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SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2009
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NEWS ABOUT: class action

class action stories: 17 news summaries

Lawsuits Over Chinese Drywall Mounting

More homeowners cite damage, sickness, as feds finish inquiry

Oct 8, 09 9:00 AM CDT
(Newser) - With the controversy over Chinese drywall about to come to a head, the New York Times checks in on the issue and finds hundreds of lawsuits piling up around the country. The imported material, which became common as builders scrambled for supplies during the housing boom, is said to be... More »

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China • housing • class action • civil lawsuits • housing bubble • Chinese drywall

 Female Brokers Sue 
 BofA for Discrimination 

Men got higher retention bonuses, they allege

Jun 25, 09 3:36 PM CDT
(Newser) - A former Merrill Lynch broker is leading a class-action lawsuit against Bank of America for offering female workers lower retention bonuses, Reuters reports. The suit alleges that Merrill had a longtime practice of steering wealthier clients to its male brokers. Because of that, when BofA acquired the firm and offered... More »

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Bank of America • Merrill Lynch • class action • gender discrimination • civil lawsuits • Jaime Goodman

NAACP Accuses Banks
of Loan Discrimination

Blacks were forced into subprime mortgages, group says

Mar 13, 09 10:49 AM CDT
(AP) - The NAACP is accusing Wells Fargo and HSBC of forcing black people into subprime mortgages while whites with identical qualifications got lower rates. Class-action lawsuits were to be filed against the banks today in federal court in Los Angeles. Similar NAACP lawsuits are pending against a dozen other subprime lenders.... More »

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subprime mortgages • home loans • class action • NAACP • subprime crisis • subprime lender • financial crisis

OBITUARY

'Winston Man' Dies of Cancer Amidst Trial

Actor was set to testify against tobacco giant RJ Reynolds

Mar 3, 09 1:55 PM CST
(Newser) - Alan Landers, the one-time face of Winston cigarettes, has died at 68 of lung and throat cancer in the middle of a multi-million dollar legal action against his former employers, the Guardian reports. Landers, who was to testify next month, was among about 9,000 Florida smokers suing cigarette companies... More »

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Florida • advertising • lung cancer • smoking • cigarettes • class action • RJ Reynolds • Winston • throat cancer • Alan Landers • Big Tobacco

Apple Customer Sues Over iPhone 3G Glitches

Service nowhere close to what's advertised, complaint alleges

Aug 21, 08 1:40 PM CDT
(Newser) - An Alabama woman is suing Apple after purchasing the new iPhone 3G, alleging the gizmo does not nearly live it to its hype—plagued by problems like slow email and text-messaging, excessive dropped calls, and the inability to connect to AT&T’s 3G network. Her complaints are echoed across... More »

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cell phones • Apple • lawsuit • class action • Technology • iPhone 3G • glitches

Airborne Will Offer Refunds Over Ad Claims

Maker of fizzy orange tablet settles with feds after cold-cure boasts

Aug 15, 08 4:22 PM CDT
(Newser) - Airborne—the fizzy orange tablet long pitched as a way to cure and prevent the common cold—will refund consumers the price of up to six purchases because it has no evidence to back up those claims, the Washington Post reports. Under a deal cut yesterday, the company will add... More »

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vitamins • lawsuit • class action • false advertising • Airborne

Star Lawyer Gets 5 Years
in Bribery Rap

Class-action leader Scruggs 'could not be more ashamed'

Jun 27, 08 5:50 PM CDT
(Newser) - Disgraced Mississippi lawyer Dickie Scruggs was sentenced to the maximum 5 years in prison today in a judicial bribery scheme; at the hearing, the class-action pioneer said, “I could not be more ashamed than I am today.” The judge hinted he might shave some time off if Scruggs... More »

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Hurricane Katrina • bribery • Mississippi • class action • Dickie Scruggs

Grand Theft Auto Sex Scenes Fail
to Excite

Lawsuit over hidden footage gets few takers

Jun 25, 08 8:34 AM CDT
(Newser) - Moral outrage that sparked a class action lawsuit over the hidden sex scenes in the wildly popular Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas has failed to translate into complaints, the New York Times reports. Despite the millions of copies of the game sold to date, only 2,676 offended owners have... More »

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class action • settlement • Grand Theft Auto • video games

 WR Grace Makes 
 Deal to Settle 
 Asbestos Claims  

Chemical company hopes to leave bankruptcy by year's end

Apr 8, 08 1:21 PM CDT
(Newser) - Chemical company WR Grace cleared a major hurdle in its 7-year effort to emerge from bankruptcy yesterday, agreeing to pay more than $3 billion to settle asbestos-related personal injury lawsuits, reports the Baltimore Sun. The deal, which a bankruptcy judge must approve, would establish a trust fund to settle current... More »

