May 1, 2016

Showtime Sues Top Rank Over Mayweather-Pacquiao Fight

The 2015 boxing match between Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao, billed as the Fight of the Century, was widely seen as a disappointment. Now, a year after a hail of class action lawsuits followed the match, Showtime Networks Inc. (SNI) is suing Pacquiao’s promoter Top Rank Inc. (TRI) for an alleged failure to live up to an indemnification agreement. In New York federal court, Showtime filed …


Former Valve Employee Files $3.1 Million Lawsuit Over Wrongful Dismissal

A former Valve translator has filed a $3.1 million lawsuit against the company, alleging that she faced discrimination, a hostile work environment, misclassification as an employee, and ultimately, wrongful termination. The suit, available in full on Scribd, claims that the employee’s primary responsibility was translating content into Spanish, although she also served as a liaison with law …


The Uber Litigation Shows How the Company Gets Around Employment Laws

The recent settlements in the California Uber litigation demonstrate the perils of mandatory arbitration for our entire framework for regulating employment. Unfortunately, media coverage of the Uber controversies has not highlighted the damage that arbitration agreements have wrought to the individual workers involved and to our employment laws generally. But it is now more clear than ever that …


Volkswagen, U.S. Make Substantial Progress Toward Final Deal: Judge

Volkswagen AG (VOWG_p.DE) has made substantial progress toward reaching a final settlement next month with car owners and the U.S. government over the German automaker’s cheating on diesel emissions tests, a federal judge said on Tuesday. But major issues remain, including how much the world’s No. 2 automaker may have to pay in fines, which could run in the billions of …


Companies Forced to Rethink U.S. High Court Class Action Strategy

Lawyers for companies trying to fend off costly class action lawsuits are rethinking longstanding legal strategies after businesses lost two key U.S. Supreme Court cases as well as their staunchest supporter on the bench. At the start of the court’s term in October, the business community had reason to believe the justices would further pare back class action litigation after rulings …


Banks Fight Rule on Class-Action Suits

Banks keep saying over and over that arbitration proceedings, as opposed to class-action lawsuits, are the best way for consumers to handle disputes. Yet faced with the prospect of no longer being able to deny consumers the right to sue them, the banking industry is expected to take the deliciously ironic step of suing the federal government. At issue is a proposed rule from the Consumer …


CEI Challenges LexisNexis Class Action Settlement, Files Cert Petition Before U.S. Supreme Court

Today, the Competitive Enterprise Institute’s Center for Class Action Fairness (CCAF) filed a cert petition before the U.S. Supreme Court asking for review of a class action lawsuit settlement in Schulman v. LexisNexis, et al. CCAF argued previously at a lower court that the settlement was unfair to the class and that the class attorneys were seeking excessive fees. Today’s petition for …


What We Know, Don’t Know, About Concussion/Head Injury Class-Action Suit Involving Penn State, Big Ten, and the NCAA

Penn State declined comment on a class-action suit brought against it, the Big Ten, and the NCAA on Tuesday in a federal court in Illinois, saying it has not yet reviewed the case. The suit is one of six that were brought nationwide by attorney Jay Edelson of Edelson PC, and they targeted the SEC, Vanderbilt University, and others. The one involving Penn State has seen the most action to date, …


Former Penn State Player James Boyd No Longer Lead Plaintiff in Class-Action Concussion Suit Against Penn State: Reports

At Noon on Tuesday, former Penn State safety James Boyd was listed as the lead plaintiff in a concussion/head injury lawsuit filed against his former university, the Big Ten, and the NCAA, according to court documents obtained by the Centre Daily Times. Now, a spokesperson for the law firm that filed the claims tells the CDT that is no longer the case. Boyd withdrew his name as the lead named …


More Than 100 Dentists Form Class Action Suit Against 3M

More Than 100 Dentists Form Class Action Suit Against 3M Dental professionals are claiming the failure rate of 3M’s Lava Ultimate product have led to significant costs that they have not been able to recoup. Several dentists from Georgia and Texas are leading a proposed class action lawsuit against 3M, claiming the manufacturer’s Lava Ultimate dental crowns are defective and have a “shockingly …