Back in November of last year, the toy company GoldiBlox found itself with a hit commercial on its hands, showing little girls learning the joys of engineering while playing. The only problem? The ad used a parody of the Beastie Boys’ hit “Girls,” prompting GoldieBlox to preemptively sue the band, lest it sue for copyright infringement. After getting countersued by the Beastie Boys, the toymakers have decided to settle the suit. [More]
lawsuits
First Class-Action Suit Filed Over Botched GM Recall Tied To At Least 12 Deaths
By 3.17.14
When a carmaker recalls more than a million vehicles over an ignition problem that could cause a car to stall and crash without the airbags deploying, a lawsuit is likely. Throw in the fact that the car company knew about the defect for a dozen years, received numerous complaints from customers and dealerships, and is tied to anywhere from 12 to more than 300 deaths, and you have the beginnings of a lawsuit bonanza. [More]
McDonald’s Employees In 3 States File Wage-Related Lawsuits
By 3.13.14
Over the last two days, McDonald’s employees in California, Michigan and New York have filed a total of seven class-action suits against the fast food giant and various franchise operators, alleging a range of violations, from failing to pay overtime, to making employees work undocumented hours. [More]
How To Not Suck… At Going To Small Claims Court
By 3.11.14
There are times when you can’t convince a business to do the right thing. Or a dispute with your neighbor won’t come to a close. Or, well, stuff happens. When you try to reach an agreement with another party but you just can’t work it out, you might choose to let a judge decide. [More]
Swatch Sues Target, Claims Retailer Copied Designs
By 3.11.14
Last week, Swatch filed a federal lawsuit accusing discount retailer Target of stealing its designs. Wait…Swatch is still a thing? Plastic watches are still a thing? Target sells plastic watches? This ’80s revival really has gone too far. [More]
Google Sued Over Kids’ In-App Currency Purchases
By 3.11.14
While the folks at Apple have already settled civil and regulatory complaints about in-app purchase policies that allowed children to run up huge bills on their parents’ accounts, the Google Play store has only recently come under scrutiny for its allegedly lax controls. Now, a mom in New York has filed a potential class action against the Internet giant, claiming its policies encourage kids to waste their parents’ money. [More]
Supreme Court Won’t Hear “I Heart Boobies” Bracelet Case
By 3.10.14
Back in 2011, we told you about a U.S. District Court ruling that determined the wearing of “I Heart Boobies” breast cancer awareness bracelets by middle school students was protected under the First Amendment. An appeals panel later sided with the lower court, but the school district recently attempted to take its case before the U.S. Supreme Court. Today, the Supremes shot down that petition. [More]
Wells Fargo To Repay Homeowners Stuck With Forced-Place Insurance
By 3.6.14
Days after a judge signed off on the $300 million JPMorgan Chase forced-place insurance settlement comes news that Wells Fargo has reached a deal that would put a little bit of money back in the pockets of some homeowners who got stuck with overly expensive insurance policies by the bank. [More]
Gambler Sues Casino After He Loses $500,000 In One Night
By 3.6.14
Imagine waking up on Super Bowl Sunday in Las Vegas and finding out that you had lost $500,000 playing blackjack and pai gow the night before. Making matters worse, some of that money you lost was borrowed from the casino, which would now like to discuss repayment. [More]
Obama Administration Takes Sides In Aereo Case, Asks Supreme Court To Side With Broadcasters
By 3.4.14
The legal hill that cloud-based TV service Aereo has to climb just keeps getting a little bit steeper. This week, interested parties filed their briefs in Aereo’s Supreme Court case. Broadcast networks and cable companies hate Aereo, but now even the Obama administration is joining the pile-on, too. [More]
Chase To Pay Out $300 Million Over Home Insurance Allegations
By 3.3.14
On Friday, a federal judge signed off on a settlement that will have JPMorgan Chase paying out at least $300 million to around 750,000 mortgage borrowers. It’s the first of what could be several large settlements with major lenders over the issue of forced-place insurance. [More]
Daughter’s Facebook Brag Costs Dad $80,000
By 3.3.14
You know all those times you read about lawsuit settlements where the financial terms are undisclosed? That silence isn’t a sign that no one wants to talk about how much they won or lost; it means that agreement will likely be nullified if people start blabbing about the money changing hands. And that includes a plaintiff’s teen daughter. [More]
Dick’s Sporting Goods Sues Modell’s CEO For Allegedly Posing As Dick’s VP
By 3.3.14
When you think of corporate espionage and snooping, you probably think of big manufacturers — electronics, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, packaged food — trying to learn what the competition is working on. One industry that is unlikely to come to mind is retail sporting goods. [More]
Man Suing McDonald’s For $1.5 Million Because He Only Got One Napkin With His Food
By 2.28.14
UPDATE: McDonald’s tells Consumerist that while it’s aware of the unhappy customer, it hasn’t heard anything about a lawsuit. [More]
CFPB Sues ITT Tech For Allegedly Exploiting Students, Pushing Predatory Loans
By 2.26.14
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau filed a federal lawsuit against a well-known for-profit college chain, alleging the company exploited its students and pushed them into high-cost private student loans that were likely to end in default. [More]
McDonald’s Says Dunkin’ Donuts Menu Is Too Similar, Sues To Block Nearby Store
By 2.25.14
While fast food burger joints have battled over turf and market share for decades, it’s always seemed like Dunkin’ Donuts and McDonald’s were able to live in relative peace since their core products were very different. But a new lawsuit filed by McDonald’s now claims that Dunkin’ and the Golden Arches are so similar that a Maryland mall operator should be stopped from leasing space to the donut chain. [More]
Supreme Court Won’t Stop Class-Action Lawsuits Over Front-Loading Washing Machines
By 2.24.14
After several years of shutting down class-action lawsuits or affirming businesses’ ability to preempt such suits with forced arbitration, the U.S. Supreme Court today chose not to hear challenges to a trio of class actions about supposedly defective washing machines from three leading manufacturers. [More]
Aereo Launching Next Week In Austin
By 2.24.14
Only days after a federal court in Utah issued an injunction halting Aereo service in six states — and a showdown with broadcasters in front of the U.S. Supreme Court on the horizon — streaming video startup Aereo continues to expand, announcing a launch date and channel lineup for TV viewers in Austin. [More]
