Plaintiff Lisa Bodenburg brought a putative class action against Defendant Apple Inc. after purchasing a 200 GB iCloud+ storage plan. She believed that by upgrading to the paid 200 GB plan, the 200 GB would add to the free 5...more
A Northern District of California judge issued a sweeping dismissal of a microplastics class action that would have lowered the bar on the sufficiency of allegations of potential hazards from microplastics....more
On October 15, a California federal court handed down a ruling that significantly undermines the so-called “gold standard” of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) testing relied upon by most plaintiffs in similar types...more
California Senate Bill 478 (SB 478) will prohibit hidden fees for goods and services beginning July 1, 2024. The amendment to the California Legal Remedies Act (California Civil Code Section 1770(a)(29)) aims to eliminate...more
On October 7, the California governor approved SB 478 (the “Act”), enacting amendments to the Consumers Legal Remedies Act designed to prohibit “drip pricing,” which involves advertising a price that is lower than the actual...more
Last month, a cardholder filed a class action lawsuit in California against a national bank alleging that the bank failed to inform the consumer that his automatic payment enrollment would be canceled after a period of credit...more
A trio of recent cases challenging disparate food and beverage labels offers a few common substantive and procedural lessons for companies. First, the back panels – when considered in light of U.S. Food and Drug...more
When companies make advertising claims (including websites, social media, print, and product labels) that a product is beneficial to or not harmful to the natural environment, California law requires those companies to...more
Key Takeaway: As consumer demand for “sustainable” products grows, so does the risk of litigation challenging sustainability claims on advertising and packaging. As one recent case shows, failure to plead actual reliance can...more
We previously blogged about the dismissal without prejudice of a putative consumer class action alleging that the well-known confectioner Ghirardelli misled consumers into believing its “Premium Baking Chips Classic White...more
The Ninth Circuit affirmed dismissal of a consumer fraud class action pursuing restitution under California’s Unfair Competition Law because the plaintiff failed to show she lacked an adequate legal remedy. Sonner v. Premier...more
The plaintiffs brought a class action suit against Extra Space Storage Inc. for false advertising, unfair competition, and violation of the California Consumers Legal Remedies Act. After the case was removed to the U.S....more
The Ninth Circuit’s recent decision in Sonner v. Schwabe N. Am., Inc. et al., resolves a split among district courts evaluating the standard that applies to false labeling claims brought under California’s Unfair Competition...more
In a recent decision, the California Court of Appeal reaffirmed and clarified how the “reasonable consumer” standard must be applied at the pleadings stage to mislabeling claims. In simplest terms, if the packaging makes a...more
In this episode, Neal Marder, who heads Akin Gump’s consumer class action litigation practice from the firm’s Los Angeles office, discusses how false advertising claims are driving consumer class actions. Among the topics...more
On Aug. 2, 2018, two lawsuits were filed against Transnational Foods Inc. and J.M. Smucker Co. alleging that certain extra virgin olive oil, or EVOO, products were misleadingly labeled as EVOO when results from a “leading...more
Has your company developed a corporate social responsibility program that you highlight on marketing materials? If so, you must choose your words carefully. Corporate social responsibility is a broad concept replete with...more
On April 22, 2016, in Alaei v. Kraft Heinz Food Co. (“Heinz”), No. 3:15-cv-02961, Southern District of California Judge Michael M. Anello granted defendant Heinz’s motion to dismiss without prejudice plaintiff Suzanne Alaei’s...more
A District Court judge in California has dismissed a complaint against Nestlé USA Inc. and Nestlé Purina Petcare Co. (together “Nestlé”) which argued that the company was obligated to inform consumers that seafood in its...more
On November 2, 2015, Judge Alsup of the Northern District of California dismissed a consumer class action against food manufacturer Plum Organics for failure to state a claim. In Workman et al. v. Plum Inc., D/B/A Plum...more
Arroyo v. TP-Link USA Corporation (N.D. Cal.) presents a varied opinion on the viability of class claims under California law, particularly as brought by a non-California class representative. Plaintiff, a Florida resident,...more
The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California certified a Rule 23(b)(2) class for injunctive and declaratory relief but denied plaintiff’s motion for class certification under Rule 23(b)(3) because plaintiff...more