News in Brief July 25 – Minor League Baseball, Dooney and Bourke and More

Dooney & Bourke Temporarily Avoids False Ad Lawsuit

A proposed class action claiming that Dooney & Bourke misled customers with fake discount prices was dismissed on Friday. Allegedly, Dooney & Bourke used deceptive “original” prices to make their sale prices look better. Judge Jeffrey T. Miller tossed the case, saying that the lead plaintiff didn’t show how the company’s “original” list prices were false – but it may not mark the end of Dooney & Burke’s legal trouble. Miller dismissed the case without prejudice, leaving an opportunity for the plaintiff to amend her complaint and refile the lawsuit.

Minor League v. Major League Baseball Lawsuit Decertified

Minor League Baseball’s proposed class action against Major League Baseball – claiming that Minor League players aren’t properly paid for the work they do – was decertified on Thursday. The suit claimed that the MLB violated the Fair Labor Standards Act by not providing Minor League players with at least the minimum wage or overtime pay. Judge Joseph Spero revoked the players’ conditional class certification because he found that the players’ individual situations were too different to allow their lawsuit to continue as a class.

Nature’s Bounty (Now NBTY Inc.) Sued For False Advertising

NBTY Inc., formerly known as Nature’s Bounty, has been accused of falsely advertising its products as “Made in the U.S.A.” According to lead plaintiff Jennifer Sweat, NBTY products have foreign components and, therefore, can’t be labeled as being “Made in the U.S.A.” The complaint claims that the company violated the Federal Trade Commission Act, as well as state unfair trade practice laws.

CVS Pharmacy Faces Wage and Hour Lawsuit

CVS has been hit with a proposed class action from a group of pharmacists who claim they weren’t properly paid for attending company-required training. The lawsuit says that CVS paid the pharmacists only for the amount of time it estimated it would take workers to complete the training, but refused to pay for any extra time the training took. The case is looking to cover a group of CVS pharmacists in California.

Several Optical Disk Drive Settlements Approved

Several companies have settled claims that they collaborated to fix the prices of their optical disk drives – and the products that use them. Hitachi is set to pay $73 million, Sony will pay $28.5 million, Panasonic owes $16.5 million and NEC Corp. will pay $6.5 million (a total of $124.5 million), effectively ending a multidistrict litigation that was consolidated in 2010.

Forjas Taurus Agrees to Settle Class Action Over Faulty Guns

Gun maker Forjas Taurus has agreed to pay $239 million to end a class action that claims it sold firearms with safety defects. According to the lawsuit, certain Taurus pistols can unintentionally fire when dropped or when the user thinks the safety is on. The settlement will offer compensation (reportedly between $30 and $200) to approximately one million people who bought firearms from Taurus.

Valero Avoids Proposed Class Action

Valero Marketing and Supply Co. has avoided a proposed class action that claimed it overcharged debit card customers at the pumps. The suit claimed that debit card users should have been charged the same amount as those who paid with cash, but were instead charged as if they were using credit cards. The lawsuit was dismissed because Judge Richard Seeborg found that the plaintiff failed to show the link between Valero’s corporate office and what local gas stations are charging.