Mealey's Class Actions : Mealey's : Legal News & Analysis

Mealey's Class Actions

November 14, 2025
Plaintiffs Get Discovery Extension, Extra Depositions In TIAA Cross-Selling Case

NEW YORK — Over opposition from nonparties and defendants in a putative class Employee Retirement Income Security Act case potentially involving participants in thousands of retirement plans, a New York federal judge on Nov. 13 extended the fact discovery deadline and authorized the plaintiffs to take 10 additional depositions of nonparty plan sponsors.
November 14, 2025
4th Circuit Stands By Reversal Of Class Certification In Suit Against Auto Insurer

RICHMOND, Va. — The Fourth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals denied an insured’s petition for rehearing en banc of a split panel’s ruling that a lower federal court abused its discretion in certifying a class in a lawsuit alleging that an insurer improperly decreased the compensation for totaled vehicles, standing by the panel’s holding that common questions do not predominate because the claims are “essentially individualized claims requiring mini trials as to each.”
November 14, 2025
‘Opt-Outs’ From $95 Million Siri Eavesdropping Settlement Appeal To 9th Circuit

OAKLAND, Calif. — Nearly 13,000 purported class members and objectors who allegedly opted out of a $95 million settlement of a 6-year-old class action accusing Apple Inc. of collecting unauthorized recordings of Apple device users via its Siri digital assistant filed notice in California federal court that they will appeal the court’s final approval of the settlement to the Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals.
November 14, 2025
11th Circuit Affirms Order Declining To Compel Arbitration In Telemarketing Suit

ATLANTA — The 11th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals affirmed a lower court’s order denying a motion to compel arbitration by a company that sells automotive care products in a putative class suit accusing it of violating the federal Telephone Consumer Protection Act and similar Florida law by sending out unsolicited telemarketing messages, finding that the company failed to show the existence of a valid arbitration agreement.
November 13, 2025
Wells Fargo Agrees To Pay $84M To Resolve Class Suit Over ESOP Dividends

MINNEAPOLIS — Wells Fargo & Co. would pay $84 million to resolve a class action against it and two other defendants under a proposed settlement the plaintiffs on Nov. 12 asked a Minnesota federal court to grant preliminary approval; the Employee Retirement Income Security Act suit challenges how Wells Fargo used dividends of its preferred stock held in its 401(k)’s employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) fund.
November 13, 2025
Workers File WARN Act Class Suits Against Sonder In New York, Delaware

Employees of Sonder USA Inc. in San Francisco and New York filed two class complaints, one in a federal court in New York and one in a federal court in Delaware, accusing the company that manages short-term rentals of violating the federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act and state WARN acts when it abruptly ceased operations and terminated employees with one day’s notice.
November 12, 2025
Stay Denied In Class Suit Over Insurer’s ‘Discriminatory Advertising’ On Facebook

SAN DIEGO — A California federal judge denied an insurer’s motion for a stay in a putative class action accusing the insurer of “discriminatory advertising” on Facebook, finding that the insurer failed to show how a ruling in a parallel state court case would have a “preclusive effect” on the instant case.
November 12, 2025
8th Circuit Upholds Dismissal Of Nike Sustainability Labeling Class Suit

ST. LOUIS — A putative class complaint by a Missouri woman who sued a clothing maker for allegedly misleading consumers with its labeling and advertisement of a “sustainable” clothing line was properly dismissed with prejudice as the plaintiff had seven months to seek leave to file a second amended complaint after the defendant “point[ed] out glaring pleading deficiencies” and the plaintiff failed “‘to allege facts sufficient to state a claim against [Nike],’” the Eighth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals ruled, quoting Springdale Educ. Ass’n v. Springdale Sch. Dist.
November 12, 2025
Judge Denies Preliminary Settlement Approval In Unsolicited Texts Class Suit

TACOMA, Wash. — A federal judge in Washington denied preliminary approval of a $700,000 settlement in a putative class action alleging that real estate companies sent unsolicited commercial text messages in violation of state and federal law, finding issues with the class definition and notice, deadlines, claimant awards, proposed changes to the defendants’ practices, releases and claim forms.
November 12, 2025
Damages Expert Excluded In Dispute Over In-Game Purchases In Mobile Application

SEATTLE — An expert retained by a pair of consumers who seek to represent a class of others who were allegedly deceived into making in-game purchases while playing online gambling games cannot opine on models used to calculate damages, a Washington federal judge ruled, finding that the expert has not demonstrated how he is qualified under Federal Rule of Evidence 702.
November 12, 2025
University Of Pennsylvania Alumna Files Class Suit Following Data Breach

PHILADELPHIA — The University of Pennsylvania (UPenn) failed to protect its network containing personally identifiable information (PII) of students, alumni, faculty and donors, resulting in cybercriminals obtaining access to the university’s systems and sending “‘a series of mass emails’” to more than 700,000 people that were critical of the university’s security practices and institutional culture, a UPenn alumna alleges in a putative class complaint filed against the school’s trustees in a federal court in Pennsylvania.
November 12, 2025
Reconsideration Of Judge’s Refusal To Dismiss False Pricing Suit Denied

LOS ANGELES — A California federal judge denied a motion by a children’s clothing company for reconsideration of a prior order refusing to dismiss a putative class action against it for violating California’s unfair competition law (UCL) by advertising false “discount” prices, rebuffing the company’s arguments that the court improperly allowed a claim for equitable restitution.
November 11, 2025
Judge Defers Ruling On Motion To Compel Class Members Who Sued Lender To Arbitrate

