Internet search service Intelius settles class-action, faces more for deceptive business activities

Intelius (commonly misspelled Intellius), a popular internet search site, has been hit with multiple lawsuits over its business practices and has settled at least one such class action lawsuit alleging that it improperly signed up customers of its search service for additional searches for fixed and recurring monthly fees without those customers' knowledge.  According to one lawsuit, the unexpected charges were a result of a relationship between Intelius and another entity, Adaptive Marketing, which together "foist unwanted services (and the related monthly charges) on unsuspecting consumers without full or adequate disclosure."

Last month, the Washington State Attorney General announced a settlement with Intelius for $1.3 million regarding the company's alleged engagement in "post-transactional marketing tactics" in which customers are signed up for unwanted services they do not want or know about. “Post-transaction marketing plunges you into an online labyrinth where the only way out is to click and click and click. One wrong turn and you’re enrolled in a membership program that costs you $20 or more each month. And you’ll never know until you scrutinize your credit card bill,” according to Washington Attorney General Rob McKenna. According to the lawsuits, even that is difficult, as the services can be given names that do not immediately raise red flags.

Our firm is investigating this company's business practices in Georgia and elsewhere.  If you have been charged unexpected fees by Intelius or other internet services, please contact John Hadden at 404-890-7200.

Turkheimer & Hadden, LLC
Attorneys at Law
404-890-7200

Major banks forced to suspend foreclosures after 'robo-signing' of documents exposed

From the Georgia Trial Lawyers Association blog:

GMAC Mortgage, JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America recently announced that they were suspending foreclosures after lawsuits exposed fraudulent practices. Other banks charged with illegalities include Wells Fargo, CitiMortgage, HSBC and National City.
The Washington Post reported Oct. 9 that senior Obama administration officials were saying that "a nationwide moratorium on foreclosure sales may be inevitable, despite their grave reservations about the impact a broad freeze would have on the nation's housing market and economic recovery."
Problems turning up in courts across the country are varied, the New York Times reports, but all involve documents that must be submitted before foreclosures can proceed legally. Here are some of the more common shortcuts that have been exposed:

Thousands of documents have been signed by employees, dubbed "robo-signers," who admit they have not verified crucial information like amounts owed by borrowers.

Questionable legal notarization of documents has been common, in which, for example, the notarizations predate the actual preparation of documents—indicating that signatures were never actually reviewed by a notary.

Other notarizations took place so far from where the documents were signed that it was highly unlikely that the notaries witnessed the signings, as the law requires.

On other important documents, an official’s name is signed in radically different ways suggesting that some are forgeries.

Additional problems have emerged, the Times reports, when multiple banks have all argued that they have the right to foreclose on the same property, "a result of a murky trail of documentation and ownership."

Turkheimer & Hadden, LLC
Attorneys at Law
(404) 890-7200

Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals reverses decision on class action jurisdiction

Earlier this year, we reported that the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals, a federal appellate court based in Atlanta, had significantly narrowed the scope of federal jurisdiction in class action matters under the Class Action Fairness Act, or CAFA.  On Friday, in light of the parties' motions for reconsideration, the court reversed its prior decision and held that “subsequent reflection has led us to conclude that our interpretation [of CAFA] was incorrect.”

As a result of the revised decision, federal jurisdiction is not dependent on any individual class member having a claim in excess of $75,000 (exclusive of interest and costs) so long as the entire class claim involves the jurisdictional minimum under CAFA of $5,000,000.  This is the case both under original and removal federal jurisdiction.

The text of the decision can be found on the Eleventh Circuit web site here.  The case is Cappuccitti v. DirecTV, Inc., No. 09-14107 (October 15, 2010).

Turkheimer & Hadden
Attorneys at Law
(404) 939-4525

Medtronics settles claims for device linked to 13 deaths

Bloomberg reports that Medtronic has agreed to pay $268 million to settle claims resulting from allegedly defective heart defibrulator components.  The company, which is the world's largest manufacturer of such devices, stopped sales of certain wire leads that were used in its Sprint Fidelis devices in 2007 after reports surfaced of possible defects in construction.  In 2009, the company acknowledged that the wires "may have been a possible or likely contributing factor" in 13 deaths.

Turkheimer & Hadden, LLC
Attorneys at Law
(404) 890-7200

Civil justice system and trial lawyers protect senior citizens by exposing nursing home abuses

Kimberly Atkins writes on her blog at LawyersUSA (subscription required), "Civil suits help uncover abuses by nursing home and insurance companies, according to a new report by the American Association for Justice. 'Where regulatory and legislative bodies have been unable to cope with this distressing rise of neglect and abuse of our elderly, the civil justice system has stepped into the breach,' said AAJ President Gibson Vance, a partner in the Montgomery, Ala., office of Beasley Allen, in a statement accompanying the release of the report, 'Standing Up For Seniors: How the Civil Justice System Protects Elderly Americans.'" The report "outlines how, through litigation, trial attorneys across the country have uncovered evidence of corporate programs aimed at terminating seniors' benefits as well as evidence of nursing home abuse and neglect."

