Mealey's Class Actions : Mealey's : Legal News & Analysis

Mealey's Class Actions

February 12, 2024
Class Complaint Accuses Digital News Company Of WARN Act Violations

NEW YORK — A January mass layoff of staff at The Messenger, a digital news website owned by JAF Communications Inc., violated the federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act, as well as the New York WARN Act, one of the former workers alleges in a class complaint filed in a federal court in New York.
February 12, 2024
Google Tells 9th Circuit Chrome Users Consented To Data Collection, Use

SAN FRANCISCO — In a Feb. 9 appellee brief, Google LLC explains to the Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals that the parties alleging privacy violations related to the purported collection and sharing of their personally identifiable information (PII) through the Chrome web browser “undisputedly agreed” to its privacy policy and related agreements “that describe the precise data collection and use” of which they complain, asking that the trial court ruling that disposed of all their claims be affirmed.
February 12, 2024
McDonald’s Workers Say U.S. High Court Need Not Weigh In On No-Poach Dispute

WASHINGTON, D.C. — A Seventh Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals decision holding that the no longer enforced no-hire agreement between a fast food franchisor and its franchisees might violate antitrust laws is “unremarkable” and “does not merit” review by the U.S. Supreme Court, McDonald’s workers argue in a Feb. 9 opposition to a petition for a writ of certiorari filed by McDonald’s USA LLC and McDonald’s Corp. (together, McDonald’s).
February 12, 2024
Dismissal Recommended In Class Suit Accusing Mortgage Lender Of Restraining Trade

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A federal magistrate judge in Florida issued a report and recommendation stating that all claims in a putative class complaint accusing a wholesale mortgage lender of violating the Sherman Act by refusing to do business with mortgage brokers who also do business with two other lenders should be dismissed, finding in part that there was no showing that there was “harm to competition within the overall mortgage market or the wholesale retail mortgage market.”
February 12, 2024
Low-Calorie Ice Cream Maker Argues Against Rehearing In Underfilling Dispute

PASADENA, Calif. — The Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals properly found that a trial court abused its discretion when it denied a voluntary dismissal without prejudice of an underfilling class complaint and when it remanded with instructions for the trial court to consider whether to impose any conditions on the dismissal of the consumer’s case, Eden Creamery LLC, which owned and manufactured Halo Top ice cream, argues in its opposition to a petition for rehearing.
February 12, 2024
Judge Says AI Publicity Claims Fall Within Exception To Anti-SLAPP Statute

SAN FRANCISCO — Artists’ since-abandoned allegations that the companies behind three artificial intelligence art generators improperly used their names in advertising the products fell within the public interest exception to the state’s anti-SLAPP law, a federal judge in California said in denying a special motion to strike.
February 12, 2024
Student-Athlete Awarded Some Attorney Fees After Race Bias Claims Fail Against NCAA

INDIANAPOLIS — A student-athlete who unsuccessfully brought class claims against the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) for racial discrimination was partially granted attorney fees by a federal judge in Indiana who found that the student-athlete partially prevailed on his motion to compel.
February 12, 2024
Magistrate Recommends Class In Fracking Securities Case But Limits Focus Period

HOUSTON — A federal magistrate judge on Feb. 9 recommended that class certification be granted in a securities fraud case against a hydraulic fracturing operator but limited the focus period of the litigation because there was no front-end price impact attributable to the alleged misrepresentations and the company had rebutted what is known as the Basic presumption.
February 09, 2024
Investor Says Bank’s Misstatements On Financial Outlook Caused Stock Loss

NEW YORK — A bank made materially false statements about its financial outlook before a 37.57% drop in stock value, a shareholder in the bank says in a putative class complaint filed in a federal court in New York.
February 09, 2024
$1.18B Firefighting Foam Deal Between Water Providers, DuPont Gets Final Approval

CHARLESTON, S.C. — A federal judge in South Carolina on Feb. 8 gave final approval to a $1.18 billion class settlement in the multidistrict litigation for the firefighting agent aqueous film forming foam (AFFF), which contains per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), ruling that a class action is the “superior method” of settling the case because the alternative would be for federal judges in 94 judicial districts to adjudicate the claims.
February 09, 2024
$3M Settlement Gets Final OK In ERISA Imprudence Row, But Judge Trims Fees

SAN FRANCISCO — Attorneys who initially sought $900,000 of a $3 million Employee Retirement Income Security Act class settlement will get just $373,715 under a final approval order in which a California federal judge ruled even their reduced fee request “not reasonable or appropriate in the circumstances of this case.”
February 08, 2024
Federal Judge: Ex-Employees Did Not Show Trustees’ Motive In Stock Plan Complaint

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Finding in part that a group of former employees had not established a breach of duty of loyalty under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, a federal judge in Tennessee granted in part a motion to dismiss the putative class complaint filed by their former employer’s fiduciary trustee, while denying in full a motion to dismiss the complaint filed by executives of the employer.
October 03, 2023
$1.3 Million Class Settlement Gets Preliminary OK In ERISA Investment Fees Lawsuit

