Class Actions
We have extensive experience in the defense of major class action lawsuits. A few examples include:
- We just finished the successful defense of more than a dozen Internet privacy class actions for RealNetworks, Inc. As lead counsel coordinating actions across the country, we won key rulings on critical issues that largely gutted the litigation. (In the ensuing coverage disputes, we persuaded insurers to pay most of the fees.) See In re RealNetworks, Inc. Privacy Litigation, 2000 WL 631341 (N.D. Ill. May 8, 2000). We just won for Amazon.com a class action alleging deceptive business practices; we have repeatedly won for American Express class actions alleging privacy issues, foreign currency exchanges, and many credit-card issues; we have successfully handled dozens of credit-related class actions for Household; and we successfully handled a variety of class actions for Snap-on Tools, including one challenging insurance practices.
- We have acted as lead counsel to settle large securities class actions against HMO America (then an NYSE company, now part of United HealthCare Corporation), Safety-Kleen (then a Fortune 500 company) and Technology Solutions Corporations (now TSC). The Safety-Kleen cases settled on favorable terms after we obtained an order disqualifying plaintiff's lead counsel. We are now involved in the incipient McKesson and Global Crossing securities class actions pending respectively in San Francisco and (probably) Los Angeles.
- We successfully represented Inland Steel in a derivative suit, making new law in the Illinois Appellate Court on disclosure of corporate records.
- We defended Norwest Corporation (now Wells Fargo) and Norwest Bank Iowa, N.A. (collectively "Norwest") in a suit challenging Norwest's reaffirmation and credit reporting practices. Asserted claims included violations of section 524 of the Bankruptcy Code, the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act and the Illinois Consumer Fraud Act. We won dismissal of those claims at an early stage, avoiding costly discovery.
- We recently concluded the last of three major class actions asserted against Household International, Inc. and various subsidiaries based on Household's alleged practices in connection with its private label credit card business. All the cases were dismissed by motion before any class was certified, with one resulting in a favorable opinion for Household (and the industry in general). Speakman, et al. v. Household Retail Services, Inc., et al., No. 97 C 1913 (N.D. Ill., July 14, 1999).
These are only a few examples of the dozens of class actions we have handled and won. In many of these cases, we have established precedent that deters such litigation against our clients and their industries in general. See, e.g., American Express Travel Related Services, Inc. v. Walton, 883 S.W.2d 703 (Tex. App. Dallas 1994, no writ) (holding that the named plaintiff in an alleged privacy class action was required to pay the notice costs for a 40 million person class).