The report referenced by Atkins, accessed at the link below, highlights a common theme of "abuse by insurance companies taking advantage of senior citizens." (PR Newswire).  Vance noted that "Corporate nursing homes and insurance companies have continually chosen to put profits ahead of the well-being of our most vulnerable population," and that because governmental oversight of these problems was simply not feasible in all or even most cases, the civil justice system and trial lawyers have stepped in to fill the gaps.

Sources:
American Association for Justice report
PR Newswire article
Photo credit: Simon Howden

Turkheimer & Hadden, LLC
Attorneys at Law
404-890-7200

Pharmaceutical companies under investigation for bribery abroad

According to this week's Bloomberg Businessweek (October 11, 2010), US officials are investigating whether a number of drug manufacturers including Merck, Bristol-Myers Squibb, AstraZeneca, Baxter, and GlaxoSmithKline, paid bribes to regulators and government-employed doctors to facilitate approval of the companies' pharmaceuticals.  This action follows government settlements with a number of drug makers over improper marketing, including off-label use, of popular medications.  The investigation is said to include activities in Brazil, China, Germany, Italy, Poland, Russia, and Saudi Arabia.

Mercedes recalls 85,000 vehicles over steering system concerns

Following on the heels of similar recalls by Cadillac and Hyundai, Daimler has announced that it is recalling about 85,000 2010 and 2011 models over concerns that the vehicles' steering systems may malfunction, according to Fox News.  The recall affects 2010 C-Class cars and 2010 and 2011 E-Class coupes and cabriolets

Fisher-Price announces recall of 10 million toys and child products

The Houston Chronicle reported last week that that the Consumer Products Safety Commission and Fisher-Price have announced the recall of over 10 million products over safety concerns.  The affected products included Trikes and Tough Trikes as well as Easy Clean and Close to Me High Chairs.  The trikes contained a protruding key assembly that has been blamed for 10 injuries, six of which required medical attention, and the high chairs similarly contain a protruding peg blamed for 14 injuries, including seven requiring stitches and one tooth injury.

Other recalled products include: Baby Playzone Crawl & Cruise Playground toys, Baby Playzone Crawl & Slide Arcade toys, Baby Gymtastics Play Wall toys, Ocean Wonders Kick & Crawl Aquarium toys, 1-2-3 Tetherball toys, Bat & Score Goal toys, and Little People Wheelies Stand 'n Play Rampway toys.

Parents can visit http://www.service.mattel.com/ for more information.

Turkheimer & Hadden, LLC

Attorneys at Law
404-890-7200

Amendment One on this fall's Georgia ballot is bad for Georgians

Amendment One, which appears on the general election ballot this fall in Georgia, purports to make Georgia more competitive by allowing companies to create "reasonable competitive agreements."  The truth is far different: what the actual amendment does is create a system whereby employers can fire employees and prevent those employees from working in the state or elsewhere for up to two years.  In other states, studies have shown that such laws REDUCE innovation and business opportunities. 

Therefore, we urge all Georgia voters to vote NO on Amendment One and preserve the rights of workers in our state.  Click here for an informative column by the AJC's Jay Bookman, where he explains just how the amendment is bad for Georgia and how it will make us less competitive.

Turkheimer & Hadden, LLC
Attorneys at Law
404-890-7200

Hyundai recalls 140,000 vehicles

Hyundai Motor Co. has announced the recall of approximately 140,000 Hyundai Sonata automobiles amid complaints of steering problems that the company says could result in drivers losing control of their vehicles.  The Los Angeles Times reports that NHTSA (the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration) has been investigating reports since August of drivers reporting difficulty steering their cars, though Hyundai stated that fewer than ten cars had been reported with the problem.

Turkheimer & Hadden, LLC
Attorneys at Law
404-890-7200

Novartis is latest drug maker penalized for off-label marketing of pharmaceuticals

Novartis has become the latest drug maker to reach a substantial settlement over allegations of off-label marketing of popular prescriptions medications, following similar settlements of Pfizer/Wyeth, Forest Laboratories, and Allergan. Bloomberg reports that the $422.5 million settlement stems from improper marketing of epilepsy drug Trileptal for non-approved use in the treatment of bi-polar disorders.  Novartis also agreed to plead guilty to federal criminal charges alleging that it had improperly introduced mis-branded drugs into interstate commerce.

According to Patrick Burns, spokesman for Taxpayers Against Fraud, "Not only did [Novartis] steal from American taxpayers, it put patients at risk because doctors were prescribing medications for bipolar disorder that were not approved for that disorder and did not work as well as other medications that were approved."

"Novartis clearly had a systematic plan of bribing doctors in order to increase sales," said Burns.

The New York Times also reported the story.

Turkheimer & Hadden, LLC
Attorneys at Law
404-890-7200