News

First Lawsuit Filed Over Summit Elementary Water Contamination

Some legal trouble may be brewing for the Butler Area School District over the high levels of lead found in the drinking water at Summit Elementary School. A federal lawsuit was filed Tuesday against the district and its superintendent. There is only one plaintiff so far, but the lawyers are intending it as a class action suit.


Phoenix Domestic-Violence Shelter Files Lawsuit Against Backpage

After two years of intense scrutiny from the U.S. Senate and elsewhere, online ad-posting site Backpage.com announced that it is shuttering its adult services section, which was repeatedly accused by critics of facilitating child prostitution and human trafficking. USA TODAY The lawsuit takes aim at Backpage, an online marketplace born from the back page of classifieds in alternative weekly …


Beyonce Hit With $20 Million Lawsuit Over ‘Formation’

Beyonce is receiving her good news and bad news these days, it seems. The singer, who announced that she’s pregnant with twins last week, has now been hit with a $20 million lawsuit over claims that she improperly used the voice of an up-and-coming rapper and YouTube personality in her hit song “Formation.” In the suit, filed in federal court in Louisiana, the estate of Anthony Barre — aka …


Melania Trump Lawsuit Argues ‘Once in a Lifetime’ Chance to Make Millions Is Lost

It’s a little icky all around. First lady Melania Trump is seeking $150 million from the Daily Mail newspaper, charging in a lawsuit filed Monday in New York state commercial court that the outlet published damaging and unfounded allegations that she once worked as an “elite escort” in the “sex business.” Beyond demonstrating that the Trumps are more than willing to take the offensive when it comes to lawsuits, the complaint also reveals plans for yet another extension of the Trump empire, arguing that Melania’s brand has “lost significant value” and has impacted …


Raisin Cain: Class Action Claims Candy Came Up Short

Lovers of chocolate-covered raisins might one day get some cash back for satisfying their sweet tooth. Californian Sandy Hafer recently filed a $5 million class-action lawsuit against Nestlé alleging that approximately 40 percent of a box of Raisinets she bought was nothing but air. Hafer, who filed the lawsuit on behalf of thousands of people, argues that by underfilling the box, the company …


Elon Musk’s Companies Join Immigration Ban Lawsuit

Tesla and SpaceX — two companies owned by Elon Musk — have signed on to a legal brief in support of a lawsuit against President Trump’s executive order on immigration and refugees. Musk has been on the defensive for the past week for remaining a member of the president’s advisory councils in the wake …


Maryland County Stun Gun Ban Prompts Second Amendment Lawsuit

A nurse is challenging a Maryland county’s stun gun ban on Second Amendment grounds. Leah Baran sued in federal court after stun gun manufacturer Taser International refused to ship the device to her home in Howard County last month, Courthouse News Service reports. Baran says she wants a stun gun becasue she fears for her life after her ex-boyfriend broke into her home, raped her and tried to …


Frank Ocean Hit With a $14.5 Million Lawsuit From His Father

Frank Ocean is getting sued by his own father for allegedly defaming his good name. According to TMZ, the singer’s father, Calvin Cooksey, filed a defamation lawsuit against Ocean citing a Tumblr post he wrote last year about the tragic mass shooting at a gay nightclub in Orlando, Fla. In his missive, Ocean reflects on a traumatizing memory of his father.


Russian Tech Exec Sues Buzzfeed for Publishing Unverified Trump Dossier

A Russian technology executive has sued BuzzFeed and its editor Ben Smith for publishing the unverified Trump dossier, calling it “perhaps one of the most reckless and irresponsible moments in modern ‘journalism.'” Within hours of the lawsuit’s filing, BuzzFeed blacked out the name of Aleksej Gubarev in the dossier on its site and apologized. “We have redacted Mr. Gubarev’s name from the published dossier, and apologize for including it,” BuzzFeed spokesman Matt Mittenthal told CNNMoney. Aleksej Gubarev is the CEO of XBT, a company that hosts websites and runs thousands of computer servers worldwide. The lawsuit claims …


Lawsuit Over School Bible Class Moves Forward

A West Virginia school district is fighting back against the claim that a Bible study class offered in some public schools violates the First Amendment. The Freedom From Religion Foundation filed a lawsuit last month against the Mercer County, West Virginia Board of Education, Mercer County Schools and Superintendent Dr. Deborah Akers, seeking to end the county’s Bible In The …