Class action settlements in consumer fraud cases have generated significant controversy in recent years. Critics opine that these settlements primarily benefit lawyers, and that class members have often suffered little or no...more
What is the value of the class action mechanism if no redress is provided to plaintiffs at all? Is the class action about providing a remedy to plaintiffs, is it just about getting the defendant company to pay something to...more
We have been talking about Frank v. Gaos, (No. 17-961), since the U.S. Supreme Court decided to tackle the extreme case of the use of the cy pres doctrine in the context of class action cases. The settlement is a cy pres-only...more
A few weeks ago, the Duke Law Center for Judicial Studies held a conference on class action settlements in San Diego, to discuss best practices in the wake of the likely Rule 23 amendments. Like all of its conferences, this...more
District Court Judge Gonzalo Curiel recently considered and rejected—for the second time—a proposed class action settlement involving false advertising claims against a defendant jeans manufacturer. Hofmann v. Dutch, LLC,...more
The Southern District of California rejected a pre-certification class settlement because it provided for an inadequate coupon payment and a tenuous cy pres award, and included a clear sailing attorney fee provision....more
The district court in Dennis v. Kellogg recently granted preliminary approval of a revised class action settlement. Kellogg is a class action alleging unjust enrichment, as well as violation of California’s Unfair Competition...more
In a recent decision, In re Baby Products Antitrust Litigation, 2013 U.S. App. LEXIS 3379 (3d Cir. Feb. 19, 2013), the Third Circuit vacated the district court’s order approving a $35.5 million class action settlement which...more