News from February 2021
Robinhood sued for 'playing God' over traders
Robinhood, an online stock broker, has been hit with a wave of lawsuits over its recent handling of stock trades in Gamestop, AMC Theaters and Blackberry.
Utah Supreme Court OKs lawsuit over woman drowning in city park trying to save dogs
SALT LAKE CITY (Legal Newsline) - Salt Lake City can be sued by the family of a woman who drowned after trying to recover her dogs from a fast-flowing creek in a city park, the Utah Supreme Court ruled, reversing a lower court that dismissed the case under a state law protecting recreational areas from liability.
Calif. court approves attorneys fees 8x more than client recovered
LOS ANGELES (Legal Newsline) – A Lemon Law defendant will have to pay almost $170,000 to plaintiffs attorney despite the client only recovering $22,000.
Elderberry products violate federal law, lawsuit complains
SAN DIEGO (Leal Newsline) – A class action lawsuit alleges PharmaCare’s elderberry products are illegal to sell.
Southern California gym sued by county; Customers allegedly not using face masks
LOS ANGELES (Legal Newsline) – A California county is suing a gym that is allegedly violating social-distancing orders targeting the Southern California Region.
BALLARD SPAHR LLP: Ballard Spahr’s Salt Lake City Office Certified by Utah Center for Legal Inclusion
The Salt Lake City office of Ballard Spahr has achieved certification from the Utah Center for Legal Inclusion (UCLI), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to advancing equity and inclusion in Utah’s legal profession.
EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY COMMISSION: Aimbridge Hospitality and AH 2007 Management to Pay $400,000 to Settle EEOC Pay Discrimination Lawsuit
The former operators of a Courtyard by Marriott hotel in Monroe, La., will pay $400,000 and provide extensive non-monetary relief to settle a pay discrimination lawsuit brought by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the federal agency announced.
GREENBERG TRAURIG LLP: Mike Schaengold Participated in PubKGroup’s Government Contracts Year in Review Program for 6th Consecutive Year
Mike Schaengold, chair of global law firm Greenberg Traurig, LLP’s Government Contracts & Projects Practice and PubKLaw Advisory Board member, spoke at PubKGroup’s 6th Annual Year in Review webinar conference series.
GREENBERG TRAURIG LLP: Greenberg Traurig’s Yosbel Ibarra and Hector Sanchez Appointed to International Bar Association Committees
Yosbel A. Ibarra and Hector D. Sanchez Fernandez, attorneys at global law firm Greenberg Traurig, LLP, were recently appointed to International Bar Association (IBA) committees, each to serve a two-year term from Jan. 2021 to Dec. 2022.
Kentucky court reverses talc defense victory after J&J witness says he used Baby Powder
FRANKFORT, Ky. (Legal Newsline) - A Kentucky appeals court ordered a new trial in the case of a woman who claims she contracted cancer from talcum powder, saying it was improper to allow Johnson & Johnson witness to testify that he and his family used Johnson’s Baby Powder for decades.
Woman raped while brothers murdered as 911 tried to find address can't sue county
LINCOLN, Neb. (Legal Newsline) – The Nebraska Supreme Court has rejected a lawsuit brought by the survivor of a double-homicide who was sexually assaulted while 911 responders tried to find her.
Md. court determines if apartment building owner liable for murders in parking lot
ANNAPOLIS, Md. (Legal Newsline) – The shooting deaths of two teenagers in a Maryland parking lot are not the fault of the property’s owner.
AstraZeneca sued by shareholders over COVID-19 vaccine
NEW YORK (Legal Newsline) – The retirement system for public employees in a Michigan county is the lead plaintiff in a shareholder lawsuit against AstraZeneca over its difficulties in creating a COVID-19 vaccine.
Public interest law firm asks federal appeals court to decertify class in USAA life insurance suit
NEW ORLEANS (Legal Newsline) - The Washington Legal Foundation (WLF), a public-interest law firm, has asked a federal appeals court to decertify a class of USAA life insurance policyholders, who are alleging that the company breached their life insurance policies by considering “unlisted factors” when setting their cost of insurance rates.
Attorneys general take $15M from McKinsey opioid settlement for their professional association
WASHINGTON (Legal Newsline) - A $574 million settlement between the McKinsey & Co. consulting firm and state attorneys general includes a $15 million payment to their professional group, the National Association of Attorneys General.
DOJ slush fund -the sequel- back under Biden Administration, critics say
WASHINGTON (Legal Newsline) - Multiple news sources are reporting that the Biden administration is resurrecting a corporate shakedown scheme established during the Obama years that funneled millions to left wing, community activist groups.
Bayer to pay $2B to settle Roundup claims; Lawyers to ask for $170 million
SAN FRANCISCO (Legal Newsline) – Bayer says it has reached a formal $2 billion agreement with the lawyers pushing tens of thousands of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma lawsuit.
Latest lawsuit over cheddar and sour cream Ruffles is another failure, company says
SANTA ANA, Calif. (Legal Newsline) – Class action lawyers told to get to work failed when they did so, a federal judge is being told.
Feds say anesthesia company using courtrooms to eliminate competition
GREENBELT, Md. (Legal Newsline) – Genus Lifesciences’ attempt to use litigation to corner the market on a cocaine-based anesthetic must fail, the federal government is telling a federal judge.
Telescope protestor loses lawsuit over police reaction at Mauna Kea
HONOLULU (Legal Newsline) – A Hawai’i police chief can use officers from a different county to quell protests, a state appeals court has ruled in a lawsuit concerning a proposed telescope on the volcano Mauna Kea.