{"id":27336,"date":"2016-02-27T14:16:15","date_gmt":"2016-02-27T19:16:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sidebarforplaintiffs.naomifein.net\/?p=27336"},"modified":"2016-02-27T14:16:15","modified_gmt":"2016-02-27T19:16:15","slug":"dow-settles-class-action-rather-than-risking-new-court","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sidebarforplaintiffs.naomifein.net\/?p=27336","title":{"rendered":"Dow settles class action rather than risking new Court"},"content":{"rendered":"

And so it begins. The Supreme Five no longer exist to weigh decisions in favor of corporations against individuals who sue them.<\/p>\n

The changing Court brings an end to a major case<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Posted: 26 Feb 2016 11:56 AM PST<\/em><\/p>\n

\n

\"TheIn the first direct response by lawyers and clients to the change in the Supreme Court, Dow Chemical Co. said on Friday it had settled a billion-dollar class-action case it has pending before the Justices, rather than risk a loss following\u00a0the death of Justice Antonin Scalia.<\/strong>\u00a0\u00a0Without admitting that it had done anything wrong in this plastics pricing\u00a0case, the company said in a press release<\/a> that it moved to end the case because its legal position was relying heavily upon two five-to-four decisions written for the Court by Scalia.<\/em> [My emphasis.]
\n<\/em><\/p>\n

For the time being, only eight Justices will be deciding cases this Term, and could split four to four, leaving lower court decisions undisturbed.\u00a0 In Dow Chemical\u2019s case, a jury in 2013 awarded damages that, after being tripled, stood at $1,060,847,117, plus interest, to be paid to a court-approved class of some 2,400 businesses that had bought chemicals from Dow to produce polyurethane products \u2014 a form of plastic used to make such items as seat cushions, mattresses, insulation, building materials, coatings, adhesives, and sealants.<\/em><\/p>\n

In settling with that class, Dow agreed to pay $835 million, and reached agreement on\u00a0post-judgment interest and a probable award of attorney\u2019s fees.<\/em><\/p>\n

For the past several years, the Court\u2019s majority led by Scalia has grown increasingly skeptical of class-action lawsuits, lamenting that they often deprive the companies sued in such cases of the opportunity to defend themselves against individual claims, and that they frequently force companies into settling cases even if they believe they have strong arguments against the claims, in order to avoid the heavy costs of litigation.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

And so it begins. The Supreme Five no longer exist to weigh decisions in favor of corporations against individuals who sue them. The changing Court brings an end to a major case Posted: 26 Feb 2016 11:56 AM PST In … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[337],"tags":[882,1037],"class_list":["post-27336","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-legal-news","tag-class-actions-lawsuits","tag-the-u-s-supreme-court"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t