SAN FRANCISCO — A California federal judge on Nov. 10 ordered a motion to compel arbitration held in abeyance, finding that genuine disputes remain as to the argument by consumer loan app operators that binding arbitration agreements exist as to more than 235,000 of 250,000 certified class members who sued the app operators for concealing fees while operating as an unlicensed lender in violation of California’s unfair competition law (UCL) and California finance laws.
November 11, 2025
Class Suit Says UPS, GE And Boeing’s Recklessness Caused November Plane Crash

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Recklessness by United Parcel Service Inc., General Electric Co. and Boeing Co. caused the Nov. 4 crash of a UPS MD-11 cargo aircraft as it attempted to depart a Louisville airport for Hawaii, airport neighbors allege in a putative class complaint filed in a federal court in Kentucky.
November 11, 2025
Consolidation Of 13 Data Breach Class Action Cases Granted, Interim Counsel OK’d

MILWAUKEE — A Wisconsin federal judge consolidated 13 class action lawsuits against a corporation over a 2023 data breach that exposed personal information of its employees and clients; the judge additionally granted the consolidated plaintiffs’ request to appoint interim co-lead class counsel and an executive committee to oversee the coordinated litigation.
November 10, 2025
Supreme Court Hears Arguments On Immunity Appealability In Forced Labor Class Case

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Federal government contractors following federal government instructions are immune from a class case alleging forced labor, and a denial of such immunity is immediately appealable, the attorney representing the for-profit company that operates a private immigration detention facility in Colorado argued Nov. 10 before the U.S. Supreme Court.
November 10, 2025
PayPal Denied Arbitration Of Content Creators’ Claims Over ‘Honey’ Browser Extension

SAN JOSE, Calif. — A California federal judge on Nov. 7 deferred ruling on an administrative motion to relate four putative class actions brought by influencers and content creators active on YouTube and Instagram who accuse PayPal Inc. of interfering with prospective economic relations and violating California’s unfair competition law (UCL) by using a popular browser extension to redirect their profits from market affiliate links to itself.
November 10, 2025
8th Circuit Denies BNSF’s Petition For Rehearing On Reversal Of EEOC Suit Rulings

OMAHA, Neb. — An Eighth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel denied a petition filed by BNSF Railway Co. to revisit a ruling reversing and remanding a trial court’s partial dismissal and grant of summary judgment on claims the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed alleging that the company created a hostile work environment for a female employee and a class of similarly situated female workers.
November 10, 2025
Judge Holds ‘Puff Bar’ Vape Makers Liable For Deceptive Marketing Claims

NEW YORK — A New York federal judge on Nov. 7 entered default judgment, finding two companies that sell “Puff Bar”-brand synthetic nicotine vapes liable for claims brought against them by a consumer for violating New York and New Jersey consumer laws, but declined to enter judgment on the plaintiff’s request for $43,614,000 in damages after denying her motion for class certification.
November 10, 2025
Sutter Health Settles Anticompetitive Tying Class Suit For $228.5 Million

SAN FRANCISCO — A more than decade-long class suit accusing Sutter Health of monopolizing northern California hospital markets to raise prices and decrease competition will be settled for $228.5 million, according to a federal magistrate judge in California’s orders granting final approval of the settlement, attorney fees, costs and service awards.
November 07, 2025
Federal Judge Grants Final Approval Of $1.35M Settlement Of Data Breach Suit

BALTIMORE — A Maryland federal judge granted final approval of a $1.35 million settlement of negligence, contractual and other claims in a consolidated lawsuit brought against a health care provider following a 2023 data breach, holding that the “settlement is fair, reasonable, and adequate” and satisfies the requirements of Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23.
November 07, 2025
U.S. High Court Justice Stays Ruling On Marcos Funds Challenged By Class

WASHINGTON, D.C. — A U.S. Supreme Court justice stayed pending further order a Second Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals decision that cleared the way for the Republic of the Philippines to receive the millions of dollars in a U.S. bank account opened by former President Ferdinand E. Marcos; that decision is being challenged by a class of individuals who were subject to Marcos’ human rights abuses.
November 07, 2025
High Court Signals Interest In Petition For Review Of ERISA Releases Ruling

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Supreme Court on Nov. 6 requested a response to a certiorari petition in which an employer and related entities seek review of a Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals ruling in a long-running class action concerning severance benefits, with the petitioners arguing that the decision “creates a roadmap for plaintiffs to evade” releases of Employee Retirement Income Security Act claims.
November 07, 2025
Split U.S. Supreme Court Stays Injunction In Passport Gender Policy Class Case

WASHINGTON, D.C. — A U.S. Supreme Court divided by party lines on Nov. 6 stayed a trial court’s preliminary injunction that had halted the enforcement of a January executive order (EO) that removed the option to designate “X” on passports for those individuals who do not identify as female or male or who wish to keep a specified gender off their passports.
November 06, 2025
6th Circuit Denies Objectors’ Appeal Of $600M Ohio Train Derailment Settlement

CINCINNATI — A Sixth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel on Nov. 5 dismissed the appeal of a group of individuals who objected to the $600 million class action settlement in the Ohio train derailment lawsuit, ruling that the objectors failed to pay the $850,000 appeal bond in a timely manner and holding that they offered no valid justification for failing to pay the appeal bond.