News in Brief October 3 – Dole, Subaru, AT&T and More

Proposed “All Natural” Class Action Against Dole Foods Resuscitated

After being dismissed in late 2014, a proposed class action that claimed Dole Foods deceived consumers by labeling certain mixed fruit products as “all natural” has been brought back to life. A panel of three circuit court judges reversed a lower court’s ruling after the named plaintiff reminded the court that the FDA said the word “natural” can’t be used on food packaging if any synthetic ingredients have been added, such as artificial forms of citric and ascorbic acid – both of which are found in the fruit products. “Taken together, this evidence could allow a trier of fact to conclude that Dole’s description of its products as ‘All Natural Fruit’ is misleading to a reasonable consumer,” the panel of judges said, adding that conflicting testimony from Dole representatives and expert witnesses also played a part in their decision.

Nearly 600k Subaru Models Recalled for Defective Windshield Wiper Motors

Hundreds of thousands of Subarus are being recalled due to a problem with their windshield wiper motors. According to a report submitted by Subaru to the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA), the issue with the wiper motors stems from “poor manufacturing” of the motors’ bottom covers, which could allow components within the motor to interfere with each other. When the wipers are turned off, Subaru said, the motor may continuously try to reset the wipers back to their “parked” position, which could cause overheating and create the risk of fire. The recall affects roughly 593,000 2010 to 2014 model year Outback SUVs and Legacy sedans. In its letter to the NHTSA, Subaru said it will notify car owners and dealers and replace the bottom cover assembly of any affected wiper motors free of charge.

Judge Rules AT&T TCPA Class Action Will Not Go to Arbitration

A proposed class action against AT&T over alleged violations of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act will not go to arbitration, a judge said late last week. The 2015 suit claims that AT&T violated the terms of the TCPA by using an autodialing system to make unsolicited calls to the plaintiff’s cell phone asking to speak with someone she did not know about a service unrelated to her cellular plan. Although AT&T argued the plaintiff agreed to resolve all disputes in individual arbitration agreeing to the terms and conditions of her contract, the judge said in his order: “notwithstanding the literal meaning of the clause’s language, no reasonable person would think that checking a box accepting the ‘terms and conditions’ necessary to obtain cellphone service would obligate them to arbitrate literally every possible dispute he or she might have with the service provider, let alone all of the affiliates under AT&T Inc.’s corporate umbrella—including those who provide services unrelated to cell phone coverage.”

Major Car Companies Outrun Keyless Fob Class Actions

Five separate class actions filed against Nissan, Ford, Toyota, FCA US and Hyundai have all been dismissed. Initially filed in 2015 as one lawsuit against 18 car companies, plaintiffs claimed the automakers intentionally did not disclose to drivers that keyless ignition features that came with some vehicle models did not come with an auto-off feature. The lack of an auto-off feature, plaintiffs alleged, amounted to a design defect that could have resulted in cars continuing to run without the keys in the ignition, which could have presented the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning. “Merely experiencing a vehicle not automatically turning off, and being concerned about the lack of Auto-Off, are not concrete harms,” the California judge who dismissed the suits said, adding that the plaintiffs’ concerns over potential future harm were purely speculative.