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Mealey's Class Actions

  • July 30, 2021

    Female Students’ Class Claims Of Unequal Treatment Partially Survive Dismissal

    FRESNO, Calif. — Female student athletes who allege that male athletes at California State University, Fresno, (Fresno State) are treated better may proceed with their effective accommodation and equal treatment claims but not with a financial aid claim, a federal judge in California ruled July 22, partially granting the university’s motion to dismiss putative class claims by members of the women’s lacrosse team.

  • July 30, 2021

    Inmates’ Pandemic Class Suit Settles Without Release Of The Medically Vulnerable

    DETROIT — A federal judge in Michigan on July 22 granted final approval of a class settlement in a lawsuit filed by inmates shortly after the coronavirus pandemic hit their jail, finding that the agreements reached regarding concerns that included vaccines, housing and hygiene were “reasonable” and addressed most of the issues raised by the plaintiffs.

  • July 29, 2021

    2nd Circuit Upholds Arbitration Denial In Trump Business, MLM Dispute

    NEW YORK — A trial court properly denied arbitration sought by a multilevel marking company, Donald J. Trump, The Trump Corp. and three of Trump’s children in a lawsuit accusing the Trump parties of fraud based on their alleged endorsement of the multilevel marketing company, a Second Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel ruled July 28, finding that equitable estoppel prevents the Trump parties from compelling arbitration and that the multilevel marketing company’s discovery dispute falls outside of the court’s jurisdiction.

  • July 28, 2021

    Pending Settlement Announced In Facebook Tracking Class Action

    SAN JOSE, Calif. — A California federal court on July 28 received notice that a long-running multidistrict litigation over Facebook Inc.’s purported online tracking practices may soon be resolved, when the social network and four named plaintiffs filed a notice of an agreement in principle to settle the almost decade-old class claims alleging that Facebook tracked its users’ internet use without their consent or knowledge.

  • July 28, 2021

    Mortgage Lender Named In TCPA Class Action Suit Over Unsolicited Robocalls

    LOS ANGELES — A mortgage lender was hit with a nationwide consumer class action lawsuit in California federal court on July 23 alleging that the lender violated provisions of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) by “negligently, knowingly, and/or willfully” contacting consumers on their cellular phones to solicit its services without the consumers’ express consent.

  • July 27, 2021

    Preliminary Approval Of $22M Add-On In Wells Fargo Foreclosure Suit Granted

    SAN FRANCISCO — A federal judge in California on July 26 granted preliminary approval of a nearly $22 million supplemental class action settlement for a nationwide class of borrowers who allege that they were denied loan modifications under the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) by Wells Fargo Bank NA as a result of an algorithmic error in its software but were not part of an original list of borrowers provided by Wells Fargo as part of an $18.5 million settlement reached in 2020.

  • July 27, 2021

    Catholic University Seeks To File Interlocutory Appeal In Pandemic Closure Suit

    WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Catholic University of America filed a motion on July 23 in a federal court in the District of Columbia seeking to certify a July 9 opinion that permitted a student to proceed with a putative class action over the cancellation of in-person instruction in March 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic as an interlocutory review “is warranted” and similar cases are already pending before the District of Columbia Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals.

  • July 26, 2021

    $13.5 Million Security Screening Time Class Suit Granted Final Approval

    LOUISVILLE, Ky. — A federal judge in Kentucky on July 22 granted final approval of a $13.5 million class settlement ending a long-running lawsuit that went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court twice and accused a company that provides warehouse labor services and Amazon.com Inc. of failing to pay workers for time spent waiting for and going through security screenings.

  • July 26, 2021

    $4.75M Settlement In IBM Stock-Drop Case Gets Final Approval

    NEW YORK — A federal judge on July 21 granted final approval to a $4.75 million class settlement in a lawsuit brought by participants in an International Business Machine Corp. (IBM) employee stock option plan (ESOP) who accused the plan’s fiduciaries of violating the Employee Retirement Income Security Act by continuing to invest funds in IBM common stock despite their insider knowledge that the stock price was artificially inflated.

