June 29, 2009, Washington, D.C. -- Janette E. Fennell, head of the consumer safety organization Kids And Cars, criticized the bankruptcy plan crafted by General Motors in consultation with the White House that strips over 300 consumers seriously hurt by defects in GM vehicles of their legal right to hold GM accountable. “Can you imagine being paralyzed or gravely injured due to a vehicle defect with no recourse? Our government is now deciding that you will have no recourse whatsoever if that catastrophic injury or death takes place in a General Motors vehicle," stated Fennell. The Obama Administration's "Auto Task-Force," which is led by the U.S. Treasury Department, is responsible for this decision. Fennell urged the public to contact the White House immediately at 202-456-1414 to insist that consumers who have been injured in car accidents, and the families of loved ones who have died, not be left unprotected under the GM bankruptcy. Contact the White House...
June 4, 2009, Philadelphia, PA -- The Third Circuit Court of Appeals summarily denied the petition for leave by Mercedes-Benz to appeal the decision of the district court to grant class certification. Lieff Cabraser represents owners and lessees of Mercedes-Benz cars and SUVs equipped with the Tele-Aid system. The complaint charges that Mercedes-Benz violated laws against consumer fraud by promoting and selling the Tele-Aid system without disclosing to buyers of certain model years that the Tele-Aid system as installed would stop working in 2008 when cellular telephone companies switched from analog to digital technology. Mercedes-Benz is charging its customers as much as $1,500 to install a new Tele-Aid system that will work with digital technology. Learn more...
Detroit TV News Reports on Product Defect Victims in Chrysler Bankruptcy
June 2, 2009, Detroit, MI -- Detroit's Local 4 News reported on the current hearings before the House Judiciary Committee regarding the abuse of bankruptcy law to circumvent justice for consumers by preventing plaintiffs from suing the restructured Chrysler company for prior defects in Chrysler vehicles. Lieff Cabraser partner Scott P. Nealey commented on how normal lawsuits can effect change by confronting a company with a jury claim. Watch the full Local 4 report here. Among those who may be affected is Farbod Nourian (represented by Lieff Cabraser), who is suing Chrysler for the injuries he suffered after a defective Chrysler Jeep shifted from park into reverse. Click here to watch video of the accident.
May 11, 2009, Kingston, TN -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has officially taken over efforts to clean up the massive coal ash spill from the Tennessee Valley Authority's Kingston Fossil Plant that occurred in December 2008. "Given that TVA was unable to prevent the disaster in the first place, the clients we represent feel it's a good thing that they will not oversee the cleanup going forward that requires such care and attention to detail to prevent any further contamination," says Elizabeth Alexander, a Lieff Cabraser attorney leading the class action lawsuit against TVA. Learn more...
April 14, 2009, Washington, D.C. -- The Consumer Product Safety Commission announced that Mega Brands America Inc., of Livingston, N.J., formerly Rose Art Industries Inc., will pay a $1.1 million civil penalty to settle allegations that Mega Brands America and Rose Art failed to provide the CPSC timely information about the dangers to children of Magnetix magnetic building sets. The company's magnetic toys have been recalled three times over the course of several years. Lieff Cabraser represents parents whose children were injured by detached magnets from Magnetix toys. Learn more...
Medical Device Safety Act Receiving Broad Support
April 2, 2009, Washington, D.C. -- The National Law Journal reports that more than 20 consumer, health, women's advocacy and legal groups, including the American Bar Association, have sent letters to Congress urging passage of the Medical Device Safety Act. The bill would overturn a 2008 U.S. Supreme Court decision which provided immunity for medical device manufacturers. Earlier, the editors of The New England Journal of Medicine endorsed the bill, observing that “lawsuits by injured patients ... have been an important part of the regulatory framework and very effective in keeping medical devices safe.” Learn more about the Medical Device Safety Act at www.stopcorporateimmunity.org
March 31, 2009, Washington, D.C. -- The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission ("CPSC"), in cooperation with Yamaha Motor Corp. U.S.A., of Cypress, Calif., has announced a repair program for all Rhino 450, 660, and 700 model recreational vehicles to address rollover safety defects which have killed at least 46 and injured hundreds of others in the U.S. Yamaha will suspend sale of these models immediately until they have been retrofitted. Consumers should immediately stop using these popular recreational vehicles until the free repairs are installed by a dealer. In conjunction with a group of the families of victims, the Center for Auto Safety, and the San Francisco Trauma Foundation, Lieff Cabraser advocated for these and additional safety changes in a February 2009 safety report submitted to the CPSC. Learn more...
March 25, 2009, Knoxville, TN -- After hearing arguments from the TVA to cancel the previous order to preserve voicemails related to the Dec. 22, 2008 TVA coal fly ash spill, United States Magistrate Judge Bruce Guyton stated that the Court's order to preserve evidence, which "included voice mails specifically,
was clear.” Attorney Elizabeth Alexander argued the agency should have been
safeguarding potential evidence from the moment of the spill. "From the get-go it appears TVA wasn’t complying with its duty to preserve evidence,” Alexander said. Judge Guyton will issue a written ruling soon. Learn more about the TVA coal spill.
Supreme Court Reaffirms Right of Patients Harmed By Dangerous Prescription Drugs to Hold Manufacturers Accountable Under State Tort Laws
March 4, 2009, Washington, D.C. -- In a 6-3 decision in Wyeth v. Levine, the U.S. Supreme Court rejected the claim by drug manufacturer Wyeth that approval of a drug by the Food and Drug Administration provides pharmaceutical companies complete immunity from any claims of negligence. The Court emphasized the important role damage suits play in protecting the public: "The FDA has limited resources to monitor the 11,000 drugs on the market, and manufacturers have superior access to information about their drugs, especially in the postmarketing phase as new risks emerge. State tort suits uncover unknown drug hazards and provide incentives for drug manufacturers to disclose safety risks promptly. They also serve a distinct compensatory function that may motivate injured persons to come forward with information." Read the Wyeth v. Levine opinion.
March 3, 2009, San Francisco, CA -- In class action litigation against the world's leading manufacturers of LCD flat-panel TV screens, monitors, and other products incorporating liquid crystal displays (LCDs), U.S. District Court Judge Susan Illston denied defendants' motions to dismiss direct purchaser plaintiffs' First Amended Consolidated Complaint. The Court found the amended complaint included detail about "numerous illicit conspiratorial communications between and among defendants," as well as the facts of guilty pleas entered by several defendants for fixing prices of LCDs. Further, "[t]he complaints allege that group or 'crystal' meetings were attended by employees at three general levels of defendants' corporations, and contains details about the structure and content of these meetings, as well as the types of employees who attended the meetings." Read more...
February 26, 2009, Washington, D.C. -– The safety defects of some Utility Terrain Vehicles (UTVs), and in particular the Yamaha Rhino, are causing a mounting toll of death and severe injury to users, warns a report issued today by a group of safety advocates and victims. The report calls for basic changes in the design of these rollover-prone off-road vehicles to substantially increase their ability to protect occupants in the event of rollover accidents. The report, entitled "Citizen Report on UTV Vehicle Hazards," has been submitted by victims of UTV rollovers, including the parents of children killed or injured in such accidents, as well as adult victims, the Trauma Foundation, and the Center for Auto Safety. Learn more...
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