David M. McMillan

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Third Circuit Smacks Down Class Action Settlement in Google Cookie Placement Litigation

Photo of Sammantha TillotsonBy David M. McMillan and Sammantha Tillotson on Posted in Class Actions Privacy
In a refreshingly plain-spoken opinion issued Aug. 6, a three-judge panel of the Third Circuit Court of Appeals criticized a multimillion-dollar class action settlement in litigation over Google’s unauthorized use of internet tracking “cookies,” remanding to the District Court for more detailed findings of fact. In re: Google Inc. Cookie Placement Consumer Privacy Litigation, No. … Continue Reading

Kentucky Federal Court Brushes Aside Pre-emptive Attack on Class Allegations in Phishing Case, Rejects Out-of-the-Box Defense Strategy

By David M. McMillan on Posted in Privacy Class Actions
Brushing aside apparent flaws in a proposed class definition, a federal court in Kentucky declined to dismiss class allegations against North Carolina-based pharmacy services provider Pharm-Save Inc. (Pharm-Save) stemming from a W-2 phishing scam. In its Dec. 1, 2017, decision denying in part Pharm-Save’s motion to dismiss, U.S. District Judge Thomas B. Russell declined to … Continue Reading

District Court Adopts “Weak” Test of Ascertainability, Certifies Class of Corn Producers in Suit Against Syngenta over Commercialization of Genetically Modified Corn Seed Products

By David M. McMillan on Posted in Class Certification
A District Court in Kansas added to an increasing debate in the federal courts over class ascertainability when it certified a class of 440,000 U.S. corn producers in a suit against Swiss global agribusiness Syngenta AG (Syngenta) over the company’s commercialization of genetically modified corn seed products. In re: Syngenta Ag Mir 162 Corn Litig., … Continue Reading

Barclays Bids to Halt High-Frequency Trading Class Action in Its Tracks

By David M. McMillan on Posted in Class Certification
A high-profile class action against Barclays over so-called high-frequency trading is heading into a key phase this month, with the court set to decide plaintiffs’ motion for class certification—a pivotal moment in the case’s trajectory. Strougo v. Barclays Plc, 14-cv-05797 (S.D.N.Y.) began in July 2014, when a Barclays purchaser of Barclays American Depositary Shares (“ADSs”) filed … Continue Reading

District Court Follows Supreme Court’s Lead in Halliburton, Allows Class Action to Proceed with Narrowed Factual Scope

Photo of Jessie M. GabrielBy Deborah Renner, Jessie M. Gabriel and David M. McMillan on Posted in Class Certification, Securities
Applying the Supreme Court’s landmark decision in Halliburton Co. v. Erica P. John Fund, Inc., 134 S. Ct. 2398 (2014) (“Halliburton II”), which allowed companies facing securities fraud class actions to defeat certification by presenting evidence that their alleged false statements did not impact the company’s stock price, the district court on remand held that … Continue Reading

Court Takes Cue from Comcast v. Behrend, Certifies Class as to Liability but not Damages

By David M. McMillan on Posted in Class Certification, Securities
Fort Worth Employees’ Retirement Fund v. J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. In what appears to be an increasingly common practice since the Supreme Court decided Comcast Corp. v. Behrend, 133 S.Ct. 1426 (2013), the Southern District of New York recently certified a class as to liability, but rejected certification as to damages.  Fort Worth Employees’ … Continue Reading

Genzyme First Circuit Decision

By David M. McMillan on Posted in Class Action Trends, Consumer Class Action, Securities
First Circuit Sides with Pharmaceutical Manufacturer in Dismissing Shareholder Class Action In a huge victory for Massachusetts-based biologics manufacturer Genzyme Corporation, the First Circuit Court of Appeals on June 5, 2014 affirmed the District Court’s dismissal of a multi-million dollar shareholder class action stemming from allegedly misleading statements regarding the approval prospects for one of … Continue Reading

Wall Street Banks, Stock Exchanges and High Frequency Trading Firms Hit With Securities Fraud Class Action

By David M. McMillan on Posted in Class Action Trends, Securities
Last month, the City of Providence, Rhode Island filed a first-of-its-kind class action against Wall Street banks, securities exchanges and brokerage firms over alleged violations of federal securities laws stemming from the defendants’ involvement in so-called “high-frequency trading” (HFT).  HFT has been subject of heightened focus since numerous regulators launched investigations into the practice, which … Continue Reading
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