National Law Journal, "The combustible world of pricing tort system"

         It is not surprising that a study reporting a sharp rise in the cost of the tort sysatem would be embraced by the American Tort Reform Association -- and just as quickly attacked by trial lawyers. But a close look at the study, which purports to be "unbiased," demonstrates how difficult it is both to research this complex and sprawling subject and to pass muster with academics who have long mined the same terrain. More...

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, "Second lawsuit charges medical report falsification"

         Two separate lawsuits filed this week allege that doctors and administrators with the UPMC Health System and Magee-Womens Hospital falsified hundreds of thousands of Pap smear reports in order to boost profits and prestige while endangering the lives of thousands of women.
          Pap smears, which are recommended annually for women, can help in the early detection of gynecologic cancers and precancerous conditions. A UPMC official yesterday characterized the lawsuits as "unfounded allegations."
          Although both lawsuits -- filed Wednesday and yesterday in Allegheny County Common Pleas Court -- have similar thrusts, they differ in several respects. One filed Wednesday by Dr. Susan A. Silver of Pittsburgh, who was fired in August 2002 from her job as a Magee pathologist, charges that doctors and administrators allowed systemic errors to occur in Magee's pathology department.
      The second suit, which is seeking class-action status, was filed by breast cancer survivor Christine Walter, 58, of Sewickley, and Sharon King, 41, of West Deer, on behalf of tens of thousands of women whose Pap smear tests were processed by Magee. It seeks court-ordered notification of women who had Pap smears reviewed by Magee labs at least between 1995 and 2001. The suit also seeks court-ordered testing by an independent third party.
          Paulina do Amaral, a New York attorney at Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein, LLP, representing Walter and King, said her greatest concern was that negative, or "clean," reports were issued when some of the tests showed clear signs of cell abnormalities. The suit was filed for all the women "who trusted Magee-Womens Hospital to reliably review their Pap smears before," she said.
          About 100,000 Pap smear tests are conducted at Magee annually. Nationally, about 55 million are performed. About 6 percent -- 3.5 million -- are abnormal and require follow up.
          At Magee and other hospitals, standard Pap smears are conducted by swabbing and scraping cells from the cervix and vagina and placing them in a preservative. Cytotechnologists, who are not physicians, screen the Pap smear slides for any abnormal cells. If none is found, the technician signs the test and no further review is required.
          If abnormal cells are found, the test is referred to a pathologist for evaluation. The suits allege that in order to gain a greater share of the Pap smear testing market, the defendants created the impression that all tests would be reviewed not only by a trained technologist but also a physician. Doctors' electronic signatures were placed on tests, even when they had not reviewed them.

Women Allege that Pap Smear Reports Performed by Pittsburgh, PA Hospital Were Unreliable

Pittsburgh, PA -- Lieff Cabraser, with co-counsel, filed a class action lawsuit on behalf of tens of thousands of women whose Pap smear tests were processed by Magee-Womens Hospital from 1995 to the present. As alleged in the complaint, the hospital knowingly and deceptively misrepresented information concerning the reliability of its Pap smear tests. “The lawsuit charges that Magee-Womens Hospital issued Pap smear reports bearing physicians’ names in cases which were never reviewed by a physician,” said Paulina do Amaral, a Lieff Cabraser partner. “As alleged by plaintiffs, an unknown number of women may be at risk of serious diseases that have gone undetected because they received unreliable Pap smear tests.”

San Francisco Chronicle, Retailer's image problem: Racism (Excerpt of Opinion piece by Joan Ryan)

          According to a class action suit, Abercrombie & Fitch discriminates against minorities by pressuring stores to hire sales associates who fit the "A&F look,'' which from their catalogs, advertisements and looping videos in their stores, is white, young and preferably blond.
          How do we weigh a company's right to maximize its ability to attract its target audience against society's obligation to protect its citizens against discrimination? As black talk show host and lawyer Larry Elder said on 60 Minutes, "This is about a business deciding, pursuant to its best interests ... that a particular kind of salesperson is more likely to generate more dollars. A&F ought to have the right to set their own policies for good or for ill.'' Well, no. Then it also would be OK for a restaurant owner in Selma, Ala., to claim he doesn't hire African Americans because white waitresses and cooks make his white customers more comfortable and are better for business.
          According to the suit, A&F is "enforcing a nationwide corporate policy of preferring white employees for sales positions, desirable work assignments and favorable work schedules.'' The suit says the company recruits employees from colleges, fraternities, sororities and sports that are predominantly white. "They aren't recruiting from the basketball team,'' said Tom Saenz, one of the attorneys who coordinated the suit.

