Headlines

Twenty years ago today, June 20, 1997, the announcement of the historic Master Settlement Agreement reached between more than two dozen State Attorneys General and the nation’s largest tobacco producers was announced. Death and disease by tobacco was running out of control in our country in the 1990s. It was considered to be the largest public health issue of that time.

Firefighters are some of the bravest among us and uphold a vow to protect the public. They don’t think twice about stepping into harm’s way to save a life, whether by extinguishing a fire or intervening in other instances of distress. They are the first responders and our heroes.

Shareholder activism is one important way in which shareholders can influence a corporation’s behavior by exercising their rights as owners. Shareholder activism refers to shareholders who are engaged in holding companies accountable through securities litigation.

The Environmental Protection Agency released its preliminary risk review of asbestos on Tuesday, February 14, 2017. While the final report has yet to be published, I believe this is a great signifier that the TSCA task team is prioritizing asbestos.

The U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral argument in Bristol Myers Squibb v. Superior Court, a critically important personal jurisdiction case. An adverse ruling in this case would pose a serious threat to the ongoing viability of much mass tort litigation in state court.

For all the talk in recent decades of the danger lead poisoning poses to the most precious among us — our children — lead is still a commonly found substance in at least 4 million American households, showing up in chipped paint, contaminated water, dirt and dust.

Last night, the Plaintiffs’ Steering Committee for the Volkswagen “Clean Diesel” litigation filed our motion for preliminary approval of the proposed 3.0-liter settlement for nearly 80,000 vehicles.

Starting in January 2018, certain driver’s licenses may no longer be used as identification at TSA airport checkpoints. That’s not true for everyone, only residents from the nine states who have failed to comply with a 2005 federal mandate to standardize the issuance of IDs.

Patients do not always know the specifics when it comes to their treatments, particularly in the case of adverse effects. The FDA has started to take note of this dangerous communication issue and is ‘attempting to modernize and streamline the system’ with both patients and hospitals.

I can now inform you that the Plaintiffs’ Steering Committee and Volkswagen/Audi and Porsche have reached proposed resolution for owners and lessees of 3.0-liter diesel vehicles. While the EPA, CARB, and the California Attorney General’s Office announced earlier this week they had reached an agreement, that agreement focused on the environment and the regulatory compliance. We have been focusing on consumer claims and relief.