Tag: Michael Kors

Week Adjourned: 6.19.15 – Shutterfly, Michael Kors, Hip Replacement

Shutterfly logoTop Class Action Lawsuits

Shutterfly may have its wings clipped. The company that developed the facial recognition software has been hit with a putative class action lawsuit over alleged privacy violations—actually—violations of Illinois state’s Biometric Information Privacy Act.

Filed by Illinois resident Brian Norberg, the Shutterfly complaint asserts that online image publisher Shutterfly and its subsidiary ThisLife LLC collect facial recognition data from user-uploaded photos without first notifying individuals and receiving their written consent, and by failing to inform them how long the information will be stored and how it will be used.

“Specifically, defendants have created, collected and stored millions of ‘face templates’ (or ‘face prints’)—” highly detailed geometric maps of the face—” from millions of individuals, many thousands of whom are non-Shutterfly users residing in the state of Illinois,” the complaint states.

“Defendants in this case made no effort whatsoever to obtain consent from unwitting third parties when they introduced their facial recognition technology,” the complaint state. “Not only do defendants’ actions fly in the face of FCC guidelines, they also violate the privacy rights of Illinois residents.”

Notably, Illinois law also prohibits companies that collect biometric data from selling it to third parties.

Heads up—Norberg is seeking $5,000 for each intentional and reckless violation, and $1,000 for each violation resulting from defendants’ negligence. Go get’em!

The case is Brian Norberg v. Shutterfly Inc. et al., case number 1:15-cv-05351, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.

Top Settlements

Settlement in the bag…to the tune of $4.88 million. That’s the number reached in a preliminary settlement between Michael Kors Holdings Ltd and plaintiffs in a class action lawsuit alleging the company engages in consumer fraud.

Ok—you’ve read this song sheet before. The specific allegations are that Michael Kors represents on the price tags of its Kors Outlet Products artificial “suggested retail prices” that do not represent a bona fide price at which the designer formerly sold the products. The tags also offer a price termed “our price,” which represents a steep discount off the false original price.

But the [prices] used by Michael Kors … were a sham. In fact, Michael Kors manufactures certain goods for exclusive sale at its Kors Outlets, which means that such items were never sold, or even intended to be sold at the … price listed on their labels,” the complaint states.

Under the terms of the preliminary Kors settlement Michael Kors will replace “MSRP” with “Value” on its price tags and display signage explaining that term, or stop using reference prices for products made exclusively for its outlets.

If approved, the settlement will include shoppers who bought products from Michael Kors outlets in the four years ending July 25, 2014.

The case is Gattinella v. Michael Kors (USA) Inc et al, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, No. 14-05731.

Here’s one for the record books…  A jury hearing the first product liability lawsuit against Wright Profemur hip replacement systems has awarded the plaintiff $4.5 million in damages. Brought by Alan Warner, the lawsuit is the first of several hundred to go to trial with allegations that the hip replacement Warner received failed after just three years: the average life span of the system is between 15 and 20 years.

There are over 1,200 similar defect product lawsuits pending against Wright Profemur hip replacement alleging the plaintiffs suffered health problems when the modular femoral neck stem broke.

Warner’s trial lasted two weeks and is the first case to go to court. It is not part of the federal MDL.  

Hokee Dokee—That’s a wrap folks…See you at the Bar!

Week Adjourned: 8.1.14 – Michael Kors, Testosterone, Unsolicited Phone Calls

The week’s top class action lawsuits and settlements. Top stories include: Testosterone, Michael Kors, Unsolicited Phone Calls

Michael Kors logoTop Class Action Lawsuits

Michael Kors Creative Merchandising? Michael Kors LLC may be getting more than it bargained for—the retailer got hit with a consumer fraud class action lawsuit alleging the discount prices it offers at its outlet stores and which are marketed as providing deep discounts over the suggested retail prices, are based on fabricated original prices. Surprised?

Specifically, the Michael Kors outlet store lawsuit claims that Michael Kors represents on the price tags of its Kors Outlet Products artificial “suggested retail prices” that do not represent a bona fide price at which the designer formerly sold the products. The tags also offer a price termed “our price,” which represents a steep discount off the false original price.

