case summaries

Forget What You've Learned, Three is NOT the Magical Number; $5 Million is.

McGlinchey Stafford PLLC
January 08, 2009 12:30

Deehan v. Amerigas Partners, L.P., No. 3:08-cv-01009, 2008 WL 4104475 (S.D. Cal. Sept. 2, 2008). What happens when you mix over 14,000 class members each with a minimum claim of $500? Well, you get CAFA jurisdiction, of course!! When Amerigas removed this action to federal court under CAFA,...

You're in Good Hands in Federal Court with Allstate.

McGlinchey Stafford PLLC
January 07, 2009 12:30

Cox v. Allstate Insurance Company et al., No. 07-1449-L, 2008 WL 2167027 (W.D. Okla. May 21, 2008).  [The editors of CAFA Law Blog salute the insurance industry, and their advertising wizards, in this post] The plaintiffs, a putative class of Allstate policyholders, claimed that when a...

Contractual Limitation of Liability in Engineer / Survey Contract Upheld

Kirkpatrick & Lockhart Preston Gates Ellis LLP
January 06, 2009 20:02

Blaylock Grading Co., LLP v. Smith, 658 S.E.2d 680 (N.C. Ct. App. 2008) In this case, a grading contractor sued a surveyor (who was also an engineer) for breach of contract and negligence regarding mistakes in surveying work which resulted in the contractor having to incur costs to import fill to...

Home Depot Fails to Build a Claim Under CAFA and Gets Hammered Back to State Court.

McGlinchey Stafford PLLC
January 06, 2009 12:30

Chochorowski, et al. v. Home Depot USA, No. 4:08-CV-849 CAS (E.D. MO. 2008). In Chochorowski, the plaintiff originally filed the putative class action in the Circuit Court of Madison County, Illinois in 2002. Building her claim, she alleged she was automatically charged for a “damage...

Time is on Their Side: Plaintiffs Get Another Shot at Jurisdiction in this CAFA Case.

McGlinchey Stafford PLLC
January 05, 2009 12:30

Robinson v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., 253 F.R.D. 396 (S.D.Miss. 2008).  Click here if you would like to listen to the Rolling Stones play Time is On Our Side while you read this post. The plaintiffs, who consisted of two hundred and eighty-nine current and former employees of the defendant,...