February 5, 2010, San Francisco, CA -- The United States Court of Appeal for the Ninth Circuit reinstated a class action lawsuit filed by California consumers accusing Dell, Inc. of selling defective Inspiron notebook computers. The unanimous decision reversed an order of the federal district court dismissing the case. The appellate court found that the provision of Dell's sales contract compelling the individual arbitration of claims against Dell was unenforceable because the value of each defective notebook was insufficient for consumers to pursue their claims individually. Learn more about the Dell Inpiron class action lawsuit.
February 2, 2010, Seattle, WA -- A Seattle resident filed a nationwide class action lawsuit against Sallie Mae over alleged unauthorized autodialer calls to the cell phones of borrowers who took out student loans with the national lender. "Nobody should be subjected to repeated, intrusive autodialer calls at all hours from their lender, especially on their cell phones," commented Jonathan D. Selbin of Lieff Cabraser. "We hope today’s lawsuit brings some relief to borrowers who have enough to worry about these days without receiving harassing calls like these." Learn more about the Sallie Mae class action lawsuit.
February 2, 2010, San Francisco, CA -- A former AT&T technical support worker filed a class action lawsuit charging that AT&T Inc. has a common practice of misclassifying its technical support workers as exempt and failing to pay them for all overtime hours worked. AT&T's technical support workers, who work in titles such as Technician, Technical Architect, Technical Consultant, Network Engineer, IT Analyst, Maintenance Administrator, Project Manager, Program Manager, and Business Manager of IT, among others, are responsible for installing, maintaining, and/or supporting computer software and/or hardware. The lawsuit alleges that these workers were unlawfully denied overtime pay. Learn more about the AT&T overtime pay class action lawsuit.
Michael W. Sobol Speaks On Class Action Law
February 1, 2010, San Francisco, CA -- On January 28, 2010, the Consumer Attorneys of California College of Trial Arts San Francisco Trial Lawyers Association, hosted the Fourth Annual Class Action Seminar. The much-anticipated yearly seminar provides a forum for class action practitioners to catch up on recent developments in the law and learn about new ideas in the prosecution and trial of class actions. Speaking on the seminar's panel was Lieff Cabraser's Michael Sobol.
Elizabeth J. Cabraser and Steven E. Fineman Speak at ACS Symposium
January 22, 2010, New York, NY -- Yesterday, the American Constitution Society (ACS) hosted a symposium on Access to Justice in Federal Courts at New York University School of Law. The symposium focused on recent U.S Supreme Court decisions that have curtailed access to federal courts and limited the types of claims and relief that plaintiffs can pursue. Participating in the panel discussions were Lieff Cabraser's Elizabeth J. Cabraser and Steven E. Fineman. Click here to watch a recording of the symposium.
Lieff Cabraser Named One of the Top Employment Plaintiffs Firms of the Year
January 4, 2010, New York, NY -- The legal publication Law360 selected eight law firms in the U.S. as its top employment plaintiffs firms of 2009, including Lieff Cabraser. Law360 highlighted the firm's work on behalf of employees at Wal-Mart Stores Inc.'s Washington state stores, settling a suit claiming the retailer forced its workers to skip meal breaks and work overtime without pay. The settlement covers as many as 88,000 employees at 50 Washington Wal-Mart and Sam's Club stores and requires Wal-Mart to implement new technologies to ensure compliance with wage-and-hour laws. "We're really pleased with the year we've had and the diversity of types of employees we've been able to help," stated Lieff Cabraser partner Rachel Geman.
Lieff Cabraser's Kelly M. Dermody to Serve as BASF Treasurer
December 17, 2009, San Francisco, CA -- At its annual membership luncheon, the Bar Association of San Francisco (BASF) installed Kelly M. Dermody of Lieff Cabraser as its treasurer for 2009-10. She joins BASF President Arturo González of Morrison & Foerster LLP, along with Priya Sanger of Wells Fargo Bank Legal Department and Christopher Kearney of Keker & Van Nest LLP on the BASF executive board. Founded in 1872, BASF is a nonprofit voluntary membership organization of over 8,000 attorneys, law students and legal professionals in the Bay Area dedicated to serving the community and improving the legal profession.
December 14, 2009, Los Angeles, CA -- U.S. District Judge Manuel L. Real of the Central District of California granted final approval to a partial settlement in which Broadcom Corporation's insurance carriers will pay $118 million to Broadcom. The settlement releases certain individual director and officer defendants covered by Broadcom's directors' and officers' policy. The settlement does not resolve the claims against three individual defendants, William J. Ruehle, Henry T. Nicholas, III and Henry Samueli. The $118 million settlement constitutes the second largest settlement ever in a derivative action involving stock options backdating. Learn more...
December 14, 2009, Sacramento, CA -- Lieff Cabraser attorney Robert J. Nelson announced that a False Claim Act lawsuit against the University of Phoenix settled today for $78.5 million. The lawsuit, filed by two whistleblowers on behalf of the United States, alleged that the University, the nation's largest for-profit university, had defrauded the U.S. Department of Education by obtaining federal student loan and Pell Grant monies based on false statements of compliance with the Higher Education Act. The Act prohibits universities receiving federal student aid monies from making incentive payments to recruiters based on the number of students they recruit or enroll. "The settlement is a huge victory for taxpayers and the federal government," stated Mr. Nelson. Learn more...
Five Lieff Cabraser Attorneys Featured in Super Lawyers Corporate Counsel Edition
December 11, 2009, San Francisco, CA -- For the 2010 January-February issue of the national Corporate Counsel Edition of Super Lawyers, five Lieff Cabraser attorneys with a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement within corporate litigation were selected to appear. William Bernstein, Joseph R. Saveri, and Michele C. Jackson received recognition as the top attorneys in Antitrust Litigation. Lieff Cabraser managing partner Steven E. Fineman and Richard M. Heimann were recognized as top litigators in Securities law.
Federal Court Certifies Antitrust Litigation Against World's Leading Manufacturers of SRAM
November 25, 2009, Oakland, CA -- U.S. District Court Judge Claudia Wilken certified a nationwide class seeking injunctive relief and twenty-seven state classes seeking damages on behalf of consumers and other indirect purchasers of SRAM, a type of memory used in many products, including smartphones and computer products. Plaintiffs allege that from November 1, 1996 through December 31, 2006, the defendant manufacturers conspired to fix and maintain artificially high prices for SRAM. Lieff Cabraser serves as one of three members of the Plaintiffs' Steering Committee for indirect purchasers of SRAM in the litigation. Read the Court's order.
November 20, 2009, Columbus, Ohio -- Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray has filed a lawsuit against credit rating agencies Standard & Poor’s, Moody’s and Fitch. The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Ohio on behalf of five Ohio public employee retirement and pension funds, alleges the rating agencies wreaked havoc on U.S. financial markets by providing unjustified and inflated ratings of mortgage-backed securities in exchange for lucrative fees from securities issuers. Lieff Cabraser and co-counsel are assisting the Ohio Attorney General in the prosecution of the litigation. Learn more...
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