The attorneys in our Class Action Practice Group have been actively defending class action lawsuits for over 30 years. They defend class action lawsuits in both state and federal courts in areas including:
- Employment discrimination claims
- Debt collection practices
- Sale of life insurance policies
- Asbestos, beryllium and manganese injuries
- Defective airbags injuries
- Diet drugs injuries
- Injuries arising from the ingestion of dietary supplements
- Injuries alleged to have been caused by a variety of pharmaceuticals
- Medical monitoring cases
- Shareholder derivative lawsuits
- Breast implant injuries
- Injuries sustained by latex gloves
Often, class action lawsuits may be subject to multidistrict litigation (MDL) consolidation. Our litigation defense attorneys have significant experience with MDL matters to include having served on steering committees for multi-national corporations experiencing MDL class action litigation issues throughout the United States.
Additionally, the attorneys in this group have significant experience in defending mass tort litigation. Having obtained extensive litigation experience defending Johns Manville, and later the Manville Trust, we have formed internal procedures and protocols for handling mass tort litigation that have been honed to an efficient edge over the decades.
Our firm is technologically equipped to handle class action litigation. We have an on-site imaging system that permits us to organize and electronically Bates-stamp the volumes of documents normally associated with this type of litigation. Our attorneys have desktop access to litigation management software such as Summation and Doculex. All of our firm's attorneys are connected by a wide area network which permits all attorneys to share electronically briefs, research and other documents helpful in defending class action litigation.
The Class Action Practice Group of Marshall Dennehey serves clients in Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Tampa, Orlando, Jacksonville, Ft. Lauderdale and communities throughout Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Ohio, Florida, New York and Connecticut.
Results
Plaintiffs’ Class Action Certification Attempts Thwarted
We received a favorable decision from the Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas Commerce Program. Our motion to strike the plaintiffs’ class action certification was granted, effectively dismissing the plaintiffs’ attempts at a class action lawsuit against a transportation authority.
Dismissal of Class Action Against a Retailer
Our retail client faced a class action suit alleging claims it charged Pennsylvania state tax on face masks/coverings during the COVID-19 pandemic (when they were not subject to sales tax). The plaintiff on his own behalf and on behalf of the putative class alleged claims for violations of the Pennsylvania Unfair Trade Practices Consumer Protection Law and the Pennsylvania Fair Credit Extension Uniformity Act, as well as common law claims for unjust enrichment, fraud and misappropriation/conversion. The plaintiff claimed that face masks and coverings became exempt from Pennsylvania sales tax as of March 6, 2020, when the governor issued a Proclamation of Disaster Emergency. Prior to the Proclamation, non-medical face masks/coverings were subject to sales tax because they were classified as ornamental wear or clothing accessories. The court held that the plaintiff failed to state a claim for any of the causes of action alleged and held that amendment would be futile.