LANSING, Mich. — A Michigan federal judge on Oct. 2 granted preliminary approval to a $1.3 million class settlement in an Employee Retirement Income Security Act case over allegations that retirement plan participants “were subject to excessive investment fees in the form of high-cost share classes and poor investment performance.”
February 08, 2024
Panel That Upheld Judgment For Insurers In Facility Fees Row Won’t Rehear Case

NEW YORK — Saying only that it “considered the request,” a Second Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel that issued a summary order affirming judgment for a health insurer and related entities in a class suit over reimbursement for facility fees in New York denied a petition for panel rehearing.
February 08, 2024
$1.3M Class Settlement Gets Final OK In ERISA Investment Fees Lawsuit

LANSING, Mich. — A Michigan federal judge has granted final approval to a $1.3 million class settlement in an Employee Retirement Income Security Act case over allegations that retirement plan participants “were subject to excessive investment fees in the form of high-cost share classes and poor investment performance.”
February 08, 2024
Judge Certifies Class Accusing Rust-Oleum Of Mislabeling Products As ‘Non-Toxic’

SAN FRANCISCO — A California federal magistrate judge granted a motion to certify a class of consumers accusing Rust-Oleum Corp. of deceiving consumers in violation of California’s unfair competition law (UCL) by labeling its KRUD KUTTER cleaning products as “non-toxic” and “Earth friendly.”
February 07, 2024
Cigna: ERISA Plans Bar Algorithm Health Care Claims; UCL Claims Lack Specificity

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Insureds’ cannot demonstrate denial of claims based solely on review by an algorithm or that the use of such a tool would violate the provisions of their Employee Retirement Income Security Act plans, the insurer tells a federal judge in California in a motion to dismiss while arguing that the plaintiffs fail to plead their California unfair competition law (UCL) claims with requisite specificity.
February 07, 2024
Mandate Withheld In Appeal Over Big ERISA Class; Rehearing Bid Remains

NEW ORLEANS — Mandate issuance was withheld Feb. 6 in a Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals case where a panel upheld certification of a large multiplan class and a petition for rehearing en banc that drew an amicus curiae brief has been pending for months.
February 06, 2024
Fiduciaries Want To Appeal 9th Circuit Ruling In ERISA Prohibited Transaction Row

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Retirement plan fiduciaries were given a March 7 deadline to seek U.S. Supreme Court review of a ruling concerning the Employee Retirement Income Security Act’s prohibited transaction provision after arguing that the ruling involves a circuit split, is not consistent with Lockheed Corp. v. Spink and “threatens serious practical consequences for plan administration.”
February 06, 2024
$3.8M Settlement For Class Of More Than 30,000 Gets Initial OK In ERISA Row

GREENSBORO, N.C. — A North Carolina federal judge on Feb. 5 granted a motion by former participants in a 403(b) retirement plan for preliminary approval of a $3.8 million class settlement that would resolve allegations of imprudence regarding record-keeping fees and share classes.
February 06, 2024
9th Circuit Panel Rules PREP Act Immunity Extends To State Vaccine Prioritization

SAN FRANCISCO — A panel of the Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals in related appeals reversed an Oregon federal court decision denying the motions to dismiss of Oregon’s governor and other state officials in a class action by prison inmates seeking damages for alleged constitutional violations resulting from the officials’ decision to prioritize COVID-19 vaccination for prison workers over the inmates.
February 06, 2024
ERISA Fiduciary Breach Claims Asserted Over J&J Drug Plan That Used PBM

CAMDEN, N.J. — Calling herself a “whistleblower” and asserting fiduciary breach claims under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, an employee on Feb. 5 filed a putative class case against Johnson and Johnson (J&J) and related entities and individuals over alleged “mismanagement of prescription-drug benefits” involving a pharmacy benefits manager (PBM).
February 06, 2024
IPhone Owners’ Experts Deemed Reliable; Antitrust Class Against Apple Certified

SAN FRANCISCO — Almost two years after a group of iPhone owners’ first attempt at class certification was denied, a California federal judge found that they had cured deficiencies in their experts’ testimony, leading her to conclude that the plaintiffs had now satisfied the predominance requirement of Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23(b)(3), making class certification appropriate in an antitrust lawsuit against Apple Inc.
February 06, 2024
Objectors To 6th Circuit: Reverse Approval Of Vaccine Mandate Settlement

CINCINNATI — Objectors to a $130,000 nationwide settlement in a class case by hospital employees who challenged their employer’s mandatory COVID-19 vaccine policy filed an appellant brief in the Sixth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals challenging the amount as inadequate and arguing that the agreement was not sufficiently scrutinized given that “the case did not involve the assertion of nationwide class claims at the time settlement was agreed to and submitted for approval.”
February 05, 2024
Keller Williams’ $70M Pact In Sellers’ Commissions Case Preliminarily Approved

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A $70 million settlement proposed by Keller Williams Realty Inc. in a class case by home sellers in which a federal jury in Missouri found that the National Association of Realtors (NAR) and real estate franchisors engaged in a commission conspiracy in violation of Section 1 of the Sherman Act was granted preliminary approval by a federal judge in Missouri; on the same day, a joint motion to stay in light of the settlement was filed in a parallel action in a federal court in Illinois.