LAWSUITS NEWS & LEGAL INFORMATION
Anne Wallace
Anne Wallace is a New York lawyer, currently living in the metropolitan Washington, DC area. She writes on legal and business issues and teaches at the college and professional level. Anne graduated from Fordham Law School and Wellesley College.
VA Doctor Convicted of Sexually Assaulting Female Veteran Patient
November 27, 2024.
Atlanta, GA On November 5, a federal jury in the Northern District of Georgia convicted Dr. Rajesh Motibhai Patel, a primary care physician at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Decatur, Georgia, of sexually assaulting a veteran patient. The jury found that he violated her constitutional right to bodily integrity while acting under color of law.
Read [ VA Doctor Convicted of Sexually Assaulting Female Veteran Patient ]
Nova Southeastern University to Settle ERISA Lawsuit for $1.5 Million
November 12, 2024.
Fort Lauderdale, FL On October 9, Nova Southeastern University agreed to settle a long-running lawsuit in which participants in the Nova University Defined Contribution Plan claimed that the school had mismanaged their retirement savings by paying excessive recordkeeping fees and retaining underperforming investment funds. The plaintiffs’ motion for preliminary approval was unopposed.
Read [ Nova Southeastern University to Settle ERISA Lawsuit for $1.5 Million ]
The Impact of Viking River Cruises on PAGA Claims: What Happened in Agustin Gutierrez v. Panera LLC
November 7, 2024.
Los Angeles, CA On October 22, the California Court of Appeal, Second Appellate District held that an employee whose employment agreement explicitly excluded Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) claims from arbitration, did not have to arbitrate those claims against his employer. The terms of his contract effectively trumped a change in law that occurred after the agreement was made.
Read [ The Impact of Viking River Cruises on PAGA Claims: What Happened in Agustin Gutierrez v. Panera LLC ]
A Setback for Suboxone Film Plaintiffs: Northern District of Ohio's Dismissal Decision
November 6, 2024.
Cleveland, OH On September 10, 2024, the Northern District of Ohio dismissed claims against Indivior PLC and two Reckitt Benckiser entities in Suboxone (Buprenorphine/Naloxone) Film Products Liability Litigation in the multidistrict litigation centralized in the Northern District of Ohio. The court’s decision is a significant setback for individuals who suffered serious Suboxone side effects and dental damage from using the sublingual film form of the drug. They allege that Indivior and other defendants failed to adequately warn about the potential for dental erosion and decay associated with the film's acidic properties.
Read [ A Setback for Suboxone Film Plaintiffs: Northern District of Ohio's Dismissal Decision ]
Cinepolis Charged with Multiple California Labor Law Violations
November 4, 2024.
Los Angeles, CA On October 21, Jacqueline Honorio filed a proposed class action lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court on behalf of at least 100 individuals who worked for USA Cinema Services LLC, which does business as Cinepolis. Honorio v. USA Cinema Services LLC alleges that Cinepolis violated the California labor code in a wide variety of ways.
Read [ Cinepolis Charged with Multiple California Labor Law Violations ]
Sen. Warren Raises the Alarm over Catalent/Novo Nordisk Merger
November 1, 2024.
Washington, DC On October 10, U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren sent a letter to Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chair Lina Khan, urging the FTC to closely review a proposed merger between Novo Nordisk and Catalent. Catalent is one of the very few suppliers that provide specialized development and manufacturing services to GLP-1 manufacturers. The letter urges the FTC to block the deal if it could hurt Americans by limiting competition and raising the price of life-saving medicine. Not coincidentally, killing competition might also limit the development of drugs without the dangerous side effects of Ozempic.
Read [ Sen. Warren Raises the Alarm over Catalent/Novo Nordisk Merger ]
Schobinger v. Twitter: A Setback for Class Certification
October 28, 2024.
San Francisco, CA On October 16, the District Court for the Northern District of California denied plaintiff Mark Schobinger’s petition for class certification in Schobinger v. Twitter. The California labor employment lawsuit centers on allegations that, during Elon Musk’s protracted takeover over the social media company in October 2022, Twitter, now X, misled users about the security of their data.
Read [ Schobinger v. Twitter: A Setback for Class Certification ]
Ozempic and Addiction: A Potential Game-Changer?
October 23, 2024.
Washington, DC Ozempic, a semaglutide, is a medication primarily used to treat type 2 diabetes. It works by mimicking the effects of a hormone called glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1), which helps regulate blood sugar levels. However, recent studies have revealed a surprising potential benefit: addiction reduction, specifically with reference to alcohol and opioid abuse.
Read [ Ozempic and Addiction: A Potential Game-Changer? ]
Suboxone Tooth Decay MDL – Status Update
October 21, 2024.
Cleveland, OH In recent years, Suboxone, a critical medication used to treat opioid addiction, has come under fire for its unintended side effects—specifically, severe tooth decay. While the drug has helped millions overcome opioid dependence, patients across the country have filed dangerous drug lawsuits claiming that Suboxone caused serious dental problems, leading to painful and costly procedures as well as social isolation for some individuals. These claims have been consolidated in an ongoing multidistrict litigation (MDL) in the Northern District of Ohio, where patients are suing the manufacturers of Suboxone for failing to warn about the risk of tooth decay.
