News from April 2021
MORGAN LEWIS & BOCKIUS LLP: Kathleen Sanzo Named Recipient of 2021 Fdli Distinguished Service and Leadership Award
Morgan Lewis partner Kathleen Sanzo has been selected as a recipient of the Food and Drug Law Institute’s (FDLI) 2021 Distinguished Service and Leadership Award.
Lawsuit filed by Union Pacific employee after toxic chemical leak
A personal injury complaint filed against Union Pacific Railroad Company (UP) in the Pulaski County Circuit Court says that a conductor-yardman-foreman was exposed to and breathed in a toxic chemical during a railcar leak.
Lawsuit: American Way Transportation driver calls Black passengers 'monkeys,' 'chimps,' other slurs
A complaint filed in the Massachusetts Superior Court says that an American Way Transportation driver used racial slurs against a Black passenger.
Judge OKs $65 million settlement for properties around Delaware chicken farm; $16M for the lawyers
GEORGETOWN, Del. (Legal Newsline) – A Delaware judge has approved the $65 million class action settlement that resulted from a lawsuit against a chicken farm in Millsboro.
Mystery surrounding child's fingertip severed by door dooms lawsuit against restaurant
FRANKFORT, Ky. (Legal Newsline) – A Kentucky restaurant has escaped liability in a lawsuit brought by the father of a 5-year-old who lost part of his finger in a bathroom door but couldn’t explain what exactly happened.
W.Va. governor signs legislation changing how asbestos cases are filed
CHARLESTON – Gov. Jim Justice has signed House Bill 2495, which requires plaintiffs in asbestos cases to file a sworn information form that specifies evidentiary basis for each claim and provide supporting documentation.
AstraZeneca escapes liability for man's flesh-eating infection on genitalia; Drug's label was FDA-approved
WILMINGTON, Del. (Legal Newsline) – AstraZeneca has received a positive ruling in Delaware in a lawsuit that alleges it failed to warn users of side effects of the blood sugar drug Farxiga.
NYC companies pay $30K settlement after toddler slips during swimming class, busts lip
A New York City man settled with the Mercedes Club fitness center after his toddler slipped and fell in the pool area in October of 2019.
Jury will decide if Oregon tourism official was fired for whistleblowing
SALEM, Ore. (Legal Newsline) - Oregon’s highest court has reversed an appeals court’s dismissal of a wrongful-discharge suit by a former state agency official, saying it was up to the jury to decide whether it was reasonable for her to think she was fired for whistleblowing.
Kentucky accused of unethical commerce policies to protect dying coal industry
Four Kentucky Public Service Commission (PSC) executives are accused of protectionist policy in federal court.
Cozen O’Connor’s Heather Marx named to The American Lawyer’s 2021 Midwest Trailblazers list
Heather Marx, a member of Cozen O’Connor’s Commercial Litigation practice and vice-chair of the firm’s Trade Remedies practice, has been named to The American Lawyer’s 2021 inaugural list of Midwest Trailblazers.
Used condoms and skunks: Lawsuit alleging apartment complex was far from 'luxurious' gets second chance
SANTA ANA, Calif. (Legal Newsline) - A California apartment complex may have to defend itself in a lawsuit over claims of false advertising and allowing the property to be littered with dog feces and used condoms after an appeals court reversed a judge’s refusal to certify a class action by disgruntled former tenants.
Kroger takes on class action from woman who didn't enroll in savings club but wants savings
COLUMBUS, Ohio (Legal Newsline) – Kroger is fighting a class action lawsuit against it over the prices it charges health insurers for generic drugs by arguing Ohio law has no claim for fraud in the way plaintiffs are pursuing.
Maryland Farm Bureau feared ramifications of bill that would have let attorney general team with private lawyers
ANNAPOLIS (Legal Newsline) - A proposal that would have allowed the state attorney general to hire contingency fee lawyers to sue oil companies on climate change claims was so "poorly written" and "open-ended" it sparked concerns among farmers that they could get dragged into protracted litigation.
Lawsuit: Arkansas woman crushed by railroad ties seeks payback from Tractor Supply
An Elkins woman called out Tractor Supply in the Washington County Circuit Court after her legs were crushed by railroad ties at the farm retailer's Springdale location.
Lawsuit alleges negligence in post-op fall after gastric bypass
A Blytheville couple accused the Little Rock Baptist Health Medical Center of medical negligence in the Pulaski County Circuit Court.
New York's brawl with Amazon moves back to state court
NEW YORK (Legal Newsline) – It should be a state judge who decides whether New York Attorney General Letitia James is overzealous in her prosecution of Amazon or if the company bungled its response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Johnson & Johnson loses Mississippi fight over AG's talc-labeling lawsuit
JACKSON, Miss. (Legal Newsline) - Federal law doesn’t prevent the state of Mississippi from suing Johnson & Johnson over its failure to put a cancer warning on talcum powder products, the state’s highest court ruled, carving out an independent role for the state in regulating certain cosmetic products.
NYC has to settle for $1.9M after claiming it lost $4.3M trying to buy ventilators
MIAMI (Legal Newsline) – New York recovered about half of the money it claims a medical supply company scammed it out of during last year’s rush to purchase ventilators.
Widow's lawsuit against Amtrak and Conrail: Asbestos, diesel exposure caused husband's colon cancer
A Kissimee woman filed a complaint against the Consolidated Rail Corporation and National Railroad Passenger Corporation (Amtrak) after allegedly unsafe working conditions caused her relative's death.