“But the [prices] used by Michael Kors…were a sham. In fact, Michael Kors manufactures certain goods for exclusive sale at its Kors Outlets, which means that such items were never sold, or even intended to be sold at the…price listed on their labels,” the complaint states.

Filed by lead plaintiff Tressa Gattinella, the lawsuit claims that Gattinella purchased a pair of jeans at a Kors Outlet in California earlier in the month for $79.00, believing she was paying significantly less than the original price of $120 listed on the tag, the suit states. That would be a reasonable assumption. But … of course there’s a but…

But… the Kors lawsuit contends that despite the Gattinella’s belief that she purchased the goods at a 33 percent discount, Michael Kors never intended to sell the jeans at the artificial $120 price listed on the tag, the suit says. By listing the false price comparison, Michael Kors deceived the plaintiff into making a full retail purchase with no discount, the complaint alleges.

“Plaintiff would not have made such purchase, or would not have paid the amount she did, but for Michael Kors’ false represented of the former price … of the items she purchased, as compared with the supposedly discounted ‘our price’ at which Michael Kors offered the items for sale,” the lawsuit states.

The lawsuit is seeking certification for a class of all California residents who purchased apparel from a Kors Outlet store and urges the court to issue an injunction ordering the company to comply with California’s comparative price advertising laws and prohibiting Michael Kors from using deceptive practices moving forward.

The lawsuit is Gattinella v. Michael Kors (USA), Inc. et al., case number 1:14-cv-05731, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. 

Canada following suit….a class action testosterone lawsuit has been filed by plaintiffs in Canada who allege that they were never warned about the increased risk of cardiovascular events with the low testosterone injection Delatestryl. The case was filed on July 22, 2014 in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice.

FYI—a multidistrict litigation involving over 150 testosterone lawsuits is also pending in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. The case is In Re: Testosterone Replacement Therapy Product Liability Litigation (MDL No. 2545).

Testosterone products, used to treat so-called “Low T,” have been linked to serious cardiovascular problems such as pulmonary embolism, deep vein thrombosis (DVT), stroke, heart attack, and death. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration(FDA) began investigating the cardiovascular risks associated with testosterone products in late January; the agency reminded consumers that testosterone products are only approved for men who do not produce enough of the hormone due to specific medical conditions. Testosterone replacement therapy is not approved for Low T or other non-medical conditions.

Testosterone safety reviews were also launched by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) and Health Canada. Recently, the FDA warned the public that there is a growing body of evidence suggesting that testosterone therapy may increase the risk of cardiovascular events in men.

The reviews were prompted by two research studies linking testosterone products to a higher risk of blood clot, stroke and heart attack. One study, published in last November in the Journal of the American Medical Association, found that older men were more likely to suffer cardiac death if they took testosterone. Older men and younger men with pre-existing heart problems were more likely to suffer a heart attack, according to another study published January in the journal, PloS.

Top Settlements

Unsolicited Phone Calls Elicit Settlement…Well, it’s not the largest settlement in class action history—but it’s a victory none-the-less. After all, one less unsolicited phone call has got to be a good thing!!! This week, a settlement has been reached in a Telephone Consumer protection Actclass action lawsuit that alleges the polling and public opinion research company Mountain West Research Center LC violated the Act by contacting consumers by phone without their permission.

The preliminary $1.5 million settlement will resolve the class action which was filed by Plaintiff Paul Mankin in September 2013 alleging Mountain West called people’s cellphones without prior express consent, using an automatic telephone dialing system and using an artificial or prerecorded voice.

Under the terms of the proposed settlement, Mountain West will create a $1.5 million fund to for a settlement administrator, a website, preparing an opt-out list, preparing a list of persons submitting objections to the settlement, and disbursing payments to all class members who do not opt-out.

Settlement members who do not opt out will receive a direct payment via check in the amount of approximately $65, according to court documents.

FYI—the case is Paul Mankin v. Mountain West Research Center LC, number 2:13-cv-06447 in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.

No info on a fairness hearing date yet—so stay tuned…

Ok – Folks –time to adjourn for the week.  Have a fab weekend –see you at the bar!