Class Action
Cleveland, Cuyahoga County, Ohio and nationwide. Class action lawsuit attorneys who will fight for you.
Current Class Action Cases:
When a company systematically violates the rights of hundreds or even thousands of people, those individuals might be able to pursue legal action collectively as a group against the company. Such legal action often takes the form of a class action lawsuit.
Class action cases cover a wide range of legal issues and allegations of wrongdoing. From securities fraud to unfair insurance practices, such cases can be extremely complicated, confusing and intimidating to consumers contemplating undertaking such a daunting task.
Fortunately, you don’t have to go it alone. At the law firm of Merriman Legal, LLC, our experienced Cleveland class action attorneys have decades of experience successfully handling such lawsuits nationwide.
What are common types of class action cases?
Class action lawsuits can involve many different issues. Our legal team has handled many such cases, including ones involving:
- Consumer Fraud
- Fair Debt Collection Act Claims (FDCA)
- Fair Labor Standards Act Claims (FLSA)
- ERISA Violations
- Securities Fraud (Rule 10 B (5) Claims)
- Antitrust / Anticompetitive Conduct
- Unfair Insurance Practices (Class Action)
In addition, we handle the following types of class actions:
- Consumer Sales Practices Act Claims (CSPA)
- Deceptive Trade Practices Act (DTPA)
- Telephone Consumer Practices Act (TCPA)
One of our significant consumer class action cases involved alleged CSPA and DTPA violations. Our firm obtained a $40 million settlement, plus attorneys fees and expenses, in a 2008 case Ritt v. Billy Blanks / Sanford v. Memberworks. The case involved allegations that the defendants violated consumer protection statutes and were unjustly enriched by improper charges levied on consumer credit and debit cards for a wholesale buying club which consumers did not want to purchase.
Whatever type of class action case you’re contemplating pursuing, no matter how complicated or simple it might seem, make sure you have an experienced class action attorney on your side, representing your best interests.
How can an attorney at Merriman Legal, LLC make a difference?
Class action cases often require attorneys to coordinate complaints filed by hundreds or even thousands of people nationwide. Few law firms have the expertise or knowledge to successfully handle such complex cases.
Our legal team has worked with consumers throughout the country on many different types of class action cases. We know how to coordinate such cases and take decisive legal action against large corporations.
If you believe your rights have been violated by a business or corporation, you may have grounds for filing a legitimate class action lawsuit. Contact law firm to discuss the details of your case. Schedule a no cost consultation with Merriman Legal, LLC. Call 866-823-3332.
Fraud occurs at the expense of consumers every day. In many transactions, it’s virtually impossible for an individual to independently recognize deceptive sales and trade practices or unacceptable business practices until it’s too late. Attorney Generals in each state work tirelessly to monitor the conduct and ethics of businesses nationwide for evidence of fraud. But there’s only so much they can do, due to limited manpower and resources. What’s more, many consumer fraud cases cross state lines and affect people nationwide. As a result, many consumers are left exposed in their transactions, creating opportunity for unethical and unscrupulous business practices.
In many instances, consumer fraud involves the theft of small amounts of money from a significant number of people. Pursuing a claim for such a limited recovery does not generally make good economic sense and the fraudulent actors are well aware of this reality. If the cost of the legal claim outweighs the likely recovery, no one will pursue such a claim. In this instance, the only feasible remedy for the consumer is a class action lawsuit where the combined losses of all victims can be pursued in a single action on behalf of a class of individuals who, as a united group, can effectively hold the wrongdoer accountable.
Fair Debt Collection Act Claims (FDCA)
The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) was created in 1977 primarily to protect consumers from debt collection harassment and other abusive debt collection practices. Since then, this federal law has been amended several times but the goal remains the same – to protect consumers from predatory and abusive debt collectors.
FDCPA was enacted mainly to protect people who owe money from debt collector harassment and intimidation. Creditors have a right to contact consumers. But the FDCPA bars them from repeatedly calling or threatening customers.
Our experienced attorneys handle many different types of class action lawsuits involving Fair Debt Collection Act violations, including:
- Debt collectors threatening criminal prosecution, arrest or notifying the police
- Debt collectors calling family, friends or neighbors mentioning your debt
- Debt collectors threatening garnishment, foreclosure or seizure of assets
- Debt collectors threatening to talk to or contact your employer
- Debt collectors using profanity, ethnic slurs or other abusive language
- Debt collectors leaving phone messages alleging you owe debt or are the target of a collection effort
The Fair Debt Collection Act protects debtors from abusive tactics deployed by some debt collectors. Many of these debt-collection rules govern how a debt collector may go about collecting a debt and how a debt collector may communicate with a debtor. Often, the same debt collector may use the same illegal collection tactic on thousands of people, so even a small violation, if done repeatedly, can cause major harm to the whole system of fair play.
We are currently litigating and investigating violations of state and federal law involving debt collectors. For example, in Wiese v. CACH, LLC, our clients claim that a debt collector filed collection lawsuits – and went so far as to garnish people’s wages – even though it was not registered with the state to conduct that activity. If you have been victim of abusive tactics by a debt collector, please contact us for a free consultation.
Fair Labor Standards Act Claims (FLSA)
Federal law protects the rights of many working families to receive overtime pay, retirement benefits, and other employment benefits. In many cases, employers are legally required to provide those benefits. But there are some narrow exceptions. Sometimes, corporations try to squeeze into an exception so that they don’t have to pay time-and-a-half or offer benefits packages. But many of these practices are unlawful and deprive workers of benefits to which they are legally entitled.
The collective claims of employees who have been deprived of the legal rights and benefits encompassed in their employment relationship can often be most effectively pursued in a class action. As an example, some restaurant chains and retail stores have misclassified some of their employees as exempt from overtime. They do this by creating "assistant manager" positions or other salary positions. But if the employee continues to do the same hourly-type work, the employee should receive overtime and the employer has violated the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).
Another example includes companies that try to avoid having to provide employee benefits to certain workers by misclassifying them as "independent contractors" rather than employees. No matter how the company defines the employee, if the work is controlled by the company, the worker should receive retirement and other benefits and the company has violated the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA).
We have experience in these areas and is currently litigating FLSA and ERISA cases. If you believe that a company you work for may have misclassified you, a family member, or friend, please contact us for a no cost consultation to learn about protecting your rights.
Securities Fraud (Rule 10 B (5) Claims)
Securities fraud class actions are brought under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (the "PSLRA"). Shareholders as class members operate under a theory that the fraud undertaken by the company served as a fraud on the entire market and therefore the remedy is best pursued through the class action vehicle rather than in the form of individual claims by millions of shareholders.
A common example of securities fraud is civil securities fraud, also known as investment fraud. This occurs when investors are deceived and manipulated by the company resulting in economic loss. Examples of securities fraud include the Enron and Worldcom scandals which caused financial ruin for thousands of investors.
Any shareholder that has suffered such losses can file an action of this nature against a publicly traded corporation participating in securities fraud to protect their interest and recoup their losses. These types of cases are often extremely complex, sophisticated and require experienced counsel. These cases also should be