Court Approves $1.5 Billion Settlement In Natural Gas Price Case

San Diego, CA -- California Superior Court Judge J. Richard Haden granted final approval to a class action settlement valued at nearly $1.5 billion in the El Paso Natural Gas Anti-Trust Cases. The litigation was based upon allegations arising out of the natural gas supply shortages that took place during the California energy crisis in 2000 and 2001. Commenting on the settlement, Lieff Cabraser partner Barry R. Himmelstein stated, “The El Paso settlement is a tremendous extraordinary victory for Californians. The amount, nearly $1.5 billion, constitutes the largest settlement ever of an antitrust suit on behalf of the residents of a single state in our nation’s history.”

Business Week, "Revenge of the Overworked Nerds; They're suing for overtime pay -- and the outcome could change the tech industry"

          When Gary R. Oberholtz signed on as a salaried network engineer for Computer Sciences Corp. ("CSC") in 2000, he thought he'd found the ideal job. Especially appealing: He says he was promised a 40-hour workweek. But soon Oberholtz was routinely working 48-hour weeks and many weekends, he says. When he asked about overtime, his bosses at the El Segundo (Calif.)-based provider of tech services told him he wasn't eligible under state and federal employment laws.
          Now, four months after being laid off, Oberholtz is suing. He joined a class action filed on Nov. 12, alleging that CSC dodged paying overtime to some of its employees by improperly classifying them as exempt. "I want to send a message," Oberholtz says. "If you're going to make us work all these hours, you have to compensate us."

Federal Price-Fixing Class Action Lawsuit Against Manufacturers of Prostate Cancer Drug Allowed To Proceed

Boston, MA -- U.S. District Court Judge Richard G. Stearns denied the majority of arguments raised by defendants Abbott Laboratories, Takeda Chemical Industries and TAP Pharmaceuticals, the manufacturers of Lupron, in support of their motion to dismiss a federal class action lawsuit. Plaintiffs, cancer patients and health care plans, allege that defendants conspired to overstate the drug’s average wholesale price (“AWP”). The AWP is the rate upon which Medicare bases the reimbursement and co-payment. The court rejected the defendants’ claim that they had no duty to disclose that Lupron's AWP was a "'sticker price' and never intended to reflect the drug's true average wholesale price." The court found this argument "ultimately unpersuasive. There is a difference between a sticker price and a sucker price."

$90 Million Settlement Approved In Prescription Drug Antitrust Litigation

New York, NY -- U.S. District Judge John G. Koeltl of the Southern District of New York granted final approval to a $90 million cash settlement with Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. (BMS) involving alleged price-fixing of the anti-anxiety prescription drug BuSpar. Plaintiffs alleged that BMS and other companies entered into an unlawful agreement in restraint of trade under which BMS paid a potential generic manufacturer of BuSpar to drop its challenge to BMS’ patent and refrain from entering the market.

CNBC/MSN Money, "How mutual funds stole your money"

The New York Times, "Failed Pensions: A Painful Lesson in Assumptions"

          Robert M. Bowden retired from his job as accounts manager for a large trucking company with a plan to travel for himself. But his company's pension plan collapsed this year, and his annual payout was cut to $24,000 from $48,000. Mr. Bowden and other retirees of the company, CNF, see a culprit. In a lawsuit, they accuse the company of failing for many years to set aside enough money in the plan. The company did this, they say, by assuming they would retire much later than they really did. Though the CNF plan offered full benefits to people as young as 55, the company projected people would stick to their desks until they turned 64.
          A look at documents made public in the retirees' fight at CNF and at a few other companies, including US Airways and Bethlehem Steel, shows that companies have great leeway to tweak certain crucial assumptions about the future -- when their workers will retire, how long they will live, and which way interest rates will move, among others. A year shaved off an estimate here, a decimal point's difference there can significantly reduce a company's pension obligations on paper. The company can save millions of dollars in pension contributions. But if a company shortchanges its pension fund year after year and the company then gets into trouble, the plan that looked healthy can fail, seemingly out of nowhere, leaving workers stranded.