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cancer • bankruptcy • asbestos • class action • civil lawsuits • WR Grace • mesothelioma

J&J Hid Birth Control Patch Risks: Suit

Scientist accused of veiling heart attack, stroke dangers

Apr 6, 08 4:40 PM CDT
(Newser) - Johnson & Johnson doctored data to get its birth control patch FDA-approved, according to a class action lawsuit that claims Ortho-Evra caused blood clots, heart attacks, and strokes. A J&J scientist allegedly doctored the data with a "correction factor" for the FDA, lowering estrogen-related risk by 60%: He... More »

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FDA • estrogen • blood clots • birth control • Johnson and Johnson • class action • birth control pill • Ortho-Evra • birth control patch

Starbucks Balks at Paying Back Barista Tips

Firm challenges court ruling, calls it 'unfair beyond reason'

Mar 28, 08 9:41 AM CDT
(Newser) - Starbucks is defying a California court ruling, arguing a judge has created a tempest in a tip jar, reports the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. The court ruled the coffee shop must pay nearly $100 million to California baristas forced to share tips with their supervisors. Similar suits have been filed in Minnesota... More »

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California • Howard Schultz • Starbucks • lawsuit • class action • barista • labor code • tips

Starbucks
Owes Baristas
$100M in Tips 

Court says supervisors shouldn't be taking a cut out of  tip jar

Mar 21, 08 7:14 AM CDT
(Newser) - Starbucks will have to shell out more than $100 million to its baristas in California because they had to share the tip jar with supervisors, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer reports. A judge ruled that the coffee giant violated the state's labor code and ordered it to make amends to 120,000... More »

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California • Starbucks • coffee • lawsuit • class action • labor code

Exxon Asks Court to Toss $2.5B Payout

Supreme's justices appear to be split
in Valdez case

Feb 27, 08 8:52 PM CST
(Newser) - Nearly 20 years after the Exxon Valdez spilled 11 million gallons of crude oil in Prince William Sound, the company asked the Supreme Court to reject a ruling that it pay $2.5 billion in punitive damages. Judges appeared split in today's arguments, USA Today reports, making a tie... More »

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John Roberts • Alaska • Ruth Bader Ginsburg • Anthony Kennedy • oil spill • ExxonMobil • class action • shipping • Exxon Valdez • Samuel A. Alito • US Supreme Court • Joseph Hazelwood

Supreme Court Denies Tobacco Industry Appeal

Justices won't intervene in W. Va. case involving hundreds of lawsuits

Feb 25, 08 12:30 PM CST
(Newser) - The Supreme Court today handed the tobacco industry a setback, rejecting without comment an appeal contending that West Virginia’s two-tiered system of consolidating cases is unconstitutional. In their appeal, industry lawyers called the process “deeply and fundamentally flawed,” the Wall Street Journal reports, but the plaintiffs' lawyers... More »

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smoking • lawsuit • asbestos • class action • tobacco companies • US Supreme Court • product liability

Diamonds
Are a Girl's
Best Refund

Class-action suit forces gem giant De Beers to cut consumers a check

Jan 21, 08 10:13 AM CST
(Newser) - If you bought a diamond—any diamond—between 1994 and 2006, De Beers owes you money. The jewelry behemoth recently settled a class-action lawsuit that accused it of driving up diamond prices with monopolistic practices. To compensate, it will pay consumers up to 59% of their bling’s original price.... More »

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lawsuit • diamond • class action • De Beers • settlement • jewelry • monopolistic practices

Tyco-Case Lawyers
Seek Record $460M Fee

Claim 488,000 hours working for plaintiff

Nov 1, 07 2:32 PM CDT
(Newser) - It would be the largest payday ever in a securities class action suit: three law firms tomorrow will ask a federal judge in New Hampshire to approve $460 million in fees and $29 million in expenses for their work for the plaintiffs in the suit against Tyco, the Wall Street ... More »

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lawyer • class action • civil lawsuits • Tyco International

Students Win $2.85M on SATs

College Board settles class-action lawsuit over incorrect scores

Aug 25, 07 6:40 AM CDT
(Newser) - Students who took the SAT exam in 2005 and received incorrect scores have settled a class-action lawsuit with the test makers to the tune of $2.85 million, the New York Times reports. Over 4,000 students who sat the examination received scores that were artificially low—as much as... More »

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SAT • college admissions • college • lawsuit • test score • student • college board • class action • score • college student

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