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What Are Defendants Hiding in NuvaRing Multidistrict Litigation?
Multidistrict litigation differs from class action lawsuits in that each plaintiff pursues individual lawsuits, but the discovery and pretrial phases are consolidated for purposes of judicial economy. In Re: NuvaRing Products Liability Litigation, No. 08-md-1964, (E.D.Mo.) is an ongoing federal MDL case against pharmaceutical manufacturers Merck, Schering-Plough and Organon. (Another
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Plaintiff eDiscovery Requests Reveal Damaging Email Threads in Facebook Lawsuit
Facebook has been embroiled in litigation for over two years regarding the validity of some of its users’ “clicks” on its pay-per-click advertising. Plaintiffs in the suit are Facebook advertisers who pay the company every time an internet user clicks on their ads. The plaintiffs sought class action certification and alleged
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Sweeping Plaintiff eDiscovery Ordered for Social Media Accounts in Class Action Lawsuit
Courts have struggled to strike the proper balance between discoverable information and the invasions of privacy rights of plaintiffs with social media accounts. While the general rule of thumb is for defendants to make a threshold showing of relevancy before private information is ordered produced, a federal court in Colorado recently
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Will Leaked Michael Jackson Email Threads Affect the Plaintiff Class Action Lawsuit?
A class action lawsuit by singer Michael Jackson’s former assistants and employees has been filed against concert promoter AEG Live in Los Angeles for over $7 million relating to unpaid wages. The lawsuit alleges the plaintiffs suffered a financial loss and were not paid wages arising from AEG’s knowledge of the singer’s
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Revealed eDiscovery Email Chains Score Points in NCAA Class Action
In the class action lawsuit filed by former NCAA player Ed O’Bannon and joined by 15 other former football and basketball players, plaintiffs allege that their images and likenesses were illegally used by defendants NCAA and Electronic Art Sports for commercial products. As part of discovery, plaintiffs sought and obtained email threads
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Should Courts Consider the Merits of the Suit Before Class Action Certification?
The Supreme Court has been reviewing and defining class action lawsuit certification jurisprudence lately. In the last session, in Wal-Mart v. Dukes, the Supreme Court held the would-be class of female workers alleging discriminatory practices did not satisfy the “commonality” of law and fact requirement of Federal Rule 23(a). This
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Supreme Court to Review Comcast Class Action Lawsuit from Third Circuit
On November 5, 2012, the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the class action case Behrend v. Comcast, No. 10-2865 (3rd Cir. 2011), regarding the standards the lower courts apply to class certification. Plaintiffs are Comcast customers who alleged the defendant engaged in anticompetitive conduction in violation of Section
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Another Class Action Lawsuit Filed Over iPhone Unlock Codes
Apple is facing a new class action lawsuit, filed by named plaintiffs Zach Ward and Thomas Buchar, who alleged that Apple’s policies and “secret” contract with AT&T are in violation of U.S. anti-trust laws which prohibit anti-competitive behaviors. Plaintiffs allege that consumers who purchased an iPhone between October 19, 2008
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Defendants In Hepatitis C Case Seek to Delay Discovery
Twenty-five civil cases have been filed in New Hampshire against Exeter Hospital, alleging a hospital employee knowingly infected patients with the Hepatitis C virus after using needles on himself and reusing the same needles on patients. An attorney for the defendant hospital filed a motion for stay of discovery. According
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“Commonality” in NCAA Class Action Certification After Wal-Mart v. Dukes
The U.S. Supreme Court delivered a blow to class action certification last year in the case Wal-mart v. Dukes, 131 S. Ct. 2541 (2011). The case set a precedent that may affect the ongoing NCAA lawsuit brought by players seeking compensation for use of their names, images and likenesses. In