Top 10 Civil Justice Stories for 2018: Part Two (i.e. the Top Five)

We have reached the top five civil justice stories of 2018.  This is Part II of Legal Examiner’s annual compilation of the 10 most important civil cases of 2018, created by Virginia Beach, VA attorney-author Richard N. (Rick) Shapiro and his research assistants, a year end compilation tradition provided for Legal Examiner since 2012.  In Part I, we counted down from 10 through 6, and in this second installment, we countdown the top five.

Part II of the 2018 Top Ten Civil Justice Stories Series

5. Tesla agrees to pay $5 million settlement for defective autopilot class action

• Why It’s Big
  • Tesla enters the dubious cadre of automotive companies to manufacture an unsafe and defective vehicle that has put lives at risk, though the settlement amount pales in comparison to prior major auto manufacturer settlements.
• What We Learned:
  • Tesla’s Autopilot “self-driving” software was deemed the cause of two deadly car accidents in which drivers enabled the “driving assist” system but still wound up losing their lives in horrific accidents, their family’s asserting these were wrongful deaths.
• Dig Deeper:
  • https://www.reuters.com/article/us-tesla-autopilot-lawsuit/tesla-settles-class-action-lawsuit-over-dangerous-autopilot-system-idUSKCN1IQ1SH

4. Supreme Court Upholds Forced Arbitration Agreements

• Why It’s Big:
  • This is a civil “injustice” story that carries major implications for millions of consumers, employees, stock holders, and vulnerable patients in nursing homes and rehab facilities, who suffer injuries or deaths due to malpractice.  Why? Just like credit card agreements, and employment agreements, nearly all nursing homes bury arbitration clauses in the initial paperwork. In a 5-4 decision, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) mandates that contracts containing forced arbitration clauses must be enforced as written.

• What We Learned:
  • Who sits on the U.S. Supreme Court matters, as this decision was plainly a pro-business ruling, and a ruling against John Q. Citizen, or the vulnerable nursing home patient who discovers after the nursing home abuse, that a mandatory arbitration clause was deep inside the pre-printed paperwork.
• Dig Deeper:
  • https://www.justice.org/node/241377

3. Claims in NFL Concussion Settlement Hit $500 Million in Under Two Years

• Why It’s Big:
  • The rapid depletion of the settlement fund highlights two important facts: (1) there is a disturbingly-high number of ex-NFL players suffering from brain damage and traumatic brain injuries and (2) the long-term cost of treating brain injuries/head trauma is extremely high and will likely only increase going forward.

• What We Learned:
  • The amount of time it took to reach $500 million in claims was nearly a decade earlier than league officials originally estimated.  It seems the NFL is on the hot seat to control concussions, as the true cost of pee-wee to college to NFL football never contemplated  the impairment of high costs associated with potential degenerative brain injury.  Moms are now thinking hard about having their kids go with soccer or baseball over football.
• Dig Deeper:
  • https://www.cbsnews.com/news/nfl-concussion-claims-hit-500-million-less-than-2-years/

2. Wells Fargo Agrees to Pay $1 Billion in Penalties for Consumer Law Violations

• Why It’s Big:
  • The tactics of Wells Fargo provide a prime example of unethical and greedy behavior by a large financial institution.
• What We Learned:
  • The billion dollar fine was imposed as a result of Wells Fargo forcing customers with auto loans to buy insurance they didn’t need and for failing to follow the process it explained to customers concerning payments to lock in mortgage interest rates.  Wells Fargo has apologized to consumers, and begun running TV hearkening back to the early, simple days of its existence, but…how quickly do consumers forgive and forget? Fool me once…
• Dig Deeper:
  • http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/wells_fargo_to_pay_1b_penalty_for_consumer_law_violations

And the No. 1 Civil Justice Story of 2018 is….

1. Juries Hold Johnson & Johnson Liable for Hidden Toxic Effects of Talcum Powder

• Why It’s Big:
  • Multiple juries across the country have heard cases involving consumers who were diagnosed with deadly forms of ovarian cancer or mesothelioma concerns after using talc baby powder products manufactured by Johnson & Johnson. Those juries determined that J & J was liable for selling a dangerous and harmful product (the company has sold baby powder to millions of people for over a century). As a result of these 2018 verdicts, J & J has been ordered to pay in excess of $4.7 billion in damages to thousands of claimants harmed by talc powder products, which, of course, J & J is appealing.
• What We Learned:
  • Profits over consumer safety, was the message argued by attorneys in the recent case alleging that asbestos adulterated baby powder, and that J & J knew about it but suppressed the truth. Evidence from whistleblowers, including chemists who were examining asbestos content in J & J baby powder during the 1970’s, came to light during at least one of the jury trials. The upshot:  J & J was aware of the health risks associated with persistent talc powder use, but did practically nothing for decades, and this included risks of ovarian cancer, and risks of mesothelioma asbestos induced cancer as well.
• Dig Deeper:
  • http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/johnson_johnson_ordered_to_pay_nearly_4.7b_in_talcum_powder_case
  • http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/jury_awards_117m_in_case_alleging_talcum_powder_caused_mesothelioma