News from May 2018
California Assembly takes on lawyer ads, unanimously passes bill that would punish misleading claims
SACRAMENTO - California's lawmakers have passed a bill aimed at combating what supporters claim is misleading advertising by plaintiffs attorneys.
Two claim McDonald's 'forces' customers to pay for cheese on Quarter Pounder whether they want it or not
MIAMI (Legal Newsline) – Two consumers allege McDonald's overcharges for two types of sandwiches by charging for two slices of cheese they do not want or order.
Consumer alleges Jenny Craig sent text messages without consent
MIAMI (Legal Newsline) – A Florida resident alleges a weight loss counseling service unlawfully sent her telemarketing text messages.
City of Beverly Hills challenging subway development that will run beneath high school
LOS ANGELES (Legal Newsline) – A California city alleges that a final supplement environmental impact statement released in November 2017 regarding a subway project is "flawed" and that the project will harm high school students.
Wall Street Journal alleged to have sold subscribers' information
NEW YORK, N.Y. (Legal Newsline) – A Wall Street Journal subscriber alleges his personal information was sold to third parties without his consent.
Judge tosses TCPA claim over texts from Anthem, calls suit 'unwarranted'
NEW ORLEANS (Legal Newsline) – A federal judge dismissed a lawsuit against Anthem Inc. and others that alleged the company sent unwanted text messages in violation of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act.
Yelp is dismissed from suit against Buffalo Wild Wings over text messages
SAN FRANCISCO (Legal Newsline) – A federal judge dismissed one defendant in a lawsuit alleging unwanted text messages and granted another defendant's venue transfer motion.
Federal judge rejects Harmless Harvest coconut water settlement as unfair
CENTRAL ISLIP, N.Y. (Legal Newsline) – A federal judge in New York has rejected a nearly $1 million class-action settlement against Harmless Harvest, believing that it was "not fair, reasonable and adequate."
Anne Arundel Circuit Court to celebrate drug treatment court graduates
The Anne Arundel County Circuit Court is set to host a ceremony on Monday, May 21, celebrating the graduation of six individuals from its adult drug treatment court program.
Consumers claim Nature Made biotin supplements do not provide benefits advertised
SAN FRANCISCO (Legal Newsline) – Two California consumers allege they were deceived by the health benefit representations of a supplement.
Phoney Lawsuits: RICO case settled with TCPA firm accused of teaching former students to avoid paying loans by suing
ALEXANDRIA, Va. (Legal Newsline) – Law firms accused of running a scheme in which they taught former students how to sue their way out of college debt have settled the racketeering claims against them.
Arizona attorney general secures VW settlement for state consumers
PHOENIX (Legal Newsline) — Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich recently announced that Volkswagen will pay $40 million after allegations of false advertising related to its so-called “clean diesel” cars.
New Jersey attorney general to create group to target data privacy, cybersecurity
TRENTON, N.J. (Legal Newsline) — New Jersey Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal announced May 7 that his office plans to open a new branch that will be called the Data Privacy & Cybersecurity (DPC) Section and will handle civil enforcement of data privacy laws.
Alabama SC orders arbitration in lawsuit over heavy mining equipment
MONTGOMERY, Ala. (Legal Newsline) – Alabama's high court has reversed a ruling that denied arbitration in a case over allegedly defective heavy mining equipment.
Alabama Supreme Court denies woman new trial in wrongful death lawsuit
MONTGOMERY, Ala. (Legal Newsline) – The Alabama Supreme Court backed a lower court’s ruling as it denied a woman’s post-judgment request for a new trial in a wrongful death case.
California county won't be getting surplus from sale of fraudster's property, appeals court decides
LOS ANGELES (Legal Newsline) – A nearly $300,000 surplus in a property sale should not go to the County of Los Angeles, the California 2nd Appellate District Court, Division Eight has ruled.
Delaware's case against alleged gift card scheme to continue
WILMINGTON, Del. (Legal Newsline) – The Superior Court for the State of Delaware denied a motion for summary judgment in an April 30 opinion in a case involving an alleged gift card scam.
In Florida, ruling says restraint of deaf resident was not medical malpractice
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (Legal Newsline) – The question of whether a deaf academy acted in medical malpractice or negligence was answered in a Supreme Court of Florida’s April 26 opinion.
Former American Airlines flight attendants allege change of travel passes breached contract
BROOKLYN, N.Y. (Legal Newsline) – Former flight attendants have filed a class-action lawsuit against American Airlines Inc. over allegations the travel passes promised to them upon retirement have been downgraded.
Details, criticism of how class action lawyers charged $75M might be kept from public
BOSTON (Legal Newsline) - The public might not get to view the findings of a special master tasked with examining why a $300 million class action settlement included inflated hourly rates and a suspicious $200,000 payment to a public defender who is the brother of one of the lead plaintiffs lawyers.