Reuters, "Charges vs ex-Prudential brokers may stick"

          Civil fraud charges against former Prudential Securities brokers accused of market timing mutual funds will likely stick even if the practice itself is not illegal, lawyers said on Thursday. Federal and state securities said in legal complaints filed on Tuesday that the brokers changed their identities to disguise market timing, the rapid trading of mutual funds, and to keep trading in funds that had terminated their accounts.
          Lawyers for the accused said on Tuesday their clients had done nothing wrong, and that market timing was not illegal. Robert Nelson, an attorney at Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein who is prosecuting lawsuits filed against mutual fund companies involved in the widening probe of the $7 trillion industry, observed that fraudulent behavior had occurred. "Fraud involves the intent to deceive and to the extent they changed their identities to deceive mutual funds they will be culpable," he said. "Those charges are sound."
          According to the complaint filed by Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth William Galvin, 68 mutual fund companies wrote 25,000 to 30,000 letters to Prudential warning of market timing and closing or freezing accounts.

The Washington Post, "Panel Chair Opposes Advice on Breast Implants"

          The chairman of the federal advisory panel that voted last month to allow silicone breast implants back on the market after an 11-year absence is urging the Food and Drug Administration to override the recommendation because of lingering long-term safety concerns. Thomas V. Whalen, a professor of surgery at the Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, said he decided to take the unusual step of speaking out against his own panel's action because "to approve this device poses threats to women that are clearly unknown."
          The palm-size gel implants were pulled from U.S. markets in 1992 because of fears that ruptures and leakage could cause complications such as neurological and tissue damage. In a letter to FDA Commissioner Mark McClellan, Whalen said the questions remain unanswered.
          "It is incumbent upon the FDA to demand that the manufacturer establish in a rigorous, prospective, controlled study that these devices, despite their established breakage and leakage rates, are safe in the long term," he wrote. Calling last month's 9 to 6 recommendation "misguided," Whalen said it was tainted because every plastic surgeon on the panel voted to approve the implants.
          To read more about the silicone gel breast implant litigation, click here.

Settlement Class of Fleetwood RV Owners May Submit Claims For $250 Payment for Purchase of Supplemental Braking Systems

San Antonio, TX -- U.S. District Court Judge Fred Biery of the Western District of Texas granted final approval to a class action settlement between Fleetwood Enterprises, Inc., and original owners of 1994-2000 Fleetwood Class A or Class C motor homes who still own their RV. Under the settlement, class members who have purchased a supplemental braking system for their RV, or who do so by April 18, 2004, and submit a timely, properly-documented claim form will receive a $250 cash payment. "The settlement is a significant victory for Fleetwood RV owners and illustrates the vital importance of class actions in ensuring that the rights of consumers are protected and in promoting consumer safety," commented Lieff Cabraser partner Jonathan D. Selbin.

The Recorder, "Wal-Mart hopes judge doesn't buy huge class"

          Wal-Mart has racked up an impressive list of achievements in its 41 years in business, becoming the world's top retailer and the country's largest private employer. Now the company is facing another, less welcome distinction as it fends off what could become the largest employment discrimination class action in the nation's history.
          The suit accuses Wal-Mart of discriminating against women and seeks to establish a class of nearly 1.6 million current and former female employees of the company. According to the suit, women workers at Wal-Mart are consistently underpaid compared with male employees and
are promoted to management posts at a much lower rate.
          On Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Martin Jenkins will hear arguments in San Francisco to determine whether Dukes v. Wal-Mart, 01-2252, should proceed as a class action. The specter of the giant class means the stakes for Wal-Mart are huge - the company's lawyers have estimated that damages could run into the billions of dollars. But the size and scope of the proposed class also provides Wal-Mart's lawyers with a big target as they try to shoot down a class they contend is overly broad and unwieldy.
          Plaintiffs attorneys, both involved in the suit and not, dismiss such contentions as scare tactics, insisting that damages could easily be determined through a formula based on Wal-Mart's payroll data. "If you assert that at some point a company gets too big to be appropriate for a class action suit, are you relegating employees that are working for large corporations to lose their rights to bring claims in a class context?" asks Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein partner Kelly Dermody. "That doesn't make any sense."

Note: Lieff Cabraser is involved in wage and overtime lawsuits against Wal-Mart but is not serving as class counsel in the gender discrimination lawsuit against Wal-Mart.