Read [ Suboxone Tooth Decay MDL – Status Update ]
Darden Restaurants Hit with California Wage and Hour Lawsuit
October 16, 2024.
Los Angeles, CA On September 23, Antonia Rodriguez filed a class action lawsuit against Darden Restaurants in Los Angeles County Superior Court. The lawsuit alleges that Darden, the parent company of California restaurants, including Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse, Cheddar's Scratch Kitchen, Yard House, the Capital Grille, Seasons 52, Bahama Breeze and Eddie V's, failed to pay overtime and did not provide hourly workers with full, uninterrupted meal and rest periods in violation of California labor law. A collection of derivative allegations follows, including failure to provide accurate wage statements and failure to pay all wages due on termination of employment.
Read [ Darden Restaurants Hit with California Wage and Hour Lawsuit ]
- Six Things Vets Should Know about Filing a Veterans Medical Malpractice Lawsuit (Oct-15-24)
- Splintered Decisions in ERISA 401k Forfeiture Lawsuits (Oct-9-24)
- Duane Morris Lawyer Charges Firm with Discrimination, Employee Misclassification (Oct-3-24)
- Student-Athletes Sue Ivy League Colleges for Antitrust Violations (Oct-1-24)
- Vet Congressional Testimony Speeds Medical Malpractice Fix (Sep-27-24)
- Back to the Thorny Issue of ERISA Arbitration (Sep-24-24)
- Suboxone Tooth Decay Lawsuits Reflect Only Part of Harm (Sep-23-24)
- Ozempic Linked to Serious Pain in the Pocketbook (Sep-19-24)
- Sixth Circuit Nixes Arbitration for ERISA Claims (Sep-16-24)
- Tesla’s Bid to Dismiss PAGA Lawsuit Gets Anti-SLAPPed Down (Sep-3-24)
- California Public Employees Lose Rest and Meal Break Rights (Aug-30-24)
- Veterans Die of Neglect in Nursing Homes (Aug-27-24)
- State AGs Nail $86 Million Suboxone Settlement (Aug-21-24)
- Mandalorian Actress Beats Back Disney Bid to Toss Wage Lawsuit (Aug-19-24)
- Popular Diabetes/Weight Loss Drugs Linked to Rare Form of Blindness (Aug-15-24)
- Fourth Bellwether Trial Scheduled in Exactech MDL (Aug-13-24)
- BP Retirees Win Long-Fought ERISA Lawsuit -- Sort of (Aug-7-24)
- Transgender Veterans Sue VA over Gender-Confirmation Surgery (Aug-6-24)
- Clickwrap Employment Contract Roils California Arbitration Law (Aug-1-24)
- VA Docs Protected by Code of Silence (Jul-29-24)
- $9.5 Million Army Hospital Medical Malpractice Settlement (Jul-12-24)
- Loper Bright Fuels Fifth Circuit ERISA Lawsuit (Jul-11-24)
- Qualcomm 401k Plan Participants Sue over Use of Forfeitures (Jul-8-24)
- Disabled Vet Challenges Medical Malpractice Ban in Supreme Court (Jul-1-24)
- J&J Offers $6.48 Billion to Settle Ovarian Cancer Talcum Powder Lawsuits (Jun-29-24)
- Can a TPA’s Exploitation of a Plan Sponsor’s Breach of ERISA Duty Make the TPA a Fiduciary? (Jun-27-24)
- VA Hospital Settles Medical Malpractice Lawsuit for $880,000 (Jun-17-24)
- VA Settles Veteran PTSD Suicide Lawsuit for $1.7 Million (Jun-5-24)
- Musk Accused of Cheating Twitter Execs out of Severance Pay (May-23-24)
- Surgeons Warned to Stop Using Synovo Total Hip Implants (Apr-24-24)
- Maryland Orders Employer to Fork Over Missed Contributions to 401k Plan (Apr-22-24)
- Johnson & Johnson Strikes Back (Apr-5-24)
- Exactech Defective Hip Implant MDL Takes Shape (Mar-25-24)
- DOL Charges TPA Embezzled ERISA Plan Assets (Mar-18-24)
- Last Dance, Last Chance for the Texas Two-Step in J&J Talc Litigation (Feb-28-24)
- PAGA To Face Critical Test on November 2024 Ballot (Feb-20-24)
- New York MDL Consolidates Growing Number of Exactech Defective Hip Implant Lawsuits (Feb-9-24)
- Another Option for Workers Who Cannot Save through an ERISA Retirement Plan (Feb-8-24)
- Johnson & Johnson to Pay $700 Million to Settle State AG Lawsuits (Jan-23-24)
- More Long-Term Part Timers May Now Save Through 401k ERISA Plans (Jan-22-24)