Product Liability

  • October 24, 2024

    Fenway Food Safety Czar Fired For Flagging Rats, Suit Says

    A former Aramark food safety manager said in a suit filed Thursday that he was fired because he raised concerns about unsanitary conditions at Fenway Park, a Boston music hall, and the spring training ballpark of the Boston Red Sox.

  • October 24, 2024

    TikTok Won't Get 3rd Circ. Rehearing Of Section 230 Ruling

    The Third Circuit on Wednesday turned down TikTok's request for an en banc rehearing of a panel decision that the social media company's "For You Page" algorithm isn't entitled to immunity under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act in a case over a 10-year-old's death.

  • October 24, 2024

    Lewis Brisbois Adds Partner To General Liability Practice

    Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith LLP announced the growth of its Chicago office with the addition of a partner and insurance expert who brings more than two decades of trial and civil litigation experience.

  • October 24, 2024

    EPA Finalizes New Standards For Lead Paint Dust

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Thursday said it's finalizing standards to better protect people from lead paint dust exposure, reducing the level considered hazardous and the levels that can remain after abatement work.

  • October 23, 2024

    Boeing Machinists Reject Labor Deal, Prolonging Strike

    A majority of roughly 33,000 Boeing employees represented by the International Association of Machinists voted Wednesday to reject a new labor contract that included a 35% wage increase over four years, prolonging a nearly six-week strike that has hampered Boeing's production and cash flow.

  • October 23, 2024

    Pa. County Defends Climate Change Suit Against BP, Chevron

    BP, Chevron, Exxon Mobil and other major oil companies can't argue that a federal environmental statute sinks a climate change lawsuit because the claims fall outside of the law's purview, a Pennsylvania county told a state court.

  • October 23, 2024

    Ingersoll-Rand Sued Over Pa. Worker's Leg Amputation

    A man whose left leg was crushed when an industrial drill ran over it is suing the manufacturer in Pennsylvania federal court, claiming the company designed the drill defectively by excluding a number of safety features.

  • October 23, 2024

    Stop & Shop Parent Co. Sued Over Orange Soda Ingredient

    The parent company of grocery stores Stop & Shop, Food Lion, Hannaford and others was hit with a proposed class action Tuesday in North Carolina federal court alleging that the company's orange soda contained an oil additive that allegedly can cause neurological damage.

  • October 23, 2024

    Late Smoker's Spouse Can Argue Survivor's Benefits At Retrial

    The husband of a deceased smoker whose $157 million win against tobacco companies was erased can claim surviving spouse damages under Florida's Wrongful Death Act on retrial even though he was not married to his partner at the time he was diagnosed with lung disease, according to an opinion released Wednesday by a Florida appeals court.

  • October 23, 2024

    Religion Law Can't Save Sacred Worship Site, High Court Told

    A law designed to protect religious freedom can't help an Apache nonprofit's bid to save a sacred worship site in Arizona from destruction, the federal government said, arguing that the tribe is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to nullify a congressional statute crafted to allow federal third-party land transfers.

  • October 23, 2024

    Pool Seller Gets Claims Trimmed In Child Drowning Suit

    A Missouri federal judge has thrown out the bulk of a couple's claims against pool seller Bestway (USA) Inc. over the drowning death of their daughter, dismissing negligence and warranty claims while allowing strict liability claims to go forward.

  • October 23, 2024

    SoClean Says Philips Can't Stand In For Damaged CPAP Users

    SoClean Inc. asked a Pennsylvania federal court to toss Philips RS North America's proposed class-action claims from a multidistrict litigation, arguing that after settling with customers who had to replace their CPAP and BiPAP breathing machines, Philips was really only coming after SoClean on its own behalf.

  • October 23, 2024

    'Alkaline Water' Co. Hit With $5B In Punitive Damages

    A Nevada jury awarded $5 billion in punitive damages Wednesday in a 15-plaintiff trial over liver damage linked to Real Water's "alkaline water," the largest verdict yet in ongoing litigation against the bankrupt company.

  • October 23, 2024

    Roundup Suit Pared As Preemption Claim Sways Mass. Judge

    A Massachusetts judge has dismissed portions of a suit claiming a woman's use of the weedkiller Roundup caused her cancer, ruling a federal labeling law preempts her theory that Monsanto failed to warn consumers about the chemical's dangers.