          A former top executive and five ex-workers of Consolidated Freightways have sued the company's former parent and actuarial firm, alleging they caused the defunct trucker's pension plan to become underfunded, costing some 500 ex-workers millions of dollars in benefits.
          The federal class-action lawsuit, filed in late August, alleges California-based trucking and air-freight conglomerate CNF and its actuary, Pennsylvania-based Towers, Perrin, Forster & Crosby, failed to transfer enough money to Consolidated Freightways' pension plan when CNF spun Consolidated Freightways off as a stand-alone, unionized company in December 1996.
          "We were told if we worked hard and stayed with the company, that there would be a reward at the end," said Thomas A. Paulsen, Consolidated Freightways' former president and chief operating officer and the lead plaintiff in the suit. "Unfortunately, that didn't happen."
          The suit alleges CNF knew when it spun off Consolidated Freightways that its subsidiary was losing money and would not survive more than a few years.

PR Newswire, "Court Notification Begins About Additional American Cemwood Roofing Shake Settlement"

          A Court-ordered notification to inform property owners about a proposed additional $75 million settlement in the class action related to roofing shakes manufactured by American Cemwood Corporation has commenced. The settlement is in addition to a partial settlement that was Court-approved on May 26, 2000, bringing the total settlement fund to $140 million. To date, more than $48 million in claims for qualifying damage have been paid.
          Notices are scheduled to appear in national newspaper supplements and regional editions of magazines, as well as mailed to those who have previously submitted their addresses, leading up to a hearing on November 18, 2003, when the Court will consider whether to approve the settlement.
          "Cemwood Shakes" -- made to look like real wood -- are all cement and wood fiber composite roofing tiles and shakes manufactured by American Cemwood, including, but not limited to: Permatek, Permatek II, Royal, Cemwood and Cascade shakes, and Pacific Slate and Trieste tiles. The settlement pays valid claims for damage to Cemwood Shakes, including cracking, lifting, warping, or softening of the Shakes, and/or roof leaks due to damaged Shakes.
          Those affected by this settlement can send in a claim form to ask for a payment, or object to the settlement by November 6, 2003. Payment amounts will be determined by whether a claimant has qualifying damage, roof size, and the number of claims made. Those who have already sent in a claim do not have to do anything. The deadline to file claims is in February of 2015. This allows those who have Shake damage in the future to qualify; however, the fund is limited and claims should be filed as soon as possible. To learn more, please visit www.cemwoodclaims.com.

Alameda Times-Star (Alameda, CA), "Danger in the attic; Vermiculite insulation, once thought benign, now presents a health hazard in older homes where it is found"

          The work went on quietly for 34 years at the end of an industrial cul-de-sac in Newark, California: 321,000 tons of ore shipped throughout the Bay Area that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency now says was laced with dangerous levels of cancer-causing asbestos. It came from a mine in Libby, Mont., where one in seven residents in the surrounding valley have lungs permanently scarred from asbestos. It ended here and across the nation, as attic insulation in homes, as fire-proof coating high-rises and as soil additive in nurseries and gardens.
          The ore is vermiculite, a gold-hued silicate mineral with the unique capacity to expand like popcorn when heated. The EPA has no idea where to find it today -- the plant closed its doors in 1994. Nor can the agency gauge the health threat the mineral now poses. Because of that, it remains uncertain what to tell people who fear vermiculite lurks in their attic.
          But it is leaning toward this: If you suspect vermiculite, don't go up in the attic. Forget about do-it-yourself projects up there. And if you're planning a remodel, tack on at least $30,000 for professional asbestos abatement.
          "The history of this thing and the number of opportunities we missed are truly tragic," said Dan Thornton, the EPA's Superfund coordinator for the Libby mine cleanup. "We all dropped the ball -- repeatedly -- throughout 40 years of missed opportunities.
          Lawyers putting together a nationwide class-action lawsuit against the manufacturer, the bankrupt W.R. Grace Co. of Connecticut, estimate roughly 500,000 homes in California have asbestos-laced vermiculite under the rafters. "What is so shocking is how easy these asbestos exposures can be avoided if people just know," said Fabrice Vincent, a partner at the San Francisco law firm of Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein, which did some of the initial legwork on the issue. "They can caulk around light fixtures. They can keep kids out of the attic. When they remodel they can take appropriate precautions. But they have to know."

