Mealey's Class Actions

  • March 27, 2024

    Insurer Seeks High Court Review Of Remanded Class Action Challenging Its Practices

    WASHINGTON, D.C. — An insurer filed a petition for a writ of certiorari asking the U.S. Supreme Court to review the Seventh Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals’ finding that a class action challenging its practices fits within the internal affairs and home state controversy exceptions to the Class Action Fairness Act (CAFA).

  • March 27, 2024

    Judge Allows UCL, Negligence Claims Against Roblox In Mothers’ ‘Gambling’ Suit

    SAN FRANCISCO — A California federal judge on March 26 granted in part and denied in part a motion by Roblox Corp. to dismiss a putative class action brought against it by two mothers who accuse it of being liable for their minor children’s engagement in illegal gambling games on the Roblox platform.

  • March 26, 2024

    Judge Grants Preliminary Approval To Settlement For Lender’s ‘Junk Fees’

    SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A California federal judge granted a motion for preliminary approval of a settlement under which Ocwen Financial Corp. and Ocwen Loan Servicing LLC (together, Ocwen) will pay an estimated $53 million to resolve a mortgagor’s class action claims against it for charging “hidden junk fees” in violation of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) and California’s unfair competition law (UCL).

  • March 26, 2024

    9th Circuit: Investor Does Not Allege Scienter In COVID-19 ‘Cure’ Suit

    PASADENA, Calif. — A panel of judges in the Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on March 25 upheld the dismissal of putative class complaint in which an investor claimed that a pharmaceutical company and certain of its executives misled investors by claiming that a COVID-19 treatment was a “cure,” with the panel finding that the investor did not adequately allege a strong inference of scienter.

  • March 26, 2024

    Suit Accusing Ford Of Eavesdropping, Intercepting Text Messages Dismissed

    SAN DIEGO — A putative class action against Ford Motor Co. under the California Invasion of Privacy Act (CIPA) was dismissed, with a California federal judge finding that the plaintiff did not establish that the automaker engaged in aiding and abetting a spyware company in the collection and distribution of customers’ information from Ford’s online chat feature, with the judge also holding that some of the allegedly violated portions of the statute do not apply to the modern technology at issue.

  • March 25, 2024

    Plaintiffs In Royalty Dispute Seek Answer On Remand Bid Before Jurisdiction Ruling

    DENVER — Plaintiffs who sued a hydraulic fracturing company filed a brief on March 22 opposing the company’s motion for judgment on the pleadings in a royalty dispute, arguing that a Colorado federal court should rule on the plaintiffs’ pending motion to remand the case to state court before addressing the company’s motion.

  • March 25, 2024

    Judge Grants Summary Judgment On Driver’s UCL Claim For ‘Unfair’ COVID Premiums

    SAN FRANCISCO — A California federal judge granted GEICO’s motion for summary judgment on an insured’s claim against it for violating California’s unfair competition law (UCL) by unfairly profiting from a premium giveback program initiated during the COVID-19 pandemic, in part citing evidence that state insurance regulators deemed GEICO’s givebacks sufficient.

  • March 25, 2024

    In Amicus Brief, Groups Urge 2nd Circuit To Affirm ERISA Ruling In Jury Trial Case

    NEW YORK — Supporting the argument by Yale University and related appellees that the “could have” standard used in damages instructions is not grounds for overturning judgment in an Employee Retirement Income Security Act case that went before a jury, a group of prominent organizations filed an amicus curiae brief urging the Second Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals to affirm a 2023 judgment against a class of retirement plan participants.

  • March 25, 2024

    1st Circuit: 2023 Mass. Law Bars 2020 Suit Over University’s Pandemic Closure

    BOSTON — The retroactive application of a Massachusetts law signed into effect in August 2022 that bars actions for damages and equitable monetary relief against institutions of higher education for acts or omissions in response to the coronavirus pandemic does not violate the due process clause of the U.S. Constitution, a First Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel ruled, affirming a trial court’s summary judgment ruling in a class complaint by students against Boston University (BU).

  • March 25, 2024

    Amended Race Bias Class Claims Against Sesame Place Permitted, But Scope Trimmed

    PHILADELPHIA — Visitors to a Pennsylvania children’s amusement park who filed a class complaint after their children were allegedly snubbed by the costumed Sesame Street characters may amend their complaint a second time to add a negligent supervision claim but may not expand the scope of their claims to include allegations of race discrimination throughout the park, including at the pool and on rides, as that would require “significantly more discovery,” a federal judge in Pennsylvania ruled, partially granting a motion for leave to amend.

  • March 22, 2024

    Commission Case Parties Asked If Arbitration Motions Remain Live After Settlement

    CHICAGO — Parties in a class lawsuit over broker commissions were asked March 21 by a federal judge in Illinois to address whether several pending motions for arbitration filed by real estate franchisors remain live after the National Association of Realtors (NAR) announced nearly a week earlier that it would resolve nationwide claims for $418 million.

  • March 22, 2024

    6th Circuit Largely Upholds Dismissal Of Vaccine Religious Exemption Claims

    CINCINNATI — Putative class claims by 46 hospital workers whose requests for religious exemption from a COVID-19 vaccine mandate were largely properly dismissed by a trial court as 44 of the 46 workers failed to establish standing, a Sixth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel ruled, reversing only as to two workers who sufficiently alleged that they resigned after their requests were denied but before the hospital reversed its decision.

