|
|
Once again FI&C has been given a very high ranking by Chambers & Partners Legal Publishers. In its 2010 publication, Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business, the firm was ranked (with much larger law firms) as one of the leading Ohio firms in commercial litigation. Following the general comment "superb litigators with major presence," the research done by Chambers stated that Charlie Faruki "is revered for his outstanding litigation skills, trial experience, and rapport with juries," and that Jeff Ireland "is highly recommended for class action suits involving product liability and securities" claims. Each year Chambers USA embarks on its independent research, resulting in a designation of "star individuals" who are "at the top of their game," and who "operate in 'right here, right now' mode immersing themselves in the most significant work around." Chambers comments: "The star category is reserved for those individuals whose profile is far ahead of the pack." Jeff Ireland and Charlie Faruki made that list again this year.
|
|
|
|
After lengthy proceedings, the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio has denied class certification in a putative class action brought against Yamaha Motor Corporation, U.S.A. FI&C represented Yamaha in the case that arose out of recall notices that Yamaha had sent to purchasers of certain motorcycles, who brought nine claims for relief including breach of express and implied warranties, breach of contract, claims under the Ohio Consumer Sales Practices Act, the Ohio Deceptive Trade Practices Act, claims for fraud, negligent misrepresentation, and claims for violations of Ohio's Lemon Law. The Court found that the individual issues predominated over issues common to the class as a whole. In its 31-page ruling, the Court concluded that the litigation cannot be maintained as a class action, and overruled the Plaintiffs' motion for class certification. Yamaha was represented by Charlie Faruki and associate Eli Kiefaber. |
|
|
|
On June 9, 2010, the Ohio Supreme Court ruled in favor of Aldrich Chemical Company in a class action case involving recoverable damages under Ohio nuisance law. The case had previously been before a jury with FI&C lawyers winning significant rulings on evidentiary questions and jury instructions. After the jury returned verdicts that were much lower than what Plaintiffs had wanted, one of the Plaintiffs appealed her case.
A Court of Appeals reversed the jury's verdict and overturned the trial court's rulings. However, the Ohio Supreme Court reversed the Court of Appeals and reinstated the original jury verdicts. In its opinion, the Supreme Court held that damages for fears and emotions were not recoverable in a nuisance case. Marty Foos both tried the case and argued it before the Ohio Supreme Court. Cori Stirling and Holt Hedrick worked on the briefs. With this victory, the firm has won all five of its cases that have been argued at the Ohio Supreme Court since the firm began in 1989. |
|
|
|
Ron Raether prepared an amicus brief on behalf of the Coalition for Sensible Public Records Access and the Consumer Data Industry Association in a Seventh Circuit appeal involving claims under the Driver's Privacy Protection Act. CDIA is an international trade association, founded in 1906, and headquartered in Washington, D.C., of more than 300 consumer information companies that provide various products and services to governmental and business entities for, among other things, law enforcement, risk management, and fraud prevention purposes. CSPRA is a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting the principle of open public records access to ensure that consumers and businesses have the freedom to collect and use public record information for legitimate personal and commercial benefit. The underlying case concerns whether the reseller provision of the DPPA permits the bulk obtainment of motor vehicle records for future resale for DPPA permissible uses. FI&C relied on its success in Russell v. Choicepoint Services, Inc., Nos. 03-1994, 03-2040 (E.D. La.), to inform the court that adoption of Plaintiffs’ extremely narrow interpretation of the DPPA will disrupt the balance between privacy and the legitimate governmental and business uses desired by Congress and thwart the long-standing practices that serve many segments of society that urgently need access to motor vehicle information for permitted uses. A copy of the article can be found at: Link |
|
|
|
An article written by Jeff Cox and Melinda Burton was published by the Media Lawyer Resource Center. The article addressed the recent decision by the Supreme Court of Ohio in Kauffman Racing Equip., LLC v. Roberts, Slip Opinion No. 2010-Ohio-2551, relating to personal jurisdiction issues in defamation cases involving the internet. The article provides analysis of the Court's holding that an out-of-state defendant is subject to personal jurisdiction in Ohio for defamatory statements made on the internet. A copy of the article can be found at: Link
|
|
|
|
|
|