San Francisco Chronicle, "Settlement announced in suit against gun dealers, Anti-crime steps part of the pact "

          San Francisco and 11 other California cities and counties announced Thursday that they have reached an unprecedented settlement in which some gun distributors and dealers have agreed to take steps to prevent firearms from ending up in the hands of criminals. Under the settlement of the 1999 lawsuit, two of the state's leading gun dealers -- Traders' Sports Inc. in San Leandro and Andrew's Sporting Goods in Southern California -- as well as three major gun distributors have agreed to restrictions on sales that go beyond state and federal regulations.
          Under the accord, the gun dealers' employees will receive training from law enforcement officials on how to spot straw sales -- a process in which someone lawfully buys weapons from a dealer and then sells them to felons or juveniles. The gun dealers also have agreed to share information on gun buyers with local law enforcement.

Gun Distributors and Dealers Enter Into Settlement Aimed at Curbing Sales to Straw Purchasers and Gun Traffickers

August 21, 2003, San Francisco, CA -- Los Angeles, San Francisco and 10 other California cities and counties have entered into an unprecedented settlement in which several gun distributors and dealers have agreed to take steps to prevent firearms from being sold to criminals. Two of the state's leading gun dealers -- Traders' Sports Inc. in San Leandro and Andrew's Sporting Goods in Southern California -- agreed to adopt as store policy verification of the identity of the actual purchaser of a firearm and to end the sale of firearms at gun shows. In addition, three major gun distributors have agreed to restrictions on sales that go beyond state and federal regulations.

TheStreet.com, "Pre-Paid Suffers Legal Setback"

          Pre-Paid Legal Services has failed to convince a federal judge that the company is not an illegal pyramid scheme.
          The legal services provider, which employs the same controversial marketing strategy made famous by Amway, this week lost a motion to dismiss a class-action lawsuit filed by sales associates who feel they were scammed by the company. The ruling opens the door for a full-blown trial that could prove devastating to the so-called multilevel marketing, or MLM, company.
          "It should surprise nobody that has either studied or been the victim of Pre-Paid's MLM business practices that the judge would rule in favor of the associate plaintiffs when the case was presented by a competent law firm," said one hedge fund manager with a large short position in the stock. "This case goes to the heart of their MLM practices, and the judge appears to agree it has merit to proceed."
          The lawsuit, filed 17 months ago by legal giant Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein, accuses Pre-Paid of violating federal securities laws by enticing the public to invest in a business opportunity that almost always fails. Participants pay at least $65, and as much as $249, for the right to sell Pre-Paid legal policies and recruit others to do the same.

Court Permits Lawsuit Alleging Pre-Paid Legal Services Operates As A Pyramid Scheme to Advance

July 23, 2003, Oklahoma City, OK -- U.S. District Court Judge Robin J. Cauthron denied in part and granted in part Pre-Paid Legal Services, Inc.'s motion to dismiss a class action lawsuit, and denied Pre-Paid's motion to strike the class allegations. Plaintiffs allege that the Pre-Paid marketing program is an illegal pyramid scheme, participation in which qualifies as an investment contract for purposes of federal securities laws. Plaintiffs allege that participants, called "associates", are deceived into buying an "opportunity" to sell Pre-Paid's legal plans and recruit others to do the same.

BNA's Employment Discrimination Report, "Despite Decline in Percentage, EEO Court Filings Remain Stable"

          The number of equal employment opportunity cases filed in federal district courts over the 12 months ending Sept. 30, 2002, remained steady, Washington, D.C.-based employment attorney Richard T. Seymour reported in a paper presented at a conference sponsored by the National Employment Lawyers Association. Specifically, he noted, there were 20,995 filings in the year ending Sept. 30, 2002, compared with 21,062 in the year ending Dec. 31, 2001.
          Seymour, co-author of BNA Books' Equal Employment Law Update, also reported that the EEO percentage of all civil filings for the period totaled 8.8 percent, or one out of every 11.4 civil cases. While this number reflects a continued high percentage of EEO filings among all federal filings for the period, it is a slight dip from the 2001 numbers, he noted. He speculated that this might be the result of the U.S. Supreme Court's increasing emphasis on the importance of employers having internal compliance and complaint systems.

