News from November 2014
First Circuit: Allegations in class action against Titeflex 'too speculative'
BOSTON (Legal Newsline) - An appeals court ruled a class action complaint against Titeflex Corporation over the alleged risk of harm of one of its products is "too speculative" to give rise to the case.
Travel companies to provide restitution to Mass. customers
Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley reached settlements on Thursday with the owners of two travel companies over allegations that they sold overpriced vacation club memberships using deceptive sales and marketing tactics.
Ninth Circuit rules for EverBank didn't act in bad faith
SAN FRANCISCO (Legal Newsline) - A federal appeals court has ruled that under Florida law, no reasonable jury could find that EverBank acted in bad faith when it exercised its discretion to close WorldCurrency CDs to limit losses to itself and customers.
Maryland students recognized for promoting peace through art
Chief Judge Mary Ellen Barbera of the Maryland Court of Appeals recently acknowledged young artists for their contributions to promoting peace.
Former head of U.S. PTO joins Fla. IP company
BONITA SPRINGS, Fla. (Legal Newsline) - The former Under Secretary of Commerce and Director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, David Kappos, has been appointed special advisor to the board of ipCreate, the company announced Wednesday.
Calif. jury awards $71M in asbestos case
OAKLAND, Calif. (Legal Newsline) – An Alameda County, Calif., jury has returned a verdict for $70,861,113 in favor of a former U.S. Navy machinist mate and nuclear inspector and against defendant John Crane Inc. in an asbestos personal injury case.
La. court's $3.8 million judgment in survival action asbestos case affirmed
BATON ROUGE, La. (Legal Newsline) – Appealing a $3.8 million judgment, a defendant named in a Louisiana asbestos case unsuccessfully argued the lower court erred by considering the surviving plaintiffs’ own pain and suffering in a survival action.
Court: Dentist's office violated TCPA with one-page fax to Palm Beach Golf Center
ATLANTA (Legal Newsline) - A federal appeals court has ruled that a local dentist's office wrongfully sent Palm Beach Golf Center-Boca Inc. an unsolicited fax advertisement, which violated the Telephone Consumer Protection Act.
Ninth Circuit: Sirius XM didn't prove arbitration agreement exists
SAN FRANCISCO (Legal Newsline) - An appeals court has ruled Sirius XM Radio Inc. failed to prove the existence of an arbitration agreement in a class action lawsuit against it for allegedly violating the Telephone Consumer Protection Act.
Ninth Circuit rules against Amgen in ERISA class action brought by employees
SAN FRANCISCO (Legal Newsline) - An appeals court has ruled that the plaintiffs in a class action lawsuit against Amgen Inc. sufficiently alleged violation of Amgen's fiduciary duties.
Verizon reaches $1.375 million settlment with Maryland over FiOS pricing
Verizon Communications Inc. has reached a $1.375 million settlement with the state of Maryland over alleged misrepresentation of actual costs for FiOS television, phone and Internet services, Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler announced on Wednesday.
Patent reform more likely to pass in 2015 with GOP shift
WASHINGTON (Legal Newsline) - Congress, following last week’s midterm election and subsequent shift in power in favor of Republicans, looks poised to pass some form of patent reform legislation in the new year.
Shipbuilder earns summary judgment in asbestos case
PHILADELPHIA (Legal Newsline) – A federal judge in the asbestos multidistrict litigation has granted summary judgment in favor of Huntington Ingalls, Inc., in an asbestos case in which the claimant tried to hold a shipbuilder liable for potentially replaced products.
Texas NPE sues Hewlett-Packard, LG for infringing patent through speech recognition software
MARSHALL, Texas (Legal Newsline) - A Texas-based non-practicing entity this week sued Hewlett-Packard and electronics company LG for infringing its patent through the use of speech recognition software in their products.
Minn. process server sued for 'sewer service'
Attorney General Lori Swanson sued a Minnesota process service company and one of its representatives last week for allegedly engaging in “sewer service” by falsely claiming it had notified defendants of pending debt collection lawsuits.
University suing Verizon, Sprint, others over patents developed by professor
MINNEAPOLIS (Legal Newsline) - Last week, the University of Minnesota filed complaints in federal court against the four largest wireless service providers in the United States, claiming patent infringement.
Attorney: Coupon settlements persist in post-CAFA world
CHICAGO (Legal Newsline) - In the wake of 2005's Class Action Fairness Act, class action settlements that provide coupons to class members have surprisingly survived, a Sidley Austin attorney recently said.