Overview of the Teflon® class action lawsuit
The Spangenberg firm recently filed a class action lawsuit
on behalf of Ohio consumers of Teflon-coated cooking
products. The case is being pursued with
the assistance of the Miami, Florida-based Kluger,
Peretz, Kaplan & Berlin firm. The lawsuit
was filed because DuPont, the manufacturer of
Teflon, has known for over 20 years that cooking
at higher stove temperatures can cause emission
of toxic substances but did not warn consumers
about this fact. At least one compound used
to manufacture Teflon has been found by a scientific
advisory board to the EPA as “likely to
be carcinogenic” to humans. DuPont
has consistently represented that Teflon is safe
for consumers in public statements, documents,
and marketing material. The lawsuit contends
that the information known to DuPont about its
products made these statements misleading and
violated Ohio’s Consumer Sales Practices
Law.
The lawsuit seeks to recover the cost of the cooking products and damages for Ohio consumers that purchased or received as gifts Teflon cooking products. If you have questions or would like to participate in the lawsuit, contact attorney Stuart Scott or Peter Weinberger at 216-696-3232.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. What is a class action lawsuit?
A class action lawsuit is frequently filed when
numerous people have been similarly affected by
a company’s unlawful actions. The person
or business entity who brings the lawsuit on behalf
of the others is referred to as the "class
representative." The class representative
serves in a fiduciary role for the benefit of
all others who are similarly situated (i.e., the
"class" of members).
2. What are the legal requirements for
a class action lawsuit?
The
law requires that a class action include numerous
claimants with common questions of law and fact
and that the class has a class representative
with qualified and experienced legal counsel to
adequately represent the class. A lawsuit must
be certified as a class action by the court. Class
certification is complicated. Even when a case
is strong, there is considerable risk to the lawyers
and the class that it may not get certified as
a class action.
If
the class is not certified by the court, individual
class plaintiffs are forced to hire and pay for
their lawyers individually if they want to continue
with their claim.
3. What function do class action lawsuits
serve?
Class actions enable a large group of people
whose legal rights have been violated by similar
misconduct or a defective product to have their
claims joined together in a single lawsuit. Where
individual damages maybe small compared to the
cost of a lawsuit, a class action provides a way
for persons and businesses to pool their claims
against an alleged wrongdoer.
This
pooling of claims levels the playing field against
a typically larger and wealthier wrongdoer. The
impact of one major claim can function to deter
harmful or damaging behavior by persons or entities
that have a responsibility to deal fairly and
reasonably with the public.
The ability to consolidate the claims of many into one relieves our court system of the burden of having to listen to thousands of cases involving the same claims.
Lastly, the class action procedure gives plaintiffs access to qualified and experienced legal counsel with regard to their claims which otherwise, on an individual basis, may be cost prohibitive.
4. Who can become a class member
in a class action lawsuit?
Every class action lawsuit defines a "class"
of individuals or entities on whose behalf the
lawsuit is brought. The definition of the class
is set forth in the document that is filed with
the court that initiates the lawsuit against the
opposing party (“the complaint”).
The court then must approve the definition of
the class; this stage of the lawsuit is called
"class certification." Any person or
entity that meets the definition approved by the
court is automatically a member of the class in
the lawsuit.
Class members may select to opt-out of the class
to pursue another remedy or no remedy. However,
in order to be eligible to receive any benefit,
relief, or monetary recovery that a court may
eventually order as a result of the lawsuit, class
members must not opt-out.
In
the event that class members do not like the proposed
resolution to the case, class members may opt-out
after the case has been settled.
Where
it is established by the court that there are
limited funds available to resolve the lawsuit,
the court will not allow any class members to
opt-out because the court will not allow any further
lawsuits against the defendant. A class member
even in a non-opt-out class action can decide
not to participate, however, when they do opt-out,
they are precluded from further pursuing any of
their claims against the defendant(s).
5. What do I need to do to be included in the
class action lawsuit?
If you purchased cookware coated with Teflon branded non-stick surfaces during the class period, between 1993 and 2005, and the case is certified by the court as a class action, you will automatically be a class member unless you choose to exclude yourself (opt-out) at the time notice of the class action is distributed.
6. What are the obligations
of class members in a class action lawsuit?
Class members are obligated to be truthful in
the submission of their claim forms. Generally,
class members are not called upon to assist in
any way with the litigation although they may
voluntarily offer information to the legal counsel
representing the class in order to help the class'
claims.
No class member is ever forced to do anything
in a class action and they are not responsible
for paying any fees or costs associated with the
lawsuit.
7. How is a class member informed of his
or her rights?
If the court allows the “complaint”
to proceed as a class action, the court authorizes
that a notice be sent to class members informing
them of their rights. Notice information can be
disseminated by an advertisement in a newspaper,
a first-class mailing, via Internet websites or
all three. In order to insure that you receive
notice, you may “register your claim”
with the plaintiffs' attorneys representing the
class.
8. Why does a class member register
a claim?
Registration helps the lawyers for the class
explain to the court why class certification is
necessary (i.e., there are numerous claimants)
and it provides a statistical basis for trying
to determine the total number of class members
and the amount of proceeds necessary to resolve
the case. Class members who register their claim
will be assured of receiving notice directly from
the lawyers representing the class if the court
grants class certification to the lawsuit. Registered
class members can receive periodic status reports
on the progress of the case. Finally, registered
class members will have advance knowledge of when
a case is resolved, therefore they will be able
to situate themselves to take quicker advantage
from the resolution.
9. Who pays for the lawyers?
Class members and class representatives do not
pay for any legal fees associated with the case.
Attorneys are paid on a contingency fee basis.
If a recovery is obtained, application for payment
of the legal fees is made to the court and the
court approves and awards the amount to be paid.
Attorneys representing the class do not receive
compensation unless the lawsuit results in some
significant benefit to the class. Lawyer compensation
is awarded by the court based on the common good
achieved for class members. If class counsel recovers
nothing for the class, then they are not rewarded
for their efforts. All of the costs of the case
are incurred by the counsel representing the class
and reimbursement of those costs is sought from
the court after a recovery has been made for the
class. Class members and class representatives
do not pay for costs to administrate or try the
case.
10. How much money will I receive?
The damages paid to all class members depends on the amount
of total loss suffered by all class members. The
award will be affected by the agreed upon settlement
or the court ordered judgment and sometimes the
number and amount of claims submitted.
11. How long will the lawsuit take before
it is resolved?
Each case is different; however, a typical class action will take 2-3 years to reach a settlement or court ordered judgment.
Additional articles about Teflon/Dupont can be found at this link: Read More >>
For more information, please call us at 216.696.3232 or
email ssl@spanglaw.com. |
