictions on marijuana use raises questions about how U.S. Customs and Border Protection enforcement policies may shift when it comes to enforcing a separate federal ban on marijuana accessory imports, says R. Kevin Williams at Clark Hill.
-
Boeing Saga Underscores Need For Ethical Corporate Culture
In the wake of recent allegations about Boeing’s safety culture, and amid the U.S. Department of Justice’s new whistleblower incentives, business leaders should reinvigorate their emphasis on compliance by making clear that long-term profitability requires ethical business practices, says Maxwell Carr-Howard at Dentons.
-
Why Jurors Balk At 'I Don't Recall' — And How To Respond
Jurors often react negatively to a witness who responds “I don’t remember” because they tend to hold erroneous beliefs about the nature of human memory, but attorneys can adopt a few strategies to mitigate the impact of these biases, say Steve Wood and Ava Hernández at Courtroom Sciences.
-
Opinion
Bankruptcy Judges Can Justly Resolve Mass Tort Cases
Johnson & Johnson’s recent announcement of a prepackaged reorganization plan for its talc unit highlights that Chapter 11 is a continually evolving living statute that can address new types of problems with reorganization, value and job preservation, and just treatment for creditors, says Kenneth Rosen at Ken Rosen Advisors PC.
-
How Federal And State Microfiber Pollution Policy Is Evolving
Growing efforts to address synthetic microfiber pollution may create compliance and litigation issues for businesses in the textile and apparel industries, so companies should track developing federal and state legislation and regulation in this space, and should consider associated greenwashing risks, says Arie Feltman-Frank at Jenner & Block.
-
An Insurance Coverage Checklist For PFAS Defendants
With PFAS liability exposures attracting increased media attention, now is a good time for companies that could be exposed to liability related to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances to review existing and past insurance policies, and consider taking proactive steps to maximize their likelihood of coverage, say attorneys at Nossaman.
-
Series
Fishing Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Atop the list of ways fishing makes me a better lawyer is the relief it offers from the chronic stress of a demanding caseload, but it has also improved my listening skills and patience, and has served as an exceptional setting for building earnest relationships, says Steven DeGeorge at Robinson Bradshaw.
-
10 Tips To Build Trust With Your Witness During Trial Prep
Preparing a witness for deposition or trial requires more than just legal skills — lawyers must also work to cultivate trust with the witness, using strategies ranging from wearing a hat when conducting mock cross-examination to offering them a ride to court before they testify, say Faye Paul Teller and Sara McDermott at Munger Tolles.