National Law Journal, "The Plaintiffs' Hot List: Twenty-five go-to teams for when the going gets tough"

The National Law Journal picked Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein, LLP, as one of the leading "go-to" law firms for plaintiffs in the United States "when the tough gets going." In compiling the list, the National Law Journal paid attention to recent verdicts and settlements as well as to the overall track records of the firms. The editors also contacted dozens of general counsel for corporations, and asked them for the names of plaintiffs' firms that would recommend. [Note: Again in 2004, the Journal awarded Lieff Cabraser with this disctinction, an even higher honor given that the awardee pool was reduced from 25 firms to 20].

The New York Times, "Davis Signs Fair Lending Bill"

          Gov. Gray Davis of California has signed into law a bill to curb outsize interest rates that car dealers sometimes charge minority customers. The new statute, say consumer groups that follow the issue, is the nation's first to take aim at discriminatory lending that can result from a practice known as the dealer markup. In a dealer markup, car dealers raise interest rates above the rates they are quoted by auto lending giants or other big financing companies. The dealers pocket the proceeds of the difference, or split them with the financing companies.
          Large numbers of car buyers around the country pay thousands of dollars extra because of the dealer markup, which is invisible to typical buyers and little understood by them. Though the markup is often paid by car buyers of all ethnicities, it can be most pronounced for minorities, in which case it runs afoul of federal law that prohibits discriminatory lending practices. "Many consumers are deceived into paying excessively high interest rates when purchasing a car, especially African-Americans and Latinos," Governor Davis, who signed the new statute on Monday night, said in a statement issued yesterday.

To learn about litigation against auto finance companies for alleging charging minority customers excessive interest rates on auto loans, click here.

Governor Davis Signs Bill Aimed At Curbing Discriminatory Auto Loan Mark Ups

July 14, 2003, Sacramento -- Gov. Gray Davis of California signed into law a bill to curb inflated interest rates on auto loans that car dealers charge minority customers. The new statute is the nation's first to take aim at discriminatory lending that can result from a practice known as dealer markup. In a dealer markup, car dealers raise interest rates above the rates they are quoted by auto lending giants or other big financing companies. Frequently, the customers that incur the highest mark-ups are allegedly African Americans and Latinos.
          To learn about lawsuits against auto finance companies for unfair lending, click here.

The Recorder (San Francisco), "Powerful Payday"

          The latest settlement in litigation over California's energy crisis includes tens of millions of dollars in attorney fees to be shared by a handful of politically savvy plaintiffs' firms. Last week, California Attorney General Bill Lockyer's office announced that Houston-based El Paso Corp. agreed to a settlement worth $1.625 billion in payouts and renegotiated long-term power contracts. The settlement, which ends regulatory action and private suits against the natural gas giant, is the biggest in connection with energy litigation.
          Plaintiffs' lawyers say they've invested thousands of hours in the case, which accused El Paso of manipulating the state's energy supplies. Barry Himmelstein of San Francisco class action behemoth Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein said the case was "grueling" and the negotiations complicated and difficult. "You have a rare situation where just about everyone in the state is a class member," Himmelstein said. "[You have] multiple government agencies from multiple states on multiple theories in multiple jurisdictions."
          Himmelstein, the Lieff Cabraser partner, compared last week's El Paso deal to the historic tobacco agreement. And just like in the tobacco litigation, politics is intertwined with energy. Not only are public and private lawyers working together to prosecute alleged wrongdoing, but also several of the players have political relationships outside the energy cases.
          Besides its size, Himmelstein said the settlement is also a coup because El Paso agreed to pay money up front, instead of annually over a 20-year period, as was initially discussed. "This is as good as it gets," Himmelstein said.

The Recorder, "California Jury Verdicts Soar in 2002"

Daily Journal, "Hemophiliacs Sue U.S. Blood Companies"

The New York Times, "Companies See Court Ruling as Support for Diversity"

Lehman Brothers Held Liable in Predatory Lending Case

A federal jury held Lehman Bros. Holdings Inc. accountable for fraud at an Irvine mortgage company it helped finance, saying the investment bank aided and abetted a First Alliance Corp. scheme to add as much as 24% in fees to the balances of homeowners who refinanced their loans. The verdict marked the first time a financial backer of an abusive lender has been held liable, carving out a new area of vulnerability for Wall Street. Lieff Cabraser served as co-counsel in the trial.