  • July 26, 2021

    Female Professional Soccer Players Seek Reversal Of Pay Bias Ruling

    PASADENA, Calif. — Members of the U.S. Senior Women’s National Soccer Team (USWNT) asked the Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals in a July 23 brief to reverse a trial court’s summary judgment ruling on their biased pay class complaint and remand it for trial as the evidence shows that the U.S. Soccer Federation Inc. (USSF) pays them less than their male counterparts in violation of the Equal Pay Act (EPA) and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

  • July 23, 2021

    Pizza Delivery Drivers’ Wage Settlement Approved After Attorney Fees Reduced

    BOWLING GREEN, Ky. — A federal judge in Kentucky on July 13 granted final approval of a more than $750,000 collective and class settlement between a Papa John’s franchisee and delivery drivers who brought wage claims but reduced the attorney fees requested as the attorneys would receive more than the actual claim payments to the class.

  • July 23, 2021

    Judge Certifies Class Claims Against Operator Of Tribal Loan Businesses

    RICHMOND, Va. — A Virginia federal judge on July 20 certified class claims against the operator of “rent-a-tribe” payday lending businesses whom customers seek to hold liable for racketeering and violation of the commonwealth’s usury law, finding that the operator’s alleged changing role in the businesses during the class period does not defeat the requirements for class certification.

  • July 22, 2021

    Sex Harassment Class Claims Against McDonald’s Survive Motions To Dismiss, Strike

    CHICAGO — A federal judge in Illinois on July 20 denied motions to dismiss and strike claims of sexual harassment, hostile work environment and retaliation in a class lawsuit alleging years of “pervasive” unwanted treatment of females in locations around the country.

  • July 22, 2021

    Class Cert Requirements Not Met In ERISA 401(k) Challenge, Goldman Sachs Says

    NEW YORK — A retirement plan participant’s allegations that The Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and plan managers violated the Employee Retirement Income Security Act by retaining proprietary mutual funds do not satisfy the requirements for class certification in part because of “his evidence-free approach,” the defendants argue in a July 19 sur-reply filed in a federal court in New York.

  • July 22, 2021

    Most Claims Survive Dismissal In ERISA Fiduciary Duties Class Action Over 401(k)

    SANTA ANA, Calif. — Participants in a 401(k) adequately pleaded breach of fiduciary duty claims against their employer and the plan’s administrative committee under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act in a putative class action, a federal judge in California ruled July 16 in a minutes order, denying a motion to dismiss except on an alternative claim of knowing breach of trust.

  • July 22, 2021

    Credit Union’s Suit Over Hy-Vee Data Breach Dismissed For Lack Of Jurisdiction

    MINNEAPOLIS — A supermarket chain that was the victim of a data breach succeeded in its second attempt to dismiss a credit union’s negligence class claims against it on July 19, when a Minnesota federal judge found that Minnesota could not exercise jurisdiction over the two Iowa – based companies.

  • July 22, 2021

    Final Approval Granted In Class Action Over Supermarket Chain’s Data Breach

    PEORIA, Ill. — Six months after an Illinois federal judge preliminarily approved a settlement between a supermarket chain that was the victim of a 2018/2019 data breach and a group of its customers, the judge on July 21 granted the plaintiffs’ motion for final approval of the settlement, which, among other things, provides reimbursement for customers’ costs associated with the breach and requires the retail chain to spend at least $20 million in data security improvements.

  • July 21, 2021

    Federal Judge Dismisses Privacy, FCRA Class Claims Against Retail Solutions Firm

    SANTA ANA, Calif. — A group of retail customers who purportedly had retail “risk score” reports compiled about them by a data vendor of several major retailers did not sufficiently allege invasion of privacy, Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) or defamation class claims against the firm, a California federal judge ruled July 16, finding that the plaintiffs did not plead necessary specificity or falsehood, among other things.

  • July 21, 2021

    5th Circuit Rules Against 401(k) Participants, Finding Lack Of Standing

    NEW ORLEANS — Pension plan participants lack standing to bring claims against American Airlines Inc. and related entities for breach of the fiduciary duties of prudence and loyalty, a Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel ruled July 19, also affirming that a district court did not abuse its discretion in denying preliminary approval of a class settlement in the Employee Retirement Income Security Act case.

  • July 21, 2021

    11th Circuit: Orbitz’s Arbitration Terms Don’t Extend To Car Rental Franchisor

    ATLANTA — A travel fare aggregator website’s arbitration agreement with customers doesn’t extend to a car rental franchise from whom customers rent cars as the terms of the agreement refer only to Orbitz.com’s products and services, an 11th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel ruled July 14.