Actos Antitrust
Second Circuit Affirms Denial of Motion to Dismiss
The Second Circuit affirmed the district court’s denial of the defendants’ motion to dismiss claims about improperly listing patents in the Orange Book. Hagens Berman serves as interim co-lead counsel for the direct purchaser class. View case page »
Apple IP Case
Ruling on Venue
Hagens Berman represents Neonode in this intellectual property case against Apple Inc. and Samsung. The company launched its suits against Apple and Samsung on claims Apple's iPhones and Samsung's Galaxy line of products infringe Neonode's patented touchscreen technology. The suits said the companies were aware of Neonode's patents because of earlier litigation. In July, Western District of Texas Judge Alan D. Albright refused to let Apple move a small smartphone company's patent infringement suit against it from the Lone Star State to California, finding that the company's related case against Samsung weighs against transfer.
AppleCare
Class Certification
Hagens Berman filed a class action lawsuit against Apple after an investigation revealed that Apple violated consumer laws, illegally charging customers premium prices for what they believed to be new replacement devices under its AppleCare/AppleCare+ programs. In May, a California federal judge ruled that Apple cannot reverse the certification of a consumer class accusing the tech giant of failing to honor iPhone warranties, saying Apple is just rehashing old arguments. The iPhone maker had tried to convince U.S. District Judge William H. Orrick that his decision to certify the plaintiffs' group has since been undermined by a recent Ninth Circuit decision which held that a class may not be certified if more than a de minimis number of class members potentially escaped injury. View case page »
Avandia Marketing Fraud
Denial of Motion to Dismiss
Judge Cynthia Rufe denied a motion to dismiss the claims of end payors. The proposed class alleges that GlaxoSmithKline misrepresented the safety and efficacy of the diabetes drug Avandia, causing billions of dollars in overpayments for the drug. View case page »
BMW Emissions
Ruling on Motion to Dismiss
On behalf of BMW owners, the firm filed a class action against the automaker and parts maker, Bosch, alleging the two collaborated to rig certain vehicles with emissions-cheating software. In May, a New Jersey federal judge kept alive claims against BMW's German parent company in a proposed class action but allowed Bosch's German parent company to escape the litigation. View case page »
Cattle Rancher Antitrust
Ruling on Motion to Dismiss
A Minnesota federal judge has ruled the nation's four largest meatpacking companies, including Tyson Foods Inc. and Cargill Inc., can't escape a suit from ranchers accusing them of scheming to drive down beef prices. In a sealed opinion in September, U.S. District Judge John Tunheim granted in part and denied in part a motion to dismiss filed by the meatpackers, ultimately shooting the case over to its discovery phase. View case page »
CVS Price-Gouging
Class Certification
Hagens Berman filed a complaint stating that for years, CVS knowingly submitted false and artificially inflated prices for generic drugs to third-party payors, seeking to hide the fraudulent, overstated charges via its Health Savings Pass program, which the lawsuit dubs “the vehicle for its fraud.” In May, a Rhode Island federal judge granted certification to multiple classes of insured health plans that say CVS schemed with pharmacy benefit managers to overcharge the plans for generic drugs while providing discounted prices for uninsured customers. View case page »
Danimer Scientific Inc.
Lead Counsel Appointment
Hagens Berman was appointed lead counsel in a securities class action in New York against biopolymer manufacturer Danimer, alleging that the company engaged in “greenwashing” by making false claims concerning the biodegradability and production volumes of its key product, Nodax, a purportedly more environmentally friendly alternative to petrochemical-based plastics. The firm will file the consolidated amended complaint in January 2022, revealing the results of its investigation, including accounts from confidential witnesses. View case page »
Dometic RV Refrigerators
11th Circuit Reversed Decision to Deny Class Certification, Case Will Proceed in District Court
On behalf of a group of RV owners, Hagens Berman filed a nationwide class-action lawsuit against Dometic Corporation, stating the company sold defective gas absorption refrigerators with cooling systems that can spontaneously ignite in RVs and boats, putting consumers at risk of deadly fires, explosions, loss of property and loss of the value of their RV/boat. In February, the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit reversed a decision to deny class certification in the case. The Eleventh Circuit ruled that plaintiffs are not required to present an administratively feasible plan for identifying absent class members, and sent the case back to district court. Plaintiffs’ renewed motion for class certification is pending.