  • October 23, 2024

    Feds Urge High Court To Deny Cig Cos.' Bid To Ax New Rule

    The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is asking the U.S. Supreme Court not to grant certiorari to a group of tobacco companies aiming to vacate a rule requiring larger warnings on cigarette boxes, saying the Fifth Circuit rightly found the proposed warnings don't violate the First Amendment's protection against compelled speech.

  • October 23, 2024

    MVP: Williams & Connolly's Joseph G. Petrosinelli

    Joseph G. Petrosinelli led Williams & Connolly LLP teams in successfully defending major U.S. corporate clients, including Pfizer, Gerber and Google, from large class claims often spilling across multiple state and federal courts, earning him a spot as one of the 2024 Law360 Product Liability MVPs.

  • October 22, 2024

    'Alkaline Water' Co. Owes $230M In Latest Liver Trial

    A Nevada state jury awarded $230 million Tuesday in the latest trial over liver damage from Real Water's "alkaline water" and sent the 15 plaintiffs, including a UFC fighter, to a punitive damages phase.

  • October 22, 2024

    Copper Mining Co. Asks High Court To Toss Sacred Site Suit

    A copper mining company that wants to build operations in a tribally sacred part of the Tonto National Forest has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to toss a challenge to a Ninth Circuit ruling that allows for the transfer of nearly 2,500 acres of land.

  • October 22, 2024

    CDC Links E. Coli Outbreak To McDonald's Quarter Pounders

    The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued an alert Tuesday saying E. coli has been detected in McDonald's Corp.'s Quarter Pounder hamburgers, infecting nearly 50 people and killing one so far.

  • October 22, 2024

    Walmart Pays $7.5M To End Hazardous Waste Disposal Suit

    Walmart Inc. has agreed to pay $7.5 million to settle a lawsuit brought by the state of California and district attorneys of several counties who alleged the retail giant improperly disposed of hazardous and medical wastes from its locations to municipal landfills, Attorney General Rob Bonta announced on Tuesday.

  • October 22, 2024

    Death Claims In Lyondell Leak MDL Go To Mediation

    Family who lost loved ones in the 2021 gas leak at a LyondellBasell facility in La Porte, Texas, must pursue their wrongful death claims in mediation, a Houston state court judge has ruled, just a month after the first bellwether trial in the multidistrict litigation reached a settlement.

  • October 22, 2024

    Monsanto Fights $78M Verdict In Philadelphia Roundup Trial

     Bayer AG unit Monsanto has asked a Philadelphia judge to strike down a "grossly excessive" $78 million verdict handed up in the latest Philadelphia Roundup trial, claiming that the jury's view of the company was skewed because the plaintiff's counsel said Monsanto "poisoned" butterflies and bees and "poisoned the planet."

  • October 22, 2024

    Ohio Pension Funds Say Boeing Puts Profits Over Safety

    Two Ohio pension funds joined a Virginia federal lawsuit accusing Boeing executives and board members of putting profits over safety and regulatory compliance, causing a series of catastrophes and losing millions of dollars for investors, the Ohio Attorney General's Office said Tuesday.

  • October 22, 2024

    Buyers Drop Colgate-Palmolive Sunscreen False Ad Suit

    Two women have agreed to drop a proposed class action that claimed Colgate-Palmolive Co. falsely claimed its sunscreen products' only active ingredient is a mineral-based component despite the products containing significant levels of chemical sunscreen ingredients.

  • October 22, 2024

    Appliance Co., Customers Agree To End Stove Pollutant Row

    Luxury kitchen appliance maker Sub-Zero Group Inc. and the customers behind a proposed class action have agreed to drop the litigation, bringing to an end claims the company sold them gas stoves that emit "health-harming" pollutants.

Expert Analysis

  • Gilead Drug Ruling Creates Corporate Governance Dilemma

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    If upheld, a California state appellate court's decision — finding that Gilead is liable for delaying commercialization of a safer HIV drug to maximize profits on another drug — threatens to undermine long-standing rules of corporate law and exposes companies to liability for decisions based on sound business judgment, says Shireen Barday at Pallas.

  • 3 Leadership Practices For A More Supportive Firm Culture

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    Traditional leadership styles frequently amplify the inherent pressures of legal work, but a few simple, time-neutral strategies can strengthen the skills and confidence of employees and foster a more collaborative culture, while supporting individual growth and contribution to organizational goals, says Benjamin Grimes at BKG Leadership.

