A selection of the need-to-know civil justice news for the week of May 16-22.
Drop in Patent Lawsuits, Damages Blunts Call for Congress to Act
Susan Decker | Bloomberg
Patent lawsuits and damage awards in the U.S. fell in 2014, snapping five years of increases, according to a study that may embolden opponents of litigation rules being considered by Congress.
Supreme Court To Decide If Defendants Can ‘Pick Off’ Class-Action Plaintiffs With Cash
Daniel Fisher | Forbes
The U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear a case that will decide whether companies facing class actions can “pick off” the plaintiffs who bring them by offering to settle their claims in full.
Faced With Legal Puzzles, Judges Often Turn to Fellow Jurists
Benjamin Weiser | New York Times
Federal district judges are often described as the quintessential deciders, whether from the bench or in written opinions. But what happens when a difficult question arises, the parties are in sharp disagreement, and the answer is not obvious? Turns out they often rely on a rarely discussed resource: the jurist-to-jurist lifeline.
NJ Decision Makes State Court Cozier For Class Actions
Martin Bricketto | Law360
A recent New Jersey appellate decision snubbing controversial class identification requirements when certifying low-value consumer class actions will further drive plaintiffs to keep such suits in state court and poses due process problems for defendant companies, some attorneys say.
Gramercy Park Woman Sues Neighbors Over Their Rowdy Kids
Kathianne Boniello | New York Post
A Manhattan woman claims her life has been upended by the rough-and-tumble kids in the apartment above her.
Sharpton’s Daughter Hiked up Mountain on ‘Sprained’ Ankle
Michael Gartland and David K. Li | New York Post
The Rev. Al Sharpton’s daughter unwittingly proved that her $5 million sprained-ankle suit against the city is a mountain of BS.
20 of the Most Unusual N.J. Lawsuits Ever Filed, From Ghosts to Milkshakes
Erin O’Neill | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com
After a New Jersey woman paid $7.99 for in-flight television and internet service that she said only worked for 10 minutes at the end of her journey, she took legal action. The West Orange resident in March filed a $5 million class action suit against United Airlines seeking, saying the company failed to notify passengers of how the service worked. News of the mutilmillion-dollar lawsuit sparked heated debate among NJ.com commenters, some of whom decried the lawsuit as a money grab. Others defended class actions lawsuits as a way to keep big companies in check. The controversy prompted us to dig into the archives to unearth other lawsuits that may raise jeers and cheers with readers.
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