A brief one this week, involving a settlement that did not reach final approval. Dremak v. Iovate Health Sci. Group, Inc., No. 09md2087, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 165225 (S.D. Cal. Nov. 19, 2013) involved an attempted settlement of personal injury class and labeling class actions involving products with hydroxycut [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydroxycut]. The proposed settlement involved
Settlement
Objector-proofing May Attract Objectors – Hershey v ExxonMobil Oil Corp
By The Editors on
Posted in Settlement
ExxonMobil recently attempted to settle a class action involving the payment of gas royalties. As part of that settlement, it agreed to a provision that would impose a severe appeal bond on any objectors who might wish to appeal an unsuccessful objection. The clause read:
Because any appeal by an objecting Class Member would delay
…
Variations in Damages & Settlement Classes – Richardson v. L’Oreal USA, Inc.
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Posted in Settlement
In the wake of Comcast Corp. v. Behrend, a number of different courts have weighed in on the question of whether variations in damages should preclude certification of a litigation class. Last month, however, the District of the District of Columbia issued an opinion which implied that variations in damages might preclude the certification…
How to Get a Settlement Denied, Part 2 – Better v YRC Worldwide
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Posted in Settlement
Settlement opinions are often not that interesting. The vast majority of them are by-the-numbers approvals of proposed settlements that offer little insight about how Rule 23 works. This is especially true of preliminary approval opinions. But every once in a while, a court refuses even the preliminary approval of a settlement. When that happens…
The Supreme Court Is Coming for Cy Pres
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Posted in Settlement
Not right away, but it’s thrown down the gauntlet. In denying certiorari in Marek v Lane, Chief Justice Roberts took the time to issue an accompanying opinion. Marek v. Lane, No. 13-136, 2013 U.S. LEXIS 7772 (Nov. 4, 2013). In it, the Chief Justice takes the time to rehearse the facts behind the…
Confidentiality & Class Action Settlements
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Posted in Settlement
Many class settlement agreements contain confidentiality clauses. How seriously should we take them?
Thornton v. Morgan Stanley Smith Barney, LLC, No.12-CV-298-JED-FHM, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 151211 (N.D. Okla. Oct. 22, 2013), answers the question: seriously indeed.
Thornton itself was not a class action. It was a sex discrimination case. In Thornton, the defendant identified…
Rodriguez v. National City Bank
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Posted in Settlement
A group of Hispanic and African-American borrowers sued the National City Bank, alleging that its "Discretionary Pricing Policy" for home mortgages had resulted in higher borrowing costs for racial minorities. During discovery, the parties engaged in a mediation and reached a $7 million settlement, which a trial court in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania preliminarily…
The Dark Side of Class Action Mediators
By The Editors on
Posted in Scholarship, Settlement
Many observers of class actions (including me) have promoted the use of mediators in negotiating class action settlements. Properly used, a mediator can not only help the sides reach agreement, but also document that the process underlying the settlement was fair, reasonable, and adequate.
Hamline Law School Professor James Coben has…
Cy Pres & the Optimal Class Action
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Posted in Scholarship, Settlement
Cy pres relief remains controversial among courts , but it’s like catnip to legal academics. Now, Notre Dame professor Jay Tidmarsh has published his take on it: Cy Pres and the Optimal Class Action. Like many other academics, Professor Tidmarsh is attracted by the argument that cy pres relief can deter corporate misconduct by…
Coupon Settlements Revisited – Feder v Frank
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Posted in Settlement
Just about anyone who owns a printer has strong opinions on toner cartridges. An enterprising group of plaintiffs’ lawyers sought to capitalize on consumer annoyance with printer cartridges by filing three class actions in the Northern District of California against toner manufacturer Hewlett Packard.
Their cases didn’t go so well. Some of the complaints…