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Legal News Feb 9, 2017

Supreme Court Mulls Case That Would Trim Fees in Class Actions

The U.S. Supreme Court is expected to decide as early as next week whether to hear the appeal of a Sixth Circuit decision upholding a class-action settlement that distributed only $1.6 million to consumers but yielded $2.4 million for the attorneys who represented them. Objectors and the attorneys general of 17 states urge the court to take the case and hand down tighter rules on how lower courts consider the value of a settlement for calculating legal fees. …

News Jan 25, 2017

Lawsuit Could Throw Colorado Elections System Into Chaos

A suit before the Colorado Court of Appeals today sought to reclaim revenue the state now uses to pay for its elections — leaving its future funding in question. The case, filed by the National Federation of Independent Business , claims that businesses carry an unfair burden of the cost of funding the state’s elections, including costs carried by counties. Attorneys for NFIB point out that …

Settlements Jan 18, 2017

States Join Objections to Remington Rifle Settlement

Attorneys general from nine states and the District of Columbia are urging a federal judge to reject a proposed class action settlement involving millions of allegedly defective Remington rifles including the iconic Model 700, saying the agreement “fails to adequately protect public safety.” The 38-page filing, which alleges that Remington has “long known” that the guns can fire without the …

Lawsuits Jan 17, 2017

South Korean Celebrity Files Class-Action Lawsuit Against Tesla Motors

PALO ALTO, Calif. — A Tesla Model X owner has filed a sudden unintended acceleration class-action lawsuit against Tesla Motors Inc. after his electric sport-utility vehicle crashed through the garage and into his home while being parked. The owner, Ji Chang Son, is a South Korean celebrity who lives in California. According to a news release issued by Son’s attorneys, Tesla claims that Son has …

Settlements Dec 20, 2016

Judge Approves $125 Million Disk Drive Antitrust Settlement

Four electronics giants will pay $124.5 million in an antitrust class action to indirect purchasers of optical disk drives, in a settlement approved Monday by a federal judge. Hitachi-LG Data Storage will pay $73 million; Sony will pay $28.5 million; Panasonic $16.5 million; and NEC $6.5 million. U.S. District Judge Richard Seeborg’s final approval on Monday …

News Dec 15, 2016

Brown’s Owner Jimmy Haslam Questioned Under Oath Over Pilot Flying J Alleged Fuel Rebate Fraud

Cleveland Browns owner Jimmy Haslam was questioned under oath Tuesday by attorneys for two trucking companies over his role in an alleged fuel rebate fraud scheme involving his Knoxville-based truck stop chain. In a videotaped deposition, attorneys for the trucking companies are seeking to discover what Haslam knew about the alleged fraud. Sources say it’s possible the deposition …

News Dec 8, 2016

Wikipedia’s NSA Lawsuit Heads to Federal Appeals Court

The publishers of Wikipedia and several civil rights groups will head to a federal appeals court Thursday to challenge a National Security Agency surveillance program that mines Americans’ internet communications. A key hurdle for the groups will be to provide convincing evidence that their emails and other communications are among those collected in bulk by the NSA. A lower court previously …

Lawsuits Dec 8, 2016

Remington Fires Back at Rifle Settlement Critics

Remington claims Barber only dropped his demands after a federal appeals court ruled in May of 2015 that he had forfeited his right to make future claims against the company as a result of the 2002 wrongful death settlement, dismissing the case and rendering his demands moot. Barber said he regrets making the demands, which he said he assumed were confidential. He has spoken broadly about …

News Nov 9, 2016

Lawyers Who Sued Volkswagen Over Emissions Want $175 Million

Lawyers who won the massive $10.03 billion class-action settlement from Volkswagen Group over software that cheated on emissions tests now want their own payday: $175 million. The extraordinary sum requires extraordinary justification, and lead plaintiffs’ counsel Elizabeth Cabraser hopes her firm’s motion (PDF) on the matter, filed late last night with the judge, will do the trick. “The aggregate fees and costs award… is the equivalent of less than 2 percent of the monetary benefit provided to the Class, far below the …