Seattle Personal Injury Lawyer - Class Action

Products from China Continue to Harm American Consumers

Michael Myers — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 10:07:26 GMT

Retailers selling products from China have been beleaguered by claims arising from defects in the Chinese-made products. One of the most publicized cases involved dog and cat food. We filed the first nationwide class action lawsuit in that case against Menu Foods and the companies that sold tainted pet food.

Now another Chinese-made product is harming American consumers, the seemingly innocent flip-flop. Since September of last year Wal-Mart has reportedly sold over a million Sand 'N Sun flip-flops, a cheap ($2.99) sandal made in China. The flip-flops have caused first and second degree chemical burns on dozens of customer's feet, directly underneath the straps of the flip-flop.

In September, a website was launched by Kerry Stiles of Ocklaweaha, Florida because, according to the website, "Wal-Mart seems to have maybe lost track of how many people have complained to them..." The website features pictures, submitted by Walmart customers, of the chemical burns inflicted by the flip-flops. Stiles has received over 140 emails and photographs since the website launched.

The Sand 'N Sun sandals have since been recalled, although customers are still reportedly finding the sandals on Wal-Mart shelves.

Our firm is preparing to file a nation-wide class action aimed at compensating consumers who purchased the dangerous flip-flops. We look forward to helping consumers who have suffered injuries or who can no longer wear the defective footwear.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Michael Myers

Vacation Internationale--Class Action

Michael Myers — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 14:16:16 GMT

We recently met with an owner of points in Vacation Internationale. When upgrading his ownership interest from a term of years to perpetual, representatives of Vacation Internationale advised that it owned the various vacation properties in fee simple. Based on information obtained from a former VI employee, it appears that this was a material misrepresentation and VI does not own many of its properties.

We are actively investigating this apparent fraud. If you purchased points or upgraded your points prior to 2006, we would like to speak with you. Washington has very strong consumer protection laws and a special statute designed to protect time share purchasers.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Michael Myers

Four Deaths Linked to Powerful Pain-Killer, Fentora

Chelsea Gilbert — Wed, 19 Sep 2007 08:00:39 GMT

On Thursday, September 13, Cephalon Inc. announced that four deaths have been linked to the powerful cancer pain drug, Fentora, which they manufacture. Fentora was approved by the Food and Drug Administration last September for use by specific cancer patients.

The Fentora fatalities allegedly all involved patients using the drug improperly. Two of the patients who died were reportedly using the painkiller as a headache treatment.

However, Cephalon is facing allegations that they promoted Fentora for off-label use.

Last year, an investigation by Connecticut's attorney general found that Cephalon illegally promoted drugs for uses for which they are not approved, including Actiq, Cephalon's older cancer pain medicine.

Cephalon has stated that the four deaths are not related to these allegations. Cephalon spokeswoman, Candace Steele, also noted that three of the deaths linked to the painkiller occurred within a fairly short time period and during the summer months, suggesting that the fatalities were likely a result of respiratory failure.

In a letter dated September 10 Cephalon addressed health-care providers regarding the potentially fatal side effects of the powerful painkiller and the correct way in which to prescribe Fentora.

Attorney General Cautions Use of Chinese Tires

Mark McLean — Thu, 16 Aug 2007 15:01:38 GMT

Washington Attorney General Rob McKenna is one of 24 attorneys general throughout the country warning consumers to be wary of defective tires sold by Hangzhou Zhongce, or "HGR" , a Chinese tire manufacturer. Apparently, defective HGR tires have been suspected in causing a litany of car accidents in recent months. A recall is expected soon.

Even though HGR is a foreign corporation, it is still liable for potential lawsuits based on Washington's Products Liability Act (as well as a potential class-action lawsuit). Because HGR placed the defective tires into Washington's "stream of commerce," it likely has enough "minimum contacts" with Washington to be subject to the jurisdiction of Washington courts. Also, China (in addition to America) is a party to the Hague Convention, which means Chinese authorities can and will serve Chinese corporations with lawsuits in American courts.

For more information on this subject matter, please refer to the section on Defective and Dangerous Products.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Mark McLean

Apple and AT&T Sued Over iPhone

Mark McLean — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 14:49:20 GMT

Apple and AT&T are facing a potential class-action lawsuit over the battery life of the new iPhone. The suit alleges not only that the iPhone was defective, but also that corporate officers knew of the defects and fraudulently withheld that information from customers.

The lawsuit follows a complaint sent to Apple CEO Steve Jobs by the New York State Consumer Protection Board which asks him to revise the company's battery replacement program, which costs consumers $79 plus shipping.

