CLASSIFIED: Carlton Fields' Class Action Blog

Morton’s Restaurant Group, Inc. has settled a class action lawsuit alleging that waiters were forced to give up their tips to managers and were paid less than the minimum wage.  Morton’s will record a $13.4 million charge related to the class action suit.

A Congressional committee has held hearings on the Obama administration’s proposal to ban arbitration clauses from credit card agreements as part of a wider push for consumer protections.  Citing arbitration clauses, banks can request that lead plaintiffs in a class action suit go to arbitration individually. 

A California Superior Court Judge has allowed a class action lawsuit to proceed against DirecTV for allegedly imposing early termination fees of up to $480 on customers who canceled their service before the end of the contract term.  The plaintiffs accuse DirecTV of not clearly disclosing its cancellation terms and fees.

Denny’s Restaurant faces a class action lawsuit due to allegedly unsafe levels of sodium found in the food served by the restaurant.  The lawsuit seeks to force Denny’s to disclose the amount of salt in its meals.

A federal judge granted class action status to a lawsuit which accuses a unit of Toys “R” Us, Inc. and five manufacturers of conspiring to fix prices on a variety of baby goods.  Similar price-fixing allegations have been thrown out by federal judges in the wake of a 2007 U.S. Supreme Court decision which ruled that minimum pricing agreements between manufacturers and retailers were no longer inherently illegal. 

Massachusetts residents have filed a class action lawsuit against the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority, claiming that motorists who paid Pike tolls were forced to pay for work on other untolled projects.  The plaintiffs allege that it was unconstitutional to use $450 million in revenue to pay for the Big Dig. 

A class action lawsuit has been filed against Marquette Bank on allegations that the Bank violated the Electronic Funds Transfer Act by failing to disclose that non-members would be charged a fee for using an ATM.  Under federal law, an electronic message on the screen has to disclose any fees.

The highest court in Massachusetts has ruled that customers have the right to pursue class action claims against businesses, overriding provisions in agreements which state that claims must be submitted to arbitration.  Other states have invalidated provisions in software licenses, membership contracts, and credit card agreements which state that class action claims are barred. 

Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company has been sued in a $200 million class action lawsuit by former financial representatives of the firm.  The plaintiffs claim that Northwestern Mutual denied them minimum wage and overtime pay. 

A class action lawsuit has been filed against The Dannon Co, Inc. which accuses the company of mounting a massive advertising campaign to convince consumers to pay more for yogurt containing probiotic bacteria because of the product’s health benefits.  The plaintiffs seek reimbursement for all purchases of Activia, Activia Light, and Dan Active, and the plaintiffs further demand that the company engage in a corrective advertising campaign.   

A group of five public pension funds have won the right to lead a class action lawsuit against Bank of America for its acquisition of Merrill Lynch.  Investors accuse Bank of America of misleading them regarding Merrill Lynch’s financial health prior to the deal even though it was clear that Merrill Lynch would suffer a $15.84 billion loss.

Stream Energy has been sued in a class action lawsuit accusing the company of running a pyramid scheme.  In the pyramid scheme, new participants pay money to the people who recruit them, then hope to recoup their investment by recruiting others.  The pyramid collapses when there are not enough new recruits.