Facebook Antitrust
Co-Lead Counsel Appointment
Hagens Berman filed an antitrust class-action lawsuit against Facebook on behalf of consumers alleging it gained an illegal monopoly by exploiting and selling user data. In March, U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh appointed Hagens Berman partner Shana Scarlett to serve as co-lead counsel for the proposed class actions. View case page »
Florida Sugarcane
Ruling on Motion to Dismiss
Hagens Berman’s proposed class action on behalf of Florida residents against Florida Crystals Corp., United States Sugar Corp. and other leading sugar producers over air pollution caused by their pre-harvest sugarcane burns survived another round of motions to dismiss from the companies, although a federal judge trimmed two counts in his ruling. View case page »
Ford Shelby
Class Certification
In a pending class action against Ford Motor Company accusing the automaker of knowingly selling models that while marketed as “track-ready” cannot actually be operated safely on a racetrack due to a defective powertrain, a federal judge certified a class of Ford Shelby GT350 Mustang owners in the class-action lawsuit. The trial will take place in the spring of 2022 and will be a rare class action tried against an automaker. View case page »
Hyzon Motors, Inc. Securities Litigation
Lead Counsel Appointment
Hagens Berman was appointed lead counsel in a securities class action pending in New York against hydrogen fuel car maker Hyzon. The case alleges that in going public via a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC), Hyzon misrepresented the nature of its “customer” contracts, severely embellished its “deals” and “partnerships” with key customers, and falsely claimed it would deliver its anticipated vehicles in 2021, when it knew it could not meet this timeline. The firm will file its consolidated amended complaint in March 2022. View case page »
Maximum Strength Robitussin Litigation
Motion to Dismiss Ruling
In this consumer litigation brought in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York on behalf of consumers who purchased Maximum Strength Robitussin, Judge J. Paul Oetken granted in part and denied in part a motion to dismiss brought by Pfizer Inc. (now GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare Holdings US LLC via a Stock and Asset Purchase Agreement). The judge’s ruling permitting consumer protection act claims to proceed. The order also denied a request to strike nationwide class action allegations as well as claims brought on behalf of consumers in other states in which no named plaintiff resided. View case page »
MOVA Contour Intellectual Property Theft
Order Denying in Part Defendants’ Motion for Summary Judgment
This intellectual property matter filed July 17, 2017, alleges that defendants knew that the proprietary technology – MOVA Contour – they used was owned by Rearden LLC and Rearden Mova LLC, the plaintiffs in the action, and that the company supplying the technology to Disney and Marvel had stolen it outright from a secured storage facility. In August, a California federal judge said Walt Disney Co. might owe a portion of the profits from Beauty and the Beast, Guardians of the Galaxy and Deadpool to a digital effects company that claims its technology was unlawfully used to make the movies. View case page »
New Jersey Pollution
Ruling on Motion to Dismiss
A state court judge trimmed a New Jersey environmental agency lawsuit seeking to hold Sherwin-Williams liable for pollution caused by a Camden County plant or its predecessor over nearly 125 years, limiting claims to company actions that occurred after contamination legislation was enacted in the 1970s. Hagens Berman’s Steve Berman is part of the multi-firm team representing the state of New Jersey. In August, Superior Court Judge Michael J. Kassel denied most of the Sherwin-Williams’s arguments on why it should be let completely out of the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection’s 2019 lawsuit, which seeks damages for hazardous substances and industrial chemicals discharged at three sites. The lawsuit also seeks money to restore the locations to “pre-discharge conditions.” View case page »
Odebrecht
Defendant Sanctioned
Hagens Berman represents Doubleline Capital in a lawsuit against Brazilian engineering conglomerate Odebrecht involving a shadow accounting system and a long-running, $3.3 billion international bribery scheme. In March, a New York federal judge sanctioned several affiliates of Odebrecht for intentionally destroying the encryption keys needed to access the accounting system used in the bribery scheme, ruling that Odebrecht should have known the keys would be relevant to future litigation.
