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

Mealey's Class Actions

October 03, 2025
Some Subclasses Certified In Accellion Privacy Suit; Some Expert Opinions Struck

SAN JOSE, Calif. — The plaintiffs in a consolidated class action over the hacking of software created by Accellion Inc. saw some of their expert’s testimony stricken for his lack of experience by a California federal judge who also partly granted the plaintiffs’ motion to certify several subclasses related to Accellion’s customers who were affected by the data breach incidents.
October 02, 2025
After Bench Trial, Judge Rules For 401(k) Plan Fiduciaries In Management Dispute

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Saying the Employee Retirement Income Security Act “demands prudence, not perfection,” a Tennessee federal judge entered judgment in favor of AutoZone Inc. and related defendants following a bench trial in the class action that was filed over several aspects of their management of a 401(k) plan.
October 02, 2025
Ga. Federal Judge Grants, Denies Class Certification In Drinking Water PFAS Case

ROME, Ga. — A federal judge in Georgia granted class certification to a group of Summerville, Ga., water and sewer subscribers and ratepayers as part of a proposed “Damages Class” for past rate increases caused by toxic per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in their groundwater but denied certification for future increases and denied certification of a proposed “Injunction Class” in a lawsuit seeking damages for several chemical manufacturers’ involvement in the contamination.
October 02, 2025
Deadlines Partially Stayed After Summary Judgment In Detainee Bond Denial Case

TACOMA, Wash. — A federal judge in Washington issued a minute order on Oct. 1 partially granting a motion to stay deadlines in a class suit accusing federal officials of denying bond requests by the lead plaintiff and others being held at the Northwest Immigration and Customs Enforcement Processing Center (NWIPC) due to the federal government shutdown; the minute order was filed one day after a motion for partial summary judgment by one of the two detainee classes was granted.
October 02, 2025
Split 5th Circuit Grants Rehearing En Banc In Challenging AEA Removals

NEW ORLEANS — A divided Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals granted the federal government’s petition for rehearing en banc after a divided panel blocked the federal government’s removal from the United States under the Alien Enemies Act (AEA) of three named individuals and the putative class they seek to represent who are all alleged by the government to be Venezuelan nationals who are members of Tren de Aragua.
October 02, 2025
$2M Settlement Of California Federal Wage-And-Hour Class Action Gets Final OK

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A federal magistrate judge in California granted final approval to a $2 million class action settlement to resolve long-running claims that the owners of facilities that supply forage products violated the California Labor Code and the California unfair competition law (UCL) by, among other things, failing to pay nonexempt employees minimum and overtime wages and failing to comply with rest and meal period requirements.
October 01, 2025
Judge Nixes PFAS Carpet Case Against 3M, DuPont, Says Allegations Not ‘Adequate’

MINNEAPOLIS — A federal judge in Minnesota on Sept. 30 dismissed a class action against the 3M Co., E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Co. and DuPont affiliates, ruling that the complaint “does not include adequate factual allegations” that the plaintiffs’ injuries were connected to the defendants’ alleged awareness of the health risks posed by stain-repellent products containing per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) that the companies made and sold to carpet manufacturers and others.
October 01, 2025
$15M Deal In Pipeline Securities Fraud Case Endorsed ‘Overwhelmingly,’ Class Says

PHILADELPHIA — The lead plaintiffs in a long and winding securities fraud class action related to the construction of a hydraulic fracturing pipeline on Sept. 30 filed a reply brief in Pennsylvania federal court seeking final approval of a class action settlement for a cash payment of $15 million on grounds that the agreement has been “overwhelmingly endorsed by the Class.”
October 01, 2025
Judgment Without Monetary Relief Wraps ERISA Suit Involving ESG Efforts

FORT WORTH, Texas — Wrapping up a class action over environmental, social and governance (ESG) considerations and the purported proxy voting activism of nonparty investment management firms, a Texas federal judge issued a Sept. 30 judgment denying monetary damages but awarding “equitable relief to ensure that Defendants and their investment managers act solely for the pecuniary benefit of the Plan and implement compliance measures to ensure fidelity to” Employee Retirement Income Security Act fiduciary standards.
October 01, 2025
YouTube Settles Trump 1st Amendment ‘Censorship’ Suit For $24.5 Million

OAKLAND, Calif. — Parties agreed to a $24.5 million settlement in a putative class action filed in 2021 by President Donald J. Trump, individuals and putative class members against YouTube LLC and Sundar Pichai, CEO of its parent company, alleging that the plaintiffs were “de-platformed or censored” by having their content removed from YouTube.
October 01, 2025
Amazon Workers Who Sued Over Off-The-Clock Work Fail To Disqualify Counsel

DENVER — Amazon.com Services LLC workers who brought a class complaint in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic alleging that they were wrongly denied pay for off-the-clock work before and after shifts, including long wait times for health screenings due to the pandemic, failed to show that Amazon’s counsel should be disqualified or that Amazon should be sanctioned, a federal judge in Colorado ruled.
October 01, 2025
Class Suit Accuses Federal Government Of Unlawfully Pooling Citizens’ Data

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Federal government agencies and their heads are violating U.S. citizens’ privacy rights and opening millions to “massive cybersecurity risks” by creating centralized records systems at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, a Sept. 30 putative class complaint filed by the League of Women Voters (LWV) and others alleges.
October 01, 2025
Property Owners Affected By Hurricanes Allege Scheme By Attorneys, Law Firms

