A recent ruling out of Louisiana makes clear that in determining whether a group of plaintiffs in a toxic contamination case should be permitted to bring their claims as a class action, the question is not whether the plaintiffs can ultimately win the case, but whether they’ve simply met the…
Chicago Business Litigation Lawyer Blog
Class Certification Order Affirmed By Appellate Court
We recently had a win in the Illinois Appellate Court in S37 v. Advanced Refrigeration. The Appellate Court affirmed the trial court’s decision to certifiy a class action regarding the claims in that. Advanced sells appliances to various businesses and added a charge on its invoices called government processing requirment.…
Retraction Regarding a Misunderstanding as to Blog Post on Janowiak v. Tiesi
Our Blog contained a post regarding the Illinois Appellate case Janowiak v. Tiesi. The post described the allegations in the pleadings recited in the Appellate Court opinion. Our blog writer at Justía did not intend and the post did not describe the facts of that case as anything other than…
Illinois Court Rules that Class Certification in Toxic Dumping Cases is Not an “All or Nothing” Decision – Leib v. Rex Energy Operating Corp.
It doesn’t take a genius to understand that every person is different. Our daily routines; our likes and dislikes; our physical, spiritual, family and money situations; each of these differences make individuals individual. In the toxic dumping class action context, the Southern District of Illinois has made clear that while…
Employers Can Require Exempt Employees to Take Mandatory Leave and Still Meet the IMWL Salary Basis Test
At Lubin Austermuehle DiTommaso, we are accustomed to litigating wage claims brought under the Fair Labor Standards Act, and most of our clients have FLSA claims. However, our firm also is well versed in Illinois wage laws, and our Tinley Park wage and hour attorneys discovered an interesting overtime class-action…
Illinois Noncompete Agreements 101 – Nortek Products Ltd v. FNA Group, Inc.
The District Court for the Northern District of Illinois’ recent opinion in Nortek Products Ltd v. FNA Group, Inc. provides a basic overview of how courts consider whether to enforce the terms of a noncompete agreement. Plaintiffs began manufacturing pressure water products for Defendants in 2003. Five years later, the…
The Illinois Securities Act of 1953 Does not Apply to Common Law Damages Claims for Breach of Fiduciary Duty by Sellers of Securities
As a Chicago law firm that focuses on business litigation, Lubin Austermuehle DiTommaso pays close attention to shareholder lawsuits filed in Illinois’ courts. Our Elmhurst business attorneys discovered a case filed in the Appellate Court of Illinois, First District, Fourth Division that answers questions regarding the appropriate statute of limitations…
Michigan Toxic Pollution Class Action Stalls in Circuit Court – Dow Chemical v. Henry
A Michigan court recently pumped the breaks on a class action toxic pollution suit against Dow Chemical, finding that while property owners may be able to prove that the chemical giant contaminated local rivers and surrounding property with toxins, the plaintiffs did not meet the standards for bringing the suit…
7th Circuit Court of Appeals Rules Employees Entitled to Compensation for Time Spent Donning Safety Gear Under State Law
The federal government passed the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) to ensure that American workers would be paid appropriately for the work they provide. While some people may think of the FLSA as a statute that is concerned only with getting workers their unpaid overtime, the language of the law…
Court Certifies Class-Action for Unpaid Employee Login Time
Courts have been flooded lately with claims by non-exempt employees who have not been compensated for time spent logging into computer systems and performing other start-up procedures. As experienced overtime lawyers, Lubin Austermuehle DiTommaso has been tracking many of these cases, and the Northern District of Illinois made a recent…