As this blog has continually noted, class action lawsuits are a great tool to protect the American consumer. Usually, such a claim is too insignificant to pursue individually. However, if all similarly-situated consumers band together in a single claim, each individual consumer finds redress for the harm done and it prevents corporations from acting in similar manners in the future.

For more information on this subject, please refer to our section on Defective and Dangerous Products.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Mark McLean

Samsung Sued for Faulty Camcorders

Mark McLean — Thu, 02 Aug 2007 12:16:40 GMT

Samsung customers recently filed a class-action lawsuit against the company, alleging that it knowingly sold faulty camcorders, forcing customers to pay as much as $150 to fix them.

In a lawsuit filed Thursday in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, Samsung is accused of ignoring customer complaints that its camcorders with an image sensor device known as a CCD imager prematurely fail and cause a blank or distorted screen.

A "class action" is a lawsuit where a handful of persons sue an entity or individual on behalf of "similarly situated" persons--in this case, the plaintiffs sued Samsung on behalf of everyone who bought the allegedly defective camcorder. If the class is "certified," or allowed to proceed as a class by the court, and if a settlement or judgment is obtained, a third-party administrator contacts or advertises the potential claimants to submit claims to be part of the class.

The class action process is a great way to redress problems on a whole that usually are too small to pursue on an individual basis. It probably wouldn't be worth the cost and hassle if one Samsung customer sued the company for the faulty device. But if thousands of people in the same position sued, it would both (1) provide redress to the consumers; and (2) deter corporations from acting in a similar manner in the future. The class action process has achieved tremendous results in protecting America's consumers from sketchy business practices.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Mark McLean

BarBri Settles Class Action Lawsuit

Mark McLean — Thu, 02 Aug 2007 11:41:33 GMT

BarBri, the nation's leading preparation course for bar examinations throughout the country, recently settled a class action lawsuit brought by its customers, alleging BarBri violated antitrust laws by, among other things, colluding with Kaplan (an LSAT preparation course) to stay out of each other's dominant areas of emphasis. The case settled for $49 million.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Mark McLean

Tainted Ginger Recalled from China

Mark McLean — Thu, 02 Aug 2007 10:51:39 GMT

In the latest scandal involving Chinese food exports, tainted ginger has recently been recalled. Apparently, the ginger contained a toxic pesticide.

State and federal health officials are now working to determine how the ginger got into this country and how widely it has been sold. It's not the first time that contaminated Chinese ginger has been a problem.
U.S. port inspectors in Seattle have turned away shipments of Chinese ginger that contained pesticides in recent months, according to news reports. And Japanese authorities acknowledged this month that they mistakenly allowed 25 tons of Chinese ginger laced with pesticide into their country.

This latest scare seems all to familiar with the recent recall of Chinese Wheat Gluten that led to this firm's prosecution of a class action lawsuit against Canadian Importer Menu Foods. If you or someone you know has been injured as a result of the tainted ginger, experienced attorneys can advise you of your potential legal remedies.

For more information on this subject, please refer to our section on Defective and Dangerous Products.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Mark McLean

Castleberry Foods Recalls Toxic Hot Dog Chili Sauce

Mark McLean — Thu, 26 Jul 2007 12:03:36 GMT

Castleberry Foods recently recalled cans of its hot dog chili sauce after the toxic Botulism poison was found in the sauce and caused four hospitalizations.

Botulism is similar to Botox in the face--causing a muscle-paralyzing disease that comes from the extremely toxic Clostridium botulinum, a bacterium commonly found in soil.

The toxin often originates from under-processed and under-heated canned foods. Leaks and bulges in food cans can identify warning signs for growing spores.

The FDA issued a warning for 10-ounce cans of Castleberry's, Austex and Kroger brands of hot dog chili sauce with expiration dates from April 30, 2009, through May 22, 2009.

Castleberry is a subsidiary of Bumble Bee Seafoods LLC.

For more information on this subject, please refer to our section on Defective and Dangerous Products.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Mark McLean

Washington Supreme Court Prohibits Class Action Waivers

Mark McLean — Fri, 20 Jul 2007 13:41:10 GMT

Washington's Supreme Court gave consumers a victory this month by ruling that companies may not disclaim class action liability.

In a significant victory for consumers, the Washington Supreme Court ruled Thursday that the former Cingular Wireless, now AT&T, cannot enforce a waiver in its contract that prohibits customers from pursuing a class action.

The Supreme Court ruled that the waiver language in Cingular's standard contract disclaiming class action liability was unconscionable--meaning far too one-sided to be enforced. This is a big step in protecting the rights of Washington consumers.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Mark McLean