Here’s info on the proposed settlement in this Sony BMG case: The attorneys in a New York class action lawsuit filed against Sony BMG and its two copy-protection software providers, SunnComm and First 4 Internet, proposed a settlement on Wednesday requiring–among other stipulations–cash payments to plaintiffs and consumer-friendly changes to copyright holders’ anti-piracy initiatives. The…
Monthly Archives: December 2005
Jury Awards $172M to CA Wal-Mart Employees
Breaking news from the Associated Press: OAKLAND, Calif. – A California jury on Thursday awarded $172 million to thousands of employees at Wal-Mart Stores Inc. who claimed they were illegally denied lunch breaks. The world’s largest retailer was ordered to pay $57 million in general damages and $115 million in punitive damages to about 116,000…
Class Action Over Pfizer’s Depo-Provera
Another headache for Pfizer: Canadian women looking for a trouble-free way to prevent pregnancy may be making themselves susceptible to osteoporosis, a condition that causes bones to become fragile and more likely to fracture. A $700-million class action lawsuit has been filed against the makers of Depo-Provera, a birth control injection prescribed to more than…
Canadian class action over Bayer’s Baycol
Two Manitoba women have filed a class action against Bayer, maker of the cholesterol-reducing drug Baycol: The German-based company voluntarily removed the drug from the market in August 2001 after 31 deaths were attributed to its use. Five months later, Bayer confirmed that almost 100 deaths were linked to Baycol. It’s believed the drug has…
Judge consolidates class-action suits against pasta maker
From the Kansas City Star: A federal judge has consolidated numerous class-action lawsuits against American Italian Pasta Co. and appointed three locals of the Iron Workers union as lead plaintiff in the case. U.S. District Judge Ortrie Smith today ruled that the cases shared factual and legal issues, “and consolidation will streamline matters and prevent…
College fees in California challenged
“A group of out-of-state college students filed a class-action lawsuit Wednesday challenging a law that lets some illegal immigrants who graduate from California high schools pay lower in-state fees at the state’s public colleges and universities.” The 2002 law allows students who attend at least three years of high school in California to qualify for…
Settlement in GE refrigerator class action suit
Own a GE fridge? Read on: FORT MYERS – An NBC2 investigation has prompted appliance giant General Electric to replace defective refrigerators, not only in Florida, but across the country. The company has reached a settlement deal with plaintiffs in a class action lawsuit filed after our story. The 28 page settlement is big news…
Philip Morris *wins* a case
AP is reporting that “the Illinois Supreme Court handed the tobacco industry a huge victory Thursday by tossing out a $10.1 billion fraud judgment against Philip Morris USA over the marketing of its “light” cigarettes.” The Illinois case came to the state’s high court from Madison County Judge Nicholas Byron, who in March 2003 ordered…
Vioxx class action in Australia
Australians are launching a class action against Merck over Vioxx: More than 400 Australians have launched a class action for personal damages from the manufacturers of the anti-arthritis drug, Vioxx. The drug has been found to increase the risk of stroke and heart attacks, and was globally recalled in September last year. Law firm Slater…
Pfizer starting huge Celebrex study
BusinessWeek Online is reporting that Pfizer is searching for a definitive answer on celebrex by funding a “multiyear, $100 million study to finally find out if the painkiller is safe.” “The study, being run independently by the clinic, will compare three drugs: Celebrex (the Cox-2 drug from Pfizer), ibuprofen (sold under the brand name Motrin),…