Industry

Mounting Lawsuits Against Juul Reminiscent of Early Tobacco Litigation

Central to some of the Juul lawsuits is the allegation that, particularly in its early days, Juul used young, attractive models in ads and promoted its products heavily on social networks such as Instagram, knowing that they are frequented by minors. “Not only has litigation against the tobacco industry resulted in tens of billions of dollars in settlements and verdicts, but it’s also cast a …


Democrats Rekindle Bill to End Gun Industry Lawsuit Protections

On the heels of the Las Vegas massacre, two Democratic lawmakers have revived a bill that would strip the immunity from lawsuits enjoyed by the gun industry. Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) and Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) reintroduced a bill Thursday that would allow victims of gun violence and their families to sue gun makers, sellers and advocacy groups, like the National Rifle Association. …


Samsung, Intel Lend Support to FTC’s Qualcomm Lawsuit

Chip maker Qualcomm has been having a rough couple of months, not only getting sued by Apple — one of its largest customers — for unfair licensing costs, but also being accused of anti-competitive tactics by the Federal Trade Commission. In the case of the latter, now some of Qualcomm’s biggest rivals have chimed in, offering statements to the FTC in support of their monopoly accusations. Back …




Labor Department to Delay and Revisit Fiduciary Rule

President Donald Trump’s Department of Labor moved one step closer to putting the brakes on the agency’s fiduciary rule for retirement investment advisers late Feb. 9. The agency sent to the White House’sOffice of Management and Budget a proposal to delay the rule’s applicability date, one week after Trump ordered the agency to review the Obama-era rule that aims to protect retirement investors …


Trump Named as a Defendant in Landmark Climate Lawsuit

Attorneys for the plaintiffs in a federal climate lawsuit yesterday named President Trump as a defendant in the case. In 2015, a group of kids, young adults and environmentalists sued the U.S. government and top officials — including President Obama — for failing to protect them from the dangers of climate change, despite detailed warnings and research of its risks. Julia Olson, a lawyer for …


DOL Fiduciary Rule Class-Actions Costs Could Top $150M a Year

Assuming the Department of Labor’s fiduciary rule survives the river of legal and legislative challenges, the brokerage industry should expect to absorb between $70 million and $150 million annually in class-action litigation costs. The price-tag range, calculated by Morningstar senior equity analyst Michael Wong, is on top of the $1.5 billion annual cost to the industry, as estimated by the …


FTC Files Antitrust Lawsuit Against Qualcomm

The Federal Trade Commission announced an antitrust lawsuit against semiconductor manufacturer Qualcomm Inc. The suit , filed Tuesday in California, charges Qualcomm with tactics meant to maintain its monopoly in certain baseband processors a key element of mobile cellular devices and to “impose onerous and anticompetitive supply and licensing terms on cell phone …


Trump’s Secretary of State Nominee May Have to Testify in a Landmark Climate Lawsuit the Day Before Inauguration

Rex Tillerson testifies during a confirmation hearing. Kevin Lamarque/Reuters
The day before Trump’s inauguration, his pick for Secretary of State will likely be getting questioned under oath. Lawyers for a landmark climate lawsuit , which claims the US government failed to protect future generations from the dangers of global warming, are scheduled to depose Rex Tillerson on January 19.