  • March 21, 2024

    $125M PACER Settlement, Including Challenged Attorney Fees, Granted Final Approval

    WASHINGTON, D.C. — A $125 million class settlement in a case by individuals and entities who alleged that they paid excessive fees to obtain court records via the Public Access to Court Electronic Records system (PACER) was granted final approval on March 20 by a federal judge in the District of Columbia despite the United States’ challenge of the inclusion of more than $23 million in attorney fees and costs and objections challenging several aspects of the agreement, including the scope.

  • March 21, 2024

    Verdict For Ford In Performance Suit Returned On Class Claims From 4 States

    MIAMI — A federal jury in Florida returned a verdict on March 20 for Ford Motor Co. on claims by classes of consumers in Florida, New York, Washington and Missouri and an individual in Missouri that the car maker falsely advertised the performance capabilities of certain models of Shelby GT350 Mustangs.

  • March 21, 2024

    University Worker Asks U.S. High Court To Decide COVID-19 Vaccine Question

    WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Supreme Court justices should decide whether Jacobson v. Massachusetts requires that a governmental action like a vaccine mandate is “subject to heightened scrutiny” and whether such a mandate by Michigan State University (MSU) failed that test, an MSU worker argues in her petition for a writ of certiorari.

  • March 21, 2024

    Petitioners: Cornell Case Is Best To Resolve ERISA Prohibited Transaction Split

    WASHINGTON, D.C. — Petitioners told the U.S. Supreme Court that of two 2023 U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals decisions that amplified a “preexisting circuit split” over Employee Retirement Income Security Act pleading standards for prohibited-transaction claims, the ruling against them “is the superior vehicle for review.”

  • March 21, 2024

    $2M Settlement Gets Final Approval In ERISA Suit Over Alleged Imprudence

    PHOENIX — A $2 million class settlement has been granted final approval in Arizona federal court in an Employee Retirement Income Security Act case where the plaintiffs alleged mismanagement of their retirement plan and challenge certain funds and fees.

  • March 19, 2024

    ‘Flushable’ Wipes Settlement Valued At Up To $17.5M Granted Final Approval

    DALLAS — A federal judge in Texas granted final approval of a settlement valued between $10 million and $17.5 million in a case by consumers accusing Kimberly-Clark Corp. of making and selling wipes touted as “flushable” that actually cause personal and economic harm.

  • March 19, 2024

    MosaicML AI Model Comes Under Fire In Authors’ Lawsuit

    SAN FRANCISCO — A trio of authors sued MosaicML, the provider of tools facilitating the training of artificial intelligence, and its parent company, claiming that they benefitted from the improper copying of potentially hundreds of thousands of copyrighted works.

  • March 19, 2024

    Class Definitions In RESPA, FCRA Suit Deemed Not So Deficient To Require Striking

    PHILADELPHIA — Calling class definitions “‘more of an art than a science,’” a federal judge in Pennsylvania denied a mortgage servicer’s motion to strike class allegations in a lawsuit accusing it of ignoring Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) requests and providing inaccurate information to credit reporting agencies (CRAs) after determining that two classes proposed by the borrower bringing the claims are “not so clearly deficient that no class could ever be certified.”

  • March 19, 2024

    U.S. Supreme Court Denies McDonald’s Petition In No-Poach Appeal

    WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Supreme Court on March 18 denied a petition for a writ of certiorari filed by McDonald’s USA LLC and McDonald’s Corp. (together, McDonald’s) after a Seventh Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel held that the no longer enforced no-hire agreement between the fast food franchisor and its franchisees might violate antitrust laws.

  • March 18, 2024

    Investors Seek Approval Of $490M Settlement With Apple Inc. Over Sales Claims

    OAKLAND, Calif. — Apple Inc. and certain of its executives have agreed to pay $490 million to settle class claims brought by investors that the company’s CEO issued misleading statements about Apple’s sales of iPhones in China, according to a March 15 motion seeking preliminary approval of the proposed settlement filed in a California federal court by the lead plaintiff.

  • March 18, 2024

    E-Cig MDL Judge Issues Order Granting Final Approval Of $45M Altria Settlement

    SAN FRANCISCO — The California federal judge overseeing multidistrict litigation against e-cigarette maker Juul Labs Inc. (JLI) and tobacco company Altria Group Inc. and its subsidiaries issued written final approval of a $45 million settlement to resolve economic loss claims brought by class members who purchased JLI products in reliance upon misleading information about its addictiveness and health risks.

  • March 18, 2024

    6th Circuit Affirms Denial Of Intervention In Now Settled Vaccine Mandate Dispute

    CINCINNATI — A trial court did not abuse its discretion when it denied a motion to intervene filed by one of more than 4,000 potential class members in a since settled case by employees over a health care provider’s mandatory COVID-19 vaccine policy.

  • March 18, 2024

    GM, OnStar, Lexis Sued For Collecting, Sharing Drivers’ Data

    WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — A Florida man, who claims that his driving data was collected and shared without his knowledge or consent brings putative class claims under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), as well as Florida consumer and privacy law, asserting that the inaccurate information negatively impacted his ability to obtain car insurance.