Welcome back to the Class Action & MDL Roundup! Our winter edition covers notable class actions from the fourth quarter of 2019.
This edition, we’ve added a section covering many of the COVID-19-related class actions popping up across the country. Airlines and cruises, gyms and amusement parks, and colleges and universities are all facing plaintiffs seeking refunds for tickets, memberships, and room and board.
The final quarter of 2019 witnessed its fair share of decisions and settlements. In the employment world, cases continue to revolve around the classification of workers, and consumer protection matters address questions of how consumers interpret labels and notices on the products and services they willingly purchase. A few privacy cases and several securities cases addressed issues of class certification on commonly argued grounds such as the value of actual damages, whether a plaintiff had demonstrated that members of the proposed class were indeed ascertainable, and issues of first impression, regardless of how persistent a class’s argument may be. One notable settlement to highlight is the approval of the $250 million settlement of the securities class action in the Alibaba Holdings deal, of which plaintiffs’ counsel will rake in $62.4 million in fees.
We wrap up the Roundup with a summary of class action settlements finalized in the fourth quarter.
