A selection of the need-to-know civil justice news for August 26-September 1.
‘Worthless’ Subway ‘Footlong’ Sandwich Settlement is Thrown Out
Jonathan Stempel | Reuters
A U.S. appeals court on Friday threw out a class-action settlement intended to resolve claims that the Subway sandwich chain deceived customers by selling “Footlong” subs that were less than a foot long. The 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago called the settlement “utterly worthless,” and said the customers’ lawyers were not entitled to attorney’s fees for convincing Subway it was better to make the case go away than fight.
Nixing the $520,000 ‘Footlong’
The Editorial Board | Wall Street Journal
The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals has given the plaintiffs bar something to chew on. Writing for a three-member panel, Judge Diane Sykes on Friday threw out a class-action lawsuit settlement involving the Subway food chain’s “Footlong” sandwich on grounds that the only beneficiaries were the lawyers.
Roche Seeks NJ High Court Review of Accutane Expert Ruling
Bill Wichert | Law360
Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd. on Monday urged the New Jersey Supreme Court to review a state appellate decision reviving more than 2,000 cases alleging the company’s acne medication Accutane caused patients to develop Crohn’s disease, saying the court needed to clarify the appropriate degree of judicial scrutiny in evaluating expert testimony.
Google’s $8.5m Class-Action Privacy Payout Goes To: Lawyers’ Alma Maters, Web Giant’s Pals
Kieren McCarthy | The Register
The US Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has narrowly approved an $8.5m Google payout for privacy violations following a lengthy argument over who should receive the money. Despite the class-action lawsuit being brought on behalf of roughly 129 million folks in the US who Googled between 2006 and 2014, none of the money will actually go to them but will instead be split between the attorneys and organizations they have designated.
Food-Court Follies: Fraud Suits Fall Apart after Plaintiffs’ Candid Admissions During Discovery
As many people learned from watching legendary radio and TV show host Art Linkletter (or from simply being parents), kids say the darnedest things. Similarly, those of us who follow class actions alleging misleading labeling of consumer goods have discovered that adult plaintiffs can say the darnedest things, too.
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