Newsletter

Morgan Lewis Commercial Litigation Newsletter: Summer 2011

Summer 2011

In this issue:

  • Feature story: The Dodd-Frank Act—Preemption
  • Litigation Highlights: Defending the Pharmaceuticals Industry Against
    Class Action Claims; Morgan Lewis Wins Defense Verdict in Rare Consumer Class Action Trial; Plaintiffs Sought $25 Million
  • Chicago Expansion: Chicago Attorneys Add Depth to Commercial Litigation and Class Action Teams

The Dodd-Frank Act-Preemption
by Tom Sullivan and Sarah Kang

The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (the Dodd-Frank Act) became law on July 21, 2010. The Dodd-Frank Act, which arose out of the recent financial crisis, is one of the most significant and sweeping pieces of financial services legislation enacted since the Great Depression. The provisions of the Dodd-FrankAct include, but are not limited to, the creation of a Financial Stability Oversight Council to identify and respond to any emerging risks in the financial system (attempting to end "too big to fail" bailouts) and the reformation of the Federal Reserve system.

One of the most important of the 16 Titles of the Dodd-Frank Act is the Consumer Financial Protection Act of 2010 (CFPA), codified in Title X of the Dodd-Frank Act. The CFPA contains many provisions that alter existing laws, and it establishes the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (the Bureau) as an independent "watchdog" organization with broad power and authority to write, interpret, examine, and enforce rules that provide consumers protection from financial institutions. One area in which the CFPA changes the law significantly is the federal preemption of state laws.

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Litigation Highlights
Defending the Pharmaceuticals Industry Against
Class Action Claims

Morgan Lewis is one of the most active class action defense law firms in the United States, currently ranked #1 for federal class action representations by Law360.

This #1 ranking signals certain diversity in our client industries. Take, for example, the pharmaceutical sector. We represent more than half of the world's top pharmaceutical companies across the entire spectrum of these companies' civil litigation and complex regulatory needs, from IP and licensing disputes to antitrust, FDA, and securities enforcement.

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Morgan Lewis Wins Defense Verdict in Rare Consumer
Class Action Trial; Plaintiffs Sought $25 Million

In February, Morgan Lewis obtained a significant victory for a leading retail client. Our client was awarded a total defense verdict in the first consumer class action trial under California's gift card law. Under that law, which has spawned more than a dozen lawsuits to date, retailers are required to redeem a gift card for cash upon customer request when the balance of the card falls below $10. Plaintiffs in the case alleged that our client failed to comply with the law and had deceptive statements on the back of its gift cards. They relied on testimony from individual customers as well as a survey to seek more than $25 million in damages.

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Chicago Expansion
Chicago Attorneys Add Depth to Commercial Litigation
and Class Action Teams

Morgan Lewis's Chicago office has expanded its commercial litigation capabilities with the addition of five partners from Howrey LLP: David W. Clough, Ph.D., Kenneth M. Kliebard, Scott T. Schutte, Romeo S. Quinto, Jr., and Jason C. White.

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