The Ninth Circuit recently denied relief on a petition for a writ of mandamus regarding an alleged erroneous transfer of a class action, despite agreeing with the petitioner that transfer was improper. In the action, a putative class plaintiff brought misrepresentation and fraud claims against defendants responsible for the production, distribution, and marketing of a weight loss supplement. The action was originally filed in the Southern District of California before ... Keep Reading »
Pharmaceutical Class Action Articles
The latest class action developments and trends in the pharmaceutical industry, including news, key cases, and strategies.
MDL Litigation: Class and Complex Cases to Watch in 2018
The Judicial Panel for Multidistrict Litigation (“MDL Panel” or “Panel”) has transferred 97 putative class actions relating to the Equifax data breach to the Northern District of Georgia, where Equifax is headquartered. Judge Thomas Thrash, who previously handled the consolidated class actions relating to the Home Depot data breach, will preside over the actions. Eighty-five of the plaintiffs and Equifax supported this result, while the remaining plaintiffs proposed ... Keep Reading »
Ninth Circuit Tolls Rule 23(f) Deadline, Revives Aphrodisiac Class Action
Within 10 days after the district court decertified a Rule 23(b)(3) aphrodisiac dietary supplement class for failure to show a class wide method for calculating damages, plaintiff orally advised the court of his intention to seek reconsideration. The district court then set a 10-day deadline for filing a motion for reconsideration — in other words, 20 days after the decertification order. Plaintiff complied with the court’s schedule. The district court denied the motion ... Keep Reading »
Third Circuit Creates Framework for Analyzing Numerosity
The Third Circuit recently vacated class certification, granted by the Eastern District of Pennsylvania after nearly a decade of litigation, in an antitrust case alleging that a pharmaceutical company entered into agreements with four generic drug makers that, acting together, delayed the sale of generic drugs and prevented the creation of a competitive market. In the second part of its panel opinion regarding predominance under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23(b)(3), ... Keep Reading »
2016 Carlton Fields Class Action Survey Reveals Important Trends in Class Action Management
The fifth annual edition of the Carlton Fields Class Action Survey has just been released, and in this year’s survey corporate counsel report that class action spending has increased after four consecutive years of decline. Spending is also projected to increase in 2016. This marks a key turning point. The Numbers Across industries, the companies surveyed report that they spent $2.1 billion on class action lawsuits in 2015. The number of companies facing at least one ... Keep Reading »
2015 Food Industry Decisions With Bite
Food for Thought is a review of significant court decisions affecting the food, beverage, dietary supplements and personal care products industry. Although many cases in this edition focus on cases pertaining to class certification, we have also included other cases relating to summary judgment decisions. Florida District Court Rejects Motion to Strike But Allows Pre-Certification Standing Challenge in Snack Food Labeling Case Bohlke v. Shearer’s Foods, LLC, No. ... Keep Reading »
CAFA Settlement Trap: States As Absent Class Members
Will a Class Action Fairness Act (CAFA) notice of settlement bind a state as an absent class member? A Pennsylvania federal district court recently offered guidance on this issue. The case involved allegations that the defendant pharmaceutical company illegally delayed the introduction of a cheaper, generic version of its nasal inflammation drug Flonase by filing a sham citizen petition with the Food and Drug Administration. In June 2013, the court approved a ... Keep Reading »
Certification Unhealthy: Ninth Circuit Vacates Order Certifying Class of Dietary Supplement Purchasers
The Ninth Circuit vacated a class certification order issued by the Central District of California, finding that common issues did not predominate because plaintiff had failed to demonstrate that the alleged misrepresentation that formed the basis of her suit had been made to all putative class members. Plaintiff alleged that defendant, Supple LLC, violated California’s Unfair Competition Law, California’s False Advertising Law, and California’s Consumer Legal Remedies ... Keep Reading »
All About That Base: Claim Against Fat Loss Supplement Maker Fails For Lack of Ascertainability
Adam Karhu bought a dietary supplement called VPX Meltdown Fat Incinerator (“Meltdown”) in reliance on advertising by Vital Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (VPX) that Meltdown would result in fat loss. Concerned that Meltdown did not in fact result in loss of girth “in all the right places,”1 if at all, Karhu filed a class action suit in the Southern District of Florida alleging that Meltdown’s advertising was false. Karhu’s motion for class certification was denied because he ... Keep Reading »
Ninth and Tenth Circuits Address Removal Under CAFA’s “Mass Action” and “State Action” Provisions
In Corber v. Xanodyne Pharmaceuticals, the Ninth Circuit – on rehearing en banc – examined the applicability of the “mass action” provision of CAFA, which provides federal jurisdiction for any civil action in which monetary relief claims of 100 or more persons are “proposed to be tried jointly.” Pursuant to California Code of Civil Procedure 404.1, plaintiffs moved for coordination of their cases alleging injuries relating to ingestion of a drug ingredient. Defendants ... Keep Reading »