Class Action

Dramatic Drop In Song-Beverly Class Actions Allows Labor Law Class Action Filings To Reclaim Top Spot Among Weekly Class Action Filings In California State And Federal Courts

By Michael J. Hassen

As a resournce to California class action defense attorneys, we provide weekly, unofficial summaries of the legal categories for new class action lawsuits filed in California state and federal courts in the Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Jose, Sacramento, San Diego, San Mateo, Oakland/Alameda and Orange County areas. We include only those categories that include 10% or more of the class action filings during the relevant time frame. This report covers the time period from March 18 - 24, 2011, during which time 67 new class actions were filed in these courts. Normally, labor law class actions account for more than half of the new class actions filed each week, but during the past several weeks Song-Beverly Act lawsuits have predominated the class action landscape. Apparently, plaintiffs' counsel have run out of comnpanies to sue, as Song-Beverly Act claims dropped dramatically. During this reporting period, 26 new labor law class actions filed, representing a relatively low 39% of the total number of new class actions filed, but good enough to claim the top spot among weekly class action filings. The only other categories to break the 10% threshold involved class actions alleging violations of California's Unfair Competition Law (UCL), which includes false advertising claims, with 10 new filings (15% of the total number of new class actions filed), and class actions alleging Song-Beverly Act violations with 8 new filings (12% of the total number of new class actions filed).

Full post as published by Class Action Defense Blog on March 26, 2011 (boomark / email).