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May 2009 Newsletter |
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 | Avoid Pitfalls When Presenting Your Class Settlement for Approval
By ROBERT DREXLER, ESQ. |
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Perhaps you have handled a few class action settlements or you are about to attempt to settle your first class case. You may be under the false impression that all you need to do is negotiate a settlement with opposing counsel with the assistance and blessing of an experienced mediator and the court, wanting to clear its heavy docket, will rubber stamp approve the settlement. The recent Court of Appeal decision, Kullar v Foot Locker Retail, Inc. 168 Cal. App. 4th 116 (2008), suggests that courts are increasing scrutinizing and rejecting mediated settlements and requires that courts be presented with sufficient information to independently determine the nature and magnitude of claims being settled and the impediments to recovery. Kullar also provides important guidance about discovery rights of settlement objectors. Finally, if you have a fee-splitting agreement with your co-counsel, other recent appellate opinions illustrate the danger in neglecting to present the terms of the fee agreement to the court at the time of settlement approval.
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| New Consumer Law Protects Children from Exposure to Toxic Toys
By BECKI KAMMERLING, ESQ. |
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A new consumer protection law banning harmful phthalates and lead in children's toys and products went into effect on February 10, 2009.1 Congress passed the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008 (CSPIA) by an overwhelming majority as public outcry over popular toys manufactured in China, and sold in the U.S., were found to contain lead based paint. It has been known for decades that lead is harmful to children; causing learning disabilities, nervous system and kidney damage, hearing damage and disruption of normal muscle and bone growth. The ban on phthalates is a result of increased public awareness of the dangerous health impacts that the chemical has on children. Phthalates are chemicals used to soften plastics and are commonly used in everything from bath toys, books, teethers, bibs and dolls. The chemicals are known to interfere with production of testosterone, and have been associated with reproductive abnormalities such as malformations of genitalia and reduced sperm production.
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| "Gimme a Break!": California Meal Period Requirements under
Brinker Restaurant and Brinkley
By DAVID GREG CRAGG |
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In Jack London's semi-autobiographical 1906 short story "The Apostate" (later reprinted as "The Rebel"), London recounts his youth spent working long hours in poor conditions in a factory. As a reaction to working conditions like those depicted by London, Congress passed the Federal Labor Standards Act (FLSA) in 1938. At that time, California already had laws that provided some of the protection of the FLSA, but California law added to employees' basic rights with meal period and rest period requirements. Cal. Lab. Code § 226.7, 512 (West 2008), Industrial Welfare Commission (IWC) Wage Order No. 2-2001 §§11 et seq. (2006). The decisions in Brinker Restaurant Corp. v. Superior Court, 84 Cal. Rptr. 3d 873 (Cal. Ct. App. 2008) and Brinkley v. Public Storage, Inc., 80 Cal. Rptr. 3d 781 (Cal. Ct. App. 2008), if upheld in the California Supreme Court, will work to roll back some of the rights currently enjoyed by employees working in California. Under Brinker Restaurant and Brinkley, employers are only required to make meal periods available to employees; employers are not required to guarantee that their employees take the breaks. Brinker Restaurant, 84 Cal. Rptr. 3d at 806; Brinkley, 80 Cal. Rptr. 3d at 881-2.
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