class action settlement
Posner Savages ‘Scandalous’ Settlement in Pella Case
June 9, 2014
A class action settlement before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit appeals panel was a “scandalous” assemblage of conflicts of interest, cozy relationships, dubious calculations, ethical wrongdoing and judicial inattention, that, in the end, amounted to a decidedly raw deal for the consumers suing Pella Corp. over alleged window defects. That was what Seventh Circuit Judge Richard Posner concluded about the proposed settlement in Eubank v. Pella Corp., an 8-year-old dispute,...
June 9, 2014
A class action settlement before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit appeals panel was a “scandalous” assemblage of conflicts of interest, cozy relationships, dubious calculations, ethical wrongdoing and judicial inattention, that, in the end, amounted to a decidedly raw deal for the consumers suing Pella Corp. over alleged window defects. That was what Seventh Circuit Judge Richard Posner concluded about the proposed settlement in Eubank v. Pella Corp., an 8-year-old dispute,...
A Deal is a Deal!
May 26, 2014
Settlement Agreement Included Presumptions about Economic Loss The Deepwater Horizon incident prompted a number of legal actions, including multidistrict litigation surrounding private economic and property damage claims and medical claims stemming from the accident and oil spill. In 2012, BP reached a settlement with the Plaintiffs’ Steering Committee (PSC), which acts on behalf of individual and business plaintiffs in the multi-district litigation proceedings. BP initially joined with the plaintiffs...
May 26, 2014
Settlement Agreement Included Presumptions about Economic Loss The Deepwater Horizon incident prompted a number of legal actions, including multidistrict litigation surrounding private economic and property damage claims and medical claims stemming from the accident and oil spill. In 2012, BP reached a settlement with the Plaintiffs’ Steering Committee (PSC), which acts on behalf of individual and business plaintiffs in the multi-district litigation proceedings. BP initially joined with the plaintiffs...
Court Won’t Upset Settlement or Fees In Dentists’ Suit Against Horizon
April 22, 2014
The New Jersey Supreme Court will not disturb a class-action settlement between Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey and about 17,000 dentists alleging improper claims processing and violations of state prompt-payment laws. Nor will the court consider a request to enhance counsel fees, which leaves the plaintiffs' law firm, Roseland's Mazie Slater Katz & Freeman, about $190,000 short of what it was seeking. The court's April 8 decision, declining to hear appeals in Kirsch v. Horizon,...
April 22, 2014
The New Jersey Supreme Court will not disturb a class-action settlement between Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey and about 17,000 dentists alleging improper claims processing and violations of state prompt-payment laws. Nor will the court consider a request to enhance counsel fees, which leaves the plaintiffs' law firm, Roseland's Mazie Slater Katz & Freeman, about $190,000 short of what it was seeking. The court's April 8 decision, declining to hear appeals in Kirsch v. Horizon,...
Class Mediation A Factor in Finding No Collusion
April 7, 2014
Use of mediation in arriving at a class action settlement is a factor in favor of the court finding no collusion, but is not dispositive even if the mediator is a retired judge. Prior to approval, the court required detailed evidence concerning the mediation and negotiations of the settlement agreements, including the mediation statements and other documents concerning mediation offered by the parties. Four in One Co. v. S.K. Foods, No. 2:08-cv-3017 KJM EFB (U.S.D.C. E.D. Cal., January 2, 2014)
April 7, 2014
Use of mediation in arriving at a class action settlement is a factor in favor of the court finding no collusion, but is not dispositive even if the mediator is a retired judge. Prior to approval, the court required detailed evidence concerning the mediation and negotiations of the settlement agreements, including the mediation statements and other documents concerning mediation offered by the parties. Four in One Co. v. S.K. Foods, No. 2:08-cv-3017 KJM EFB (U.S.D.C. E.D. Cal., January 2, 2014)