California Court of Appeal Reinstates Class Action Against Chevron in Refinery Toxic Smoke Case

June 12, 2003, San Francisco, CA -- The California Court of Appeal reversed the trial court’s denial of class certification in a lawsuit arising out of an explosion and fire at the Chevron refinery in Richmond, California on March 25, 1999. Following the explosion, thousands of persons in the surrounding area were instructed to stay inside, behind closed windows and doors, in order to avoid toxic smoke and fumes emanating from the refinery. The Court of Appeal held that the law permitted persons directed to “shelter-in-place” to join together in a class action lawsuit and seek compensation for the nuisance and loss of freedom they endured. To read the court’s order (in Abode Acrobat format), click here.

The Guardian (London), "Lawsuit for Infected Blood "

Wall Street Journal, "Schering-Plough Criminal Probe Adds to Pressure on CEO Hassan"

Associated Press, "Mortgage Company Faces Lawsuits and Federal Investigation"

          A local mortgage company is being investigated by two federal agencies and sued by thousands of its customers for allegedly charging unwarranted late fees and misapplying payments.
         As a result, Salt Lake City-based Fairbanks Capital has replaced three executives, including the CEO, in the last three weeks. The company has publicly agreed to cooperate with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Federal Trade Commission in the investigations into the company's practices.
          Both agencies declined comment.
          Several lawsuits against the company have been filed around the nation, one of the largest in Los Angeles by Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein. The class-action lawsuit alleges that Fairbanks Capital assessed late fees when payments arrived on time, prematurely referred accounts to collections departments leading to foreclosure and forced some clients to pay for redundant home insurance.
          "We are seeing very consistent problems across the group," said attorney Kelly Dermody, mentioning that up to ten thousand clients could be affected. "These are hard working people, who are trying to put their financial house in order, and they are now facing their worst nightmare which is that they could lose their home. It's really tragic."

Wall Street Journal, "With Wall Street on Defensive, Claims Against Brokers Surge"

          Stung by massive stock-market losses and emboldened by the intense regulatory attack on Wall Street, investors are expected to file a record number of arbitration claims against brokers this year.
          The average payouts going to miffed investors are getting higher, too. Stockholders typically win only slightly more than half of the cases that go to arbitration. But the amount being awarded investors is soaring -- $69 million in just four months this year, compared with $139 million for all of 2002. The size of arbitration disputes also has risen, with some attorneys saying that many more million-dollar-plus claims are being filed.

CBS News, "Car Dealers & The 'Mark-Up' Scam

   Every time Michelle Thompson gets behind the wheel of her used Honda, she gets angry, reminded of the car dealer she claims steered her into an almost 18 percent loan.
   ”I think they take advantage of minorities, lower class is what they probably deem us,” said Thompson.
          Thompson has been working to pay off her car at $440 a month, she told CBS News Correspondent Sandra Hughes.
          “It's like half my paycheck and it's a struggle now that I'm a homeowner. I have a three-year-old son. It's definitely a huge burden," Thompson said.
          Thompson fell victim to an industry-wide practice called the "dealer mark-up" when she bought her car at a northern California dealership. The mark up happens when a buyer purchases a car and finances it at the dealership using the dealer's loan company instead of a bank.
          To learn more about this litigation, click here.

East Bay Express (California), "Car Loans as Pricey as the Car; Three Recent Lawsuits Allege that Minority Car Buyers are Routinely Charged More Interest than their White Counterparts"

USA Today, "Putting a face on malpractice insurance debate"

          In the debate swirling around what some call a medical malpractice insurance crisis, the sides are pretty well drawn: doctors, hospitals and insurance companies vs. the trial lawyers. But where do patients fit in? More...

The Los Angeles Times, "California, El Paso Reach $1.7-Billion Deal to End Energy Pricing Probe"

Los Angeles Times, "Study Questions Safety of SUVs"

San Jose Mercury News, "Malpractice Insurance Crisis Would Best Be Solved By States"

          With so much spinning of facts and contortions of logic, the debate over a national cap on medical malpractice awards is turning into a three-ring circus. It's hard to know which ring deserves the most notice as insurance companies, physicians and trial lawyers compete loudly for attention from congressional hearings that begin today. Then there are the victims of malpractice and their relatives, whose tales of death, disfigurement and disability inspire outraged juries to add large "pain and suffering" awards. More...