NEW ORLEANS — A complaint requesting class action status was brought against attorneys, law firms and a professional liability insurer in a Louisiana federal court, alleging that the attorneys committed legal malpractice and breach of contract by setting “up a scheme in an attempt to quickly settle thousands” of Hurricane Laura, Delta, Zeta and/or Ida cases and “collect an exorbitant fee” that they would all share.
September 30, 2025
Unaccompanied Alien Children Class Certified, Injunction Granted In Removal Suit

WASHINGTON, D.C. — A class of unaccompanied alien children from Guatemala was granted certification and a preliminary injunction halting their removal by a federal judge in the District of Columbia who required the class to post a $1 nominal bond.
September 30, 2025
$49.25M Settlement OK’d In College Baseball Coaches’ Conspiracy To Deny Pay Suit

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A federal judge in California granted final approval of a $49.25 million settlement for a class of college “volunteer” baseball coaches who accused the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and its member schools of conspiring to ensure they were paid nothing for what they said were full-time jobs.
September 30, 2025
$350,000 Incentive Award Granted To 3rd Plaintiff In Decades-Long Bias Suit

NEW YORK — A federal judge in New York agreed to a $350,000 incentive award for the final named plaintiff in a nearly three-decade-long race bias suit over teacher licensing requirements in New York City; the plaintiff had requested a $2.9 million award.
September 30, 2025
New York Federal Judge Deepens Standing Split In Series Of PRT Challenges

NEW YORK — Days after a different New York federal judge dismissed a similar pension risk transfer (PRT) complaint for lack of standing, a New York federal judge on Sept. 29 largely declined to dismiss a putative class case, ruling that retirees have standing because they sufficiently alleged that the PRT “created a substantial risk that Plaintiffs will not receive their benefits” and “diminished the value of Plaintiffs’ benefits.”
September 30, 2025
Judge: Investors Failed To Link Stock Drop To Biotech Company’s Misstatements

SAN DIEGO — A federal judge in California granted a biotechnology company and its subsidiary’s motion to dismiss a securities fraud class action brought by investors alleging that the companies provided misleading information during the company’s acquisition of the subsidiary, finding that the investors did not establish loss causation because they did not link any of the companies’ corrective disclosures to a prior misstatement.
September 30, 2025
Privacy Suit Over Zillow’s Watched Videos Disclosure Dismissed At Parties’ Request

SAN DIEGO — A federal judge in California dismissed without prejudice a putative privacy class action against Zillow Group Inc. for purportedly sharing the video-viewing history of users of its app and website after the plaintiffs and online real estate platform operator filed a joint motion and stipulation to dismiss.
September 30, 2025
Bench Trial Set To Determine Settlement Amount In ‘Free Trial Scam’ Class Suit

SAN DIEGO — A federal magistrate judge in California determined that a bench trial will commence on Oct. 20 to determine the amount of a class settlement between consumers and a group of defendants referred to as the “Konnektive defendants” alleged to have provided software and other services used in a “free trial scam.”
September 30, 2025
Judge Partly Dismisses Illinois Woman’s Privacy Suit Over Hospital’s Website

ROCK ISLAND, Ill. — A putative class action over a hospital’s purported sharing of the private information of its website’s users was partially dismissed, with an Illinois federal judge disposing of breach of contract, bailment, eavesdropping and computer fraud claims, with leave to amend.
September 29, 2025
Counsel Committed Fraud In Reaching $600M Train Settlement, Plaintiffs Say

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio — Some class members who opted in to the $600 million class settlement pertaining to the derailment of a Norfolk Southern train in East Palestine, Ohio, have moved in Ohio federal court for relief from the final approval order on grounds that newly discovered evidence reveals that class counsel made “material misrepresentations” to the court and to class members. The class members also say class counsel “concealed critical expert findings about health risks, and violated their fiduciary duties to the class.”
September 29, 2025
Government Files 2 High Court Petitions In Birthright Citizenship Cases

WASHINGTON, D.C. — President Donald J. Trump and other federal government parties filed two petitions for a writ of certiorari in the U.S. Supreme Court on Sept. 26 asking the justices to decide whether a January 2025 birthright citizenship executive order (EO) complies with the 14th amendment to the U.S. Constitution’s citizenship clause and 8 U.S. Code Section 1401(a).
September 29, 2025
Judge Denies Motion To Dismiss Class Claims Against Protein Shake Makers

LOS ANGELES — A California federal judge, after a hearing, denied a motion to dismiss a consumer’s putative class action lawsuit accusing a protein shake maker and its parent company of misrepresenting the amounts of protein, sugar and carbohydrates in their protein shakes in violation of California’s unfair competition law (UCL), writing that defense arguments about products the consumer did not purchase can be addressed at the class certification stage.
September 26, 2025
Judge OKs Additional Attorney Fees In Settlement Between City, Protesters

NEW YORK — A New York federal judge has approved a stipulation under which New York City will pay an additional $750,000 in class counsel fees and costs as part of a previously approved $13.73 million settlement between the city and a class of approximately 1,380 individuals who were arrested or arrested and subjected to force by the New York City Police Department (NYPD) during protests in 2020 following the murder of George Floyd.