Monthly Releases

In In BCR Carpentry LLC v. FCA US LLC,  No. 24-3202 (3d Cir. October 3, 2025), the Third Circuit affirmed the dismissal with prejudice of a putative class action challenging “destination charges” disclosed on vehicle window stickers. The plaintiffs alleged that FCA US LLC (FCA) violated the New Jersey Consumer Fraud Act (NJCFA) and committed common-law unjust enrichment and money had and received by embedding profit within the “destination charge” disclosed pursuant to the Automobile Information Disclosure Act of 1958 (AIDA). Writing for the Court, Judge Matey concluded that, as a matter of...

In Andrea M. Smith, et al v. American Honda Motor Co., Inc., No. 25-12608 (11th Cir. October 14, 2025), the plaintiffs originally filed their complaint against Dodd Sales, LLC, American Honda Motor Co., Inc. (“Honda”), and a third defend-ant, asserting various tort and breach of warranty claims.  Andrea Smith and Tiffany Gailes appealed the district court’s February 26, 2025 order granting summary judgment in favor of Dodd Sales, LLC (“Dodd”) and its July 9, 2025 order denying the plaintiffs’ motion for reconsideration of the summary judgment ruling. The plaintiffs’ breach of warranty claim...

In Williams v. Wingrove, No. 24-40531 (5th Cir. August 26, 2025), an employee at a meatpacking plant in Texas died after contracting COVID-19, allegedly from a coworker who continued working after testing positive. The decedent’s family sued the plant manager, the safety manager, and the coworker in Texas state court, claiming negligence and gross negligence due to unsafe working conditions and inadequate precautions against COVID-19. The complaint alleged that the employer, Tyson Foods, failed to protect employees, and that the managers were responsible for workplace safety. The coworker...

In Spencer Sheehan v. Big Lots, Inc., No. 24-13354 (11th Cir. August 27, 2025), plaintiffs’ class action counsel Spencer Sheehan of Sheehan & Associates PC, who regularly represents consumers in food mislabeling cases, couldn’t convince the Eleventh Circuit that a lower court excessively fined him for filing a frivolous lawsuit.  The US Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit affirmed an award to Big Lots Inc. for $144,047 in attorneys’ fees. The lower court determined the award was necessary to deter Sheehan from filing the suit again in another state after multiple courts had already...

In Appleton v. National Union Fire Insurance Co., No. 24-1952 (1st Cir. July 29, 2025), Paula Appleton was severely injured in a car accident in January 2015 when a pickup truck struck her vehicle from behind. Appleton filed an insurance claim against the driver, whose policy was administered by AIG Claims, Inc. Over four years, Appleton and AIG exchanged settlement offers and attended three mediations but failed to reach a settlement. In March 2019, a Massachusetts state court jury awarded Appleton $7.5 million in damages. Appleton then sued AIG and National Union Fire Insurance Company in...

In DCC Propane LLC v. KMT Enterprises, Inc., No. 24-1780 (2d Cir. August 5, 2025), a company that supplies oil and propane hired a trucking business to deliver 10,000 gallons of heating oil to its property in Putnam, Connecticut. During the delivery, the trucking company’s employee allegedly failed to monitor the filling process, resulting in an overflow that contaminated the soil and groundwater. The supplier claimed it incurred over $500,000 in remediation and related expenses due to the spill. The supplier filed a lawsuit in the United States District Court for the District of...

In B.D. v. Samsung SDI Co., Ltd., No. 24-2444 (July 9, 2025) S.D. Ind., Terre Haute Div. (BRENNAN), Plaintiff filed a lawsuit against the defendant, a South Korean manufacturer, after a battery manufactured by defendant exploded in the plaintiff’s pocket and injured him. The district court granted defendant’s motion to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction and plaintiff appealed. Here, the defendant purposefully availed itself of the Indiana forum by exploiting an end-product stream of commerce. But, Samsung SDI has not, however, availed itself of the forum through sales of individual...

In Wertmeyer v. Walmart, Inc., No. 24-2001 (July 1, 2025) N.D. Ill., Eastern Div. (ROVNER), Plaintiff alleged that defendant defrauded him when it sold a product advertised as “raw honey” when it was not actually raw and filed a lawsuit alleging various claims under for fraudulent misrepresentation and under state consumer fraud law. Plaintiff Wertmeyer The district court dismissed the complaint, finding that plaintiff failed to support any of his claims of fraud, misrepresentation, or deceptive practices. Wertmeyer relied upon a single “data point” to support his claim that the honey was...

In Carroll Shelby Licensing v. Halicki, No. 23-400 8 (May 27, 2025), the Ninth Circuit recently weighed in again on the scope of copyright protection for characters, denying protection to a series of Ford Mustangs called “Eleanor.”  The cars appeared, in varying forms, in four separate films between 1974 and 2000. Eleanor first appeared in the original Gone in 60 Seconds film, which featured a team tasked with stealing 48 different types of cars.  In order to discreetly reference the targeted cars, the team assigned each type of car a common female name. A yellow Fastback Ford Mustang with...

The case of Certain Underwriters at Lloyds, London, v. 3131 Veterans Blvd LLC, No. 23-1268 (2d Cir. May 8, 2025) involves insurance policies issued by certain surplus lines insurers at Lloyd’s, London, which contain identical arbitration clauses. The insured parties, 3131 Veterans Blvd LLC and Mpire Properties LLC, attempted to sue the insurers in Louisiana state court. The insurers then sued in New York federal court to enforce the arbitration clauses under the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) and the New York Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards. The...

