Current Cases of Interest

Regions Financial Corporation Shareholder Derivative Litigation Louisiana Municipal Police Employees' Retirement System, et al v. Dowd Ritter, et al, (Jefferson County Circuit Court, CV 09-901494):

Our firm is co-lead counsel for the shareholders in a claim against current and former directors and officers of Regions Financial Corporation for fraudulent statements concerning the company's finances, breach of fiduciary duties, excessive executive compensation and gross mismanagement of company.

Automobile Dealer Litigation Against Suzuki Motors -- D2K v. American Suzuki Motors (US District Court, Northern District of Alabama, CV-09-S-2436-NE ): Plaintiff, a former Suzuki automobile dealer, has filed an action against its manufacturer based upon an unlawful scheme which required its dealers to falsely report automobile sales, as well as an arbitrary and unlawful vehicle allocation system

The firm is currently litigating defective construction claims on behalf of homeowners, which involves the installation of defective Chinese drywall.

The firm is litigating a insurance coverage dispute on behalf of a homeowner against her insurer for its bad faith failure to properly investigate and pay the insured's claim under her homeowner's policy.

The firm has instituted a shareholder derivative action on behalf of a minority shareholder, alleging claims for oppression and squeeze out by the majority directors/shareholders of the corporation.

The firm is litigating a claim against a bank by a former customer regarding the release of confidential financial records, and against the executives of the bank for usurping business opportunities of the customer.

Newsletters

Defective Warning Claims

A product is considered defective if it there is a flaw in its design, if it was improperly manufactured, or if the manufacturer failed to provide adequate warnings or directions for its use. The manufacturer has a duty to warn of any known dangers of using a product. There is also a duty to warn of any dangers the manufacturer could have anticipated if the product were misused. This article discusses products liability lawsuits based on warning defect claims.

Power Window Accidents

Because deaths from power window accidents are relatively rare, car manufacturers argue that the cost using the more expensive switches is not justified by the small number of deaths and injuries. Further, they claim that parents and caregivers are ultimately responsible for supervising their children in cars. Consumer safety groups argue that because the injuries and deaths are readily preventable, the change should be made even if the impact is not broad. Further, they claim that children can be injured even with parental supervision.

Household Refrigerator Safety Act

The headlines are too familiar and too tragic: "Children, 4 and 7, Found in Old Refrigerator, Dead From Suffocation." The Household Refrigerator Safety Act (Act) was passed to prevent children from becoming trapped inside refrigerators and suffocating to death.

Possible Defendants in Product Liability Actions

Product liability laws protect consumers from unsafe products. What happens if a consumer doesn't know who manufactures the product? Can anyone else be held liable? What about sellers, resellers, assemblers, and manufacturers of component parts? Can anyone in the product chain from conception to purchase be held liable for a product's defects? Can anyone in the product chain be held liable for all of the damages of an injured consumer?

Intermediaries' Liability for Distributing Drugs and Medical Devices

As a general rule, intermediaries (retailers, distributors, or wholesalers involved in distributing drugs and medical devices) have the same liability for a drug or medical device as the drug company that manufactured the product. Intermediaries that merely distribute the product can generally avoid liability, but distributors whose only activity involved unwrapping and rewrapping the products for sale to the retailer have been held liable. Some states have laws that prevent non-manufacturers from being held liable for injuries caused by defective products.