LA Times, "Commentary: Damage Cap Adds Insult to Injuries; State law cheats less-affluent victims of medical malpractice"

          After hearing all the evidence, a San Diego jury ruled that 2-year-old Steven Olsen's lost sight and cerebral functions were worth $7.1 million. But unbeknown to the jurors, their medical malpractice ruling later would be cut to $250,000 -- the "pain and suffering" cap that was set by the California Legislature in 1975 and that always overrides a jury's judgment. Now President Bush wants to adopt this little-known standard for injured patients across the nation, and California's dirty little legal secret could become America's nightmare. More...

Los Angeles Times, "Court Upholds Suits by WWII Slave Laborers"

          A state appeals court on Wednesday upheld the constitutionality of a California law that allows World War II victims of forced labor in foreign countries to sue for compensation in state court. The ruling by a three-judge panel conflicts with a decision by a federal judge who found that the law infringes on the U.S. government's exclusive power over foreign affairs.
          In a 33-page opinion, the appellate court said they could find nothing in the document that prohibits claims by private citizens against private Japanese companies. The court also dismissed the claim that the law violated the company's due-process rights. The statute, it said, "validly extends the statute of limitations that would otherwise bar claims for unpaid labor and personal injuries suffered by slave or forced labor victims."
          The ruling means that Jeong can proceed with his Superior Court lawsuit, barring a further appeal to the state Supreme Court. Jeong said Wednesday through an interpreter that he never doubted he would be allowed to proceed. "It's going to take a long time, and eventually justice will prevail," he said. "I'm hoping that my case finally gets some resolution before the day I die."

Note: Lieff Cabraser serves as counsel for Mr. Jeong.

The Wall Street Journal, "Auto-Safety Czar Warns Drivers of SUV Dangers"

          The nation's top auto-safety regulator said sport-utility vehicles and pickup trucks -- among the most popular and profitable vehicles sold in America today -- aren't safe enough and that consumers should think twice before buying one.
          Jeffrey W. Runge, head of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, said SUV drivers are especially vulnerable to fatal rollovers because the vehicles' high center of gravity makes them more likely to tip during sudden maneuvers. Marking an intensified campaign to boost SUV safety, Dr. Runge warned that if auto makers don't make these vehicles safer and put more head-protecting air bags in them, the government could step in to mandate changes.
          "The thing that I don't understand is people, when they choose to buy a vehicle, they might go sit in it and say, 'Gee, I feel safe,' " said Dr. Runge, who was an emergency-room physician for 20 years before taking over the top NHTSA job in 2001. "Well, sorry, but you know gut instinct is great for a lot of stuff, but it's not very good for buying a safe automobile." Dr. Runge said his agency is considering new performance standards that would push auto makers to install more safety technology in vehicles, particularly to deal with the risks from rollover and side-impact crashes.
          Rollover accidents accounted for just 3% of all U.S. motor-vehicle accidents in 2001, but they caused nearly a third of all vehicle-occupant fatalities, Dr. Runge said. An SUV occupant was three times as likely to die as a result of a rollover than an occupant of a passenger car, he said.           Moreover, fatalities in single-vehicle rollovers increased in 2001 by 22% to 8,400 deaths, with pickups accounting for the biggest gain, an increase Dr. Runge called "astounding."

The Sacramento Bee, "Malpractice isn't all that ails health care"

          The Bush administration has embraced a 28-year-old California malpractice insurance law as the cure for an upward spike in malpractice premiums happening in other states. The law undoubtedly has helped keep malpractice premiums down in the state since it was enacted. For other state legislators looking for a solution, it is a reasonable starting point for the discussion. But if Bush looks to make something like this the law of all the land, this is merely a bandage on a patient -- the health care system -- that's badly bleeding. More...

California Lawyer, "Drug Wars: Prescription Drug Companies Get Hit With A Rising Tide of Lawsuits"

          The magazine of the California State Bar profiled the national litigation spearheaded by Lieff Cabraser against the prescription drug industry for alleged widespread anti-competitive practices. Lieff Cabraser partner Joseph R. Saveri commented that even if many of legislative loopholes that have been exploited by the drug industry are closed, the litigation will still continue as "the years of overpayments by consumers aren't going to go away." To read the full article (in Adobe Acrobat format), click here.