In Citizens Insurance Company of America v. Mullins Food Products, Inc., No. 24-1524 (7th Cir. May 2, 2025), Mullins Food Products, Inc. was sued in Illinois state court for violating the Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA). Mullins requested its liability insurer, Citizens Insurance Company of America, to defend the suit, but Citizens declined and instead filed a federal suit seeking a declaratory judgment that it had no duty to defend or indemnify Mullins based on exclusions in the commercial liability insurance policies issued to Mullins in 2015, 2016, and 2017.  While the federal...

In U.S. ex rel. Bennett v. Bayer Corporation, No. 24-1807 (3d Cir. Apr. 10, 2025) the Third Circuit ruled that a whistleblower failed to plead sufficient facts showing pharmaceutical companies misled the FDA about antibiotic side effects and affirmed the dismissal of a whistleblower lawsuit under the False Claims Act (FCA) against Bayer, Johnson & Johnson, and other pharmaceutical companies. The whistleblower alleged that the companies fraudulently induced the FDA to approve two fluoroquinolone-class antibiotics by concealing or misrepresenting the drugs' neurological and psychiatric...

In Gardner v MeTV, No. 24-1290 (7th Cir. March 28, 2025), Plaintiffs David Vance Gardner and Gary Merchant filed a lawsuit against MeTV National Limited Partnership, alleging that MeTV violated the Video Privacy Protection Act (VPPA) by disclosing their personally identifiable information without consent. MeTV operates a website where users can watch classic TV shows. Users can sign up with their email addresses and zip codes to personalize their experience, which includes receiving reminders and using a channel finder feature. Plaintiffs claimed that MeTV embedded a "Meta pixel" in its...

In E&I Global Energy Services v. Liberty Mutual Insurance Co., No. 23-3739 (8th Cir. April 4, 2025) Plaintiffs, E&I Global Energy Services, Inc. and E&C Global, LLC, sued Liberty Mutual Insurance Company for breach of contract and tort claims related to a construction project. The United States, through the Western Area Power Administration (WAPA), contracted with Isolux to build a substation, and Liberty issued performance and payment bonds for Isolux. After Isolux was terminated, Liberty hired E&C as the completion contractor, but E&I performed the work. Plaintiffs...

In In re: Creekview IP LLC, Case No. 2023-108 (Fed. Cir. Jan. 4, 2025), the Federal Circuit was asked to determine: 1. “Whether the district court lacks Article III jurisdiction to enforce its Hearing Order investigating Petitioner’s compliance with standing orders when the cases have been dismissed and there is no evidence refuting the accuracy of Petitioners disclosures or Petitioner’s compliance with the standing orders?” 2. “Did the district court abuse its discretion in entering its Standing Order Regarding Third-Party Litigation Funding Arrangements and Standing Order Regarding...

            Courts strictly apply ethical rules to ensure that clients can speak openly to their lawyers in litigation and not be concerned about a conflict of interest.  Courts may even rule that a law firm cannot represent a client, and that the client must find new representation, if a conflict exists.             For example, in Hotel 237, LLC, v. G.M. Canmar Residence Corp., Case No. 2024-01714 (NY App. Feb 22, 2025) before the state appeals court in Manhattan, a lawyer who...

            In Hayes et al v. Kraft Heinz Co, Case No. 23-16596 (USDC ND IL), a federal judge said Kraft Heinz must face a proposed nationwide class action alleging that it defrauded consumers by claiming its Kraft macaroni and cheese, one of its best-known products, contains no artificial preservatives.  In a decision late in November, U.S. District Judge Mary Rowland said the Illinois, California and New York consumers leading the lawsuit plausibly alleged that Kraft Mac & Cheese contained a synthetic form of citric acid...

            A New Jersey state judge on February 5, 2025 threw out the Garden State's lawsuit accusing fossil fuel companies of concealing the climate change risks of their products, finding the state's claims are preempted by federal law. State Superior Court Judge Douglas Hurd in Mercer County ordered the state’s lawsuit dismissed Wednesday. Hurd wrote in his opinion that only federal law can govern the claims made by New Jersey, agreeing with arguments made by the oil companies’ lawyers....

            In Montgomery v. Caribe Transport II, LLC, No. 24-1192 (7th Cir. January 3, 2025), the Seventh Circuit affirmed the entry of summary judgment in favor of one of the defendants. There, plaintiff filed a personal injury lawsuit after he was injured in a collision with a tractor-trailer on a state highway. He sued the driver of the truck as well as the carrier and freight broker that arranged delivery of the shipment, claiming that it was vicariously liable for negligent hiring. The district court granted summary judgment in...

            In mid-December, the Ohio Supreme Court in a 5-2 decisionin the matter of In re Natl. Prescription Opiate Litigation, Slip Opinion No. 2024-Ohio-5744,found that the state's product liability law does not allow for public nuisance claims to be brought over the opioid crisis, in a challenge to a $650 million verdict won by two counties. Even though the public health crisis has affected many people, the law does not hold that public nuisance can provide an answer for the issue, the court said. The panel had accepted a certified...