Articles by CAReview Editor

A Joint-Employer McDouble

The National Labor Relations Board has given unions and plaintiff attorneys a cache of weapons to target businesses. Now they’ve been handed a “two-barreled joint employer shotgun,” as plaintiff attorney Michael Rubin crowed about the certification of his class-action lawsuit against McDonald’s. Federal Judge James Donato recently allowed four plaintiffs to represent 500 McDonald’s franchise …


Businessman William Parfet Will Contest Sexual Harassment Lawsuit

An attorney for William U. Parfet says the Kalamazoo businessman plans to contest a sexual harassment and wrongful discharge lawsuit filed against him in federal court. “Mr. Parfet will be presenting a vigorous defense to this lawsuit,” attorney Nancy Abell said when asked by the Kalamazoo Gazette about the lawsuit. Parfet, an heir to Upjohn Co. founder W.E.



$35 Million Settlement Proposed in Robo-Dialing Class Action Against SiriusXM

A settlement between SiriusXM and Francis W. Hooker, Jr., who brought suit against the company in 2012, has been submitted to Arenda L. Wright Allen, the Eastern District of Virginia judge appointed to the case. If approved, SiriusXM would establish a $35 million settlement fund from which “notice, administrative costs, service awards, and attorneys fees, costs, and other expenses” would be …


Apple Wants Appeals Court to Shut Down Class-Action Over Address Book Uploads

Apple wants a federal appellate court to overturn a recent decision granting class-action status to a group of mobile users who say their address books were accessed without permission by the app developer Path. In papers quietly filed late last month, the company asks the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals for permission to immediately appeal the “manifestly erroneous” order that granted class- …


Hall of Fame Refund Policy Mentions Tickets only

If customers who incurred unnecessary expenses to attend the NFL game in Canton that wasn’t played in Canton (or anywhere else) on Sunday night want to be reimbursed for those expenses, they’ll have to hire a lawyer. The Hall of Fame has posted at its website the procedures for obtaining a refund, and the policy refers only to the price of the tickets. The window for obtaining refunds will be …


German Court to Speed Up VW Litigation

A German court will adopt a rarely used class-action style procedure to more efficiently process claims by investors seeking damages from Volkswagen over a diesel emissions cheating scandal, according to a ruling. The regional court in Braunschweig near Volkswagen’s (VW) Wolfsburg headquarters said on Monday it will pick one case to act as a model to help resolve as many as 170 …


San Jose Police Face Class-Action Lawsuit Over Gay Sex Stings – VIDEO

San Jose police are facing a class-action lawsuit for allegedly singling out gay men in sex stings at a public restroom. The Police Department cited dozens of men at Columbus Park in 2014 and 2015, charging them under Section 647(d) of the California penal code, which prohibits loitering in or around a public restroom for the purpose of engaging in a lewd or lascivious act. But famed gay civil …


Failed Madigan Challenger Files Defamation Lawsuit

The man who challenged Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan and lost in the Democratic primary this year has filed a federal lawsuit against Madigan, accusing him of fraud and defamation. “Madigan is not going to get away with this,” Jason Gonzales said. He got about 27 percent of the vote in the Democratic primary this past March, versus 65 percent for Madigan.


Family of Man Who Died at Mental Health Facility Files Federal Lawsuit

Family members of a Milwaukee man who died at the Milwaukee County Mental Health Complex in Wauwatosa four years ago have filed a federal lawsuit. The Milwaukee County district attorney rules that the death of a patient at the county mental health complex was not criminal. Brandon Johnson died at the facility in October 2012.