  • Rebuttal

    Cancer Research Org. Is Right To Avoid Corporate Influence

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    While a previous Law360 guest article criticizes the International Agency for Research on Cancer's processes, its reliance on peer-reviewed literature is proper and its refusal to allow corporate influence is sound science, say Lance Oliver and Ridge Mazingo at Motley Rice.

  • Attorneys Can Benefit From Reverse-Engineering Their Cases

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    Trial advocacy programs often teach lawyers to loosely track the progression of a lawsuit during preparation — case analysis, then direct examination, then cross-examination, openings and closings — but reverse-engineering cases by working backward from opening and closing statements can streamline the process and also improve case strategy, says Reuben Guttman at Guttman Buschner.

  • How Courts' Differing Views On Standing Affect PFAS Claims

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    Two recent opinions from New York federal courts — in Lurenz v. Coca-Cola, and Winans v. Ornua Foods North America — illustrate how pivotal the differing views on standing held by different courts will be for product liability litigation involving per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, particularly consumer claims, say attorneys at Hollingsworth.

  • E-Discovery Quarterly: Rulings On Hyperlinked Documents

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    Recent rulings show that counsel should engage in early discussions with clients regarding the potential of hyperlinked documents in electronically stored information, which will allow for more deliberate negotiation of any agreements regarding the scope of discovery, say attorneys at Sidley.

  • Loper Bright Limits Federal Agencies' Ability To Alter Course

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision to dismantle Chevron deference also effectively overrules its 2005 decision in National Cable & Telecommunications Association v. Brand X, greatly diminishing agencies' ability to change regulatory course from one administration to the next, says Steven Gordon at Holland & Knight.

  • Series

    Teaching Scuba Diving Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    As a master scuba instructor, I’ve learned how to prepare for the unexpected, overcome fears and practice patience, and each of these skills – among the many others I’ve developed – has profoundly enhanced my work as a lawyer, says Ron Raether at Troutman Pepper.

  • Lawyers Can Take Action To Honor The Voting Rights Act

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    As the Voting Rights Act reaches its 59th anniversary Tuesday, it must urgently be reinforced against recent efforts to dismantle voter protections, and lawyers can pitch in immediately by volunteering and taking on pro bono work to directly help safeguard the right to vote, says Anna Chu at We The Action.

  • 3rd Circ. Ruling Shows Benefits Of IP Licenses In Bankruptcy

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    The Third Circuit’s recent ruling in Mallinckrodt’s Chapter 11 filing, which held that Mallinckrodt could sever its obligations to pay Sanofi royalties on sales of an autoimmune disease drug, highlights the advantages of structuring transactions as nonexclusive licenses for developers of intellectual property, say Gregory Hesse and Kaleb Bailey at Hunton.

  • How 3rd Circ. Raised Bar For Constitutional Case Injunctions

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    The Third Circuit's decision in Delaware State Sportsmen's Association v. Delaware Department of Safety & Homeland Security, rejecting the relaxed preliminary injunction standards many courts have used when plaintiffs allege constitutional harms, could portend a shift in such cases in at least four ways, say attorneys at Gibson Dunn.

  • Opinion

    Expert Witness Standards Must Consider Peer Review Crisis

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    For nearly two decades, the so-called replication crisis has upended how the scientific community views the reliability of peer-reviewed studies, and it’s time for courts to reevaluate whether peer review is a trustworthy proxy for expert witness reliability, say Jeffrey Gross and Robert LaCroix at Reid Collins.

  • How To Grow Marketing, Biz Dev Teams In A Tight Market

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    Faced with fierce competition and rising operating costs, firms are feeling the pressure to build a well-oiled marketing and business development team that supports strategic priorities, but they’ll need to be flexible and creative given a tight talent market, says Ben Curle at Ambition.

  • Series

    Rock Climbing Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Rock climbing requires problem-solving, focus, risk management and resilience, skills that are also invaluable assets in my role as a finance lawyer, says Mei Zhang at Haynes and Boone.

  • Think Like A Lawyer: Dance The Legal Standard Two-Step

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    From rookie brief writers to Chief Justice John Roberts, lawyers should master the legal standard two-step — framing the governing standard at the outset, and clarifying why they meet that standard — which has benefits for both the drafter and reader, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.

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