Poultry Workers Antitrust
Motions to Dismiss Denied
Hagens Berman filed a nationwide class-action lawsuit against Perdue, Tyson, Hillshire Farms and many other of the nation's largest poultry processing companies for what the firm believes has been a years-long wage-fixing agreement, causing employees to receive far less for their work than they are legally owed. In March, Judge Stephanie A. Gallagher for the District Court of Maryland denied all defendants’ motions to dismiss, stating that the plaintiffs’ second amended complaint sufficiently alleges anticompetitive effects and collusion between the defendants. The court’s order thoughtfully outlines the case’s merits and allows the class action to proceed to discovery, or evidence-gathering stage. The firm serves as interim co-lead counsel in this case. View case page »
Ranbaxy
Class Certification
Hagens Berman serves as co-lead counsel in a lawsuit filed against Ranbaxy Pharmaceuticals accusing the drug maker of delaying generic versions of three different drugs by manipulating the regulatory approval system. A Massachusetts federal court certified classes for two groups of buyers. View case page »
Renovacare Inc. Securities Fraud Class Action
Co-lead Counsel Appointment
Hagens Berman was appointed co-lead counsel in a securities class action pending in New Jersey alleging the company engaged in a fraudulent promotional scheme orchestrated by RenovaCare’s controlling shareholder and chairman. Specifically, in an effort to artificially inflate the company’s stock, RenovaCare secretly paid an analyst firm to publish false reviews concerning the efficacy of RenovaCare’s lead product. The firm will file the amended consolidated complaint in February 2022. View case page »
SOS Limited Securities Fraud Class Action
Co-lead Counsel Appointment
Hagens Berman was appointed co-lead counsel in a securities class action pending in New Jersey alleging People’s Republic of China-based SOS misrepresented its purported entry into the Bitcoin mining business and concealed related party transactions. The firm’s pre-filing investigation, which includes boots on the ground investigators in China, will conclude on February 18, 2022, when the consolidated amended complaint is due. View case page »
Suboxone Antitrust
Motion for Summary Judgment Denied
Hagens Berman is one of three co-lead counsel law firm representing direct purchasers in this class-action lawsuit. The case alleges Reckitt Benckiser Pharmaceuticals (now called Indivior Inc.) violated federal antitrust laws by engaging in a multi-year scheme to delay generic competition for its blockbuster opioid addiction medicine, Suboxone. The complaint alleges that the scheme succeeded, and purchasers incurred substantial damages as a result. Reckitt denies any wrongdoing. The court stated from the bench during the summary judgment hearing that he would deny most, if not all, of the arguments in the defendants’ motions for summary judgment. View case page »
Takeda Actos Antitrust
Claims Upheld
Buyers of the drug Actos claim that, in order to win exclusivity guarantees extending the treatment’s monopoly after its original patent expired, Takeda falsely told the U.S. Food and Drug Administration that two new patents – describing how to combine the drug with others – covered its chemical ingredients, rather than simply covering methods of using the drug. The Second Circuit found that Takeda cannot upend a New York federal judge’s decision to preserve antitrust claims that it delayed entry of generic alternatives to diabetes treatment Actos, rejecting assertions that the drugmaker was required to list the therapy in a way that broadly extended patent protections. In August, the three-judge panel affirmed U.S. District Judge Ronnie Abrams’ refusal to nix antitrust claims brought by two groups of Actos buyers. Hagens Berman is interim co-lead counsel in this matter. View case page »
Tracleer Antitrust
Dismissal Order Vacated
Hagens Berman represents a proposed class of those who purchased the drug Tracleer in a class action alleging antitrust violations effectively pumping up the price of Tracleer after the patent expired. The case alleges that Actelion, the brand manufacturer of the pulmonary arterial hypertension drug systematically denied prospective manufacturers of generic versions of the drug with access to samples of its medication as part of a scheme to block generic competition. The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals vacated the District Court’s granting of the defendants’ Rule 12 motion and remanded the case for further proceedings.
United Airlines COVID-19 Refunds
Motion to Dismiss Denied
The firm filed a class-action lawsuit against United Airlines for denying requested refunds related to cancelled flights and terminated travel amid the global outbreak of COVID-19. In February, U.S. District Judge Thomas Durkin denied in part United Airlines' motion to dismiss this class action, rejecting the airline's claim that the force majeure clause in its contract made it acceptable to deny passengers full refunds for flights that were canceled due to the pandemic. View case page »
Vaxart Inc. Securities Litigation
Denied Motion to Dismiss
Hagens Berman serves as lead counsel in a securities class action pending in San Francisco, claiming biotech company Vaxart pumped up its stock price with deceptive headlines about its COVID-19 vaccine. Specifically, in June 2020, Vaxart issued a press release claiming that its vaccine had been "selected for the U.S. Government's Operation Warp Speed,” when in truth it had been merely invited to participate in a non-human challenge study loosely affiliated with OWS.
In a cutting edge 20-page opinion, U.S. district court Judge Vince Chhabria denied the Vaxart defendants’ motion to dismiss. Judge Chhabria acknowledged that investors faced a significant hurdle in sufficiently alleging that Vaxart's statements were materially misleading, stating that although press releases’ headlines were highly misleading, the body of the press release provided accurate information. Still, considering the "totality of the statements" and the context of the global pandemic, Judge Chhabria concluded that investors had sufficiently alleged a reasonable investor would have been misled by them. The order paves the way for the firm obtaining discovery from defendants. View case page »
Visa/Mastercard ATM Antitrust
Class Certification
A D.C. federal judge certified three different classes that all accuse Visa and Mastercard of running afoul of antitrust laws with ATM fee rules that hurt consumers and machine owners, ruling that a class action is the superior method for resolving the claims. View case page »
Xyrem Antitrust
Motion to Dismiss Denied
In this antitrust class action regarding the price the Jazz Pharmaceuticals drug Xyrem, Judge Lucy Koh denied in part defendants’ motion to dismiss claims of the class of end payors. The judge ruled that Jazz Pharmaceuticals schemed to delay competition for the prescription drug Xyrem, its blockbuster narcolepsy drug. View case page »
Zetia Antitrust
Class Certification Appeal Decision
In this direct purchaser class case alleging the defendants conspired to delay sales of generic Zetia, the Fourth Circuit vacated and remanded the district court’s certification of a putative class of 35 direct purchasers of Merck’s brand and Glenmark’s generic version of Zetia. The court’s decision held that all Rule 23 factors satisfied except that the lower court’s numerosity analysis had not adequately considered whether judicial economy favored joinder of the individual purchasers instead of class certification. Direct purchasers later file a renewed motion for class certification that incorporates the Fourth Circuit’s instructions regarding numerosity. View case page »
Zetia Antitrust
Plaintiffs’ Partial Summary Judgment Granted
In this direct purchaser class case, plaintiffs allege defendants conspired to delay sales of generic drug Zetia. U.S. Magistrate Judge Miller issued a Report and Recommendation that the district court grant summary judgment to the plaintiffs, finding that the relevant antitrust market is limited to Zetia and its AB-rated generics sold in the U.S. and its territories. Hagens Berman serves as co-lead class counsel. View case page »
Zuora Securities
Class Certification
Hagens Berman serves as lead counsel in a securities class action brought on behalf of investors in San Francisco-based cloud subscription company Zuora. The action alleges that Zuora misrepresented the integrated functionality of its two key products, and that when it finally acknowledged the integration issue, its stock price plummeted. In March, Judge Illston in the Northern District of California certified the class, appointing Hagens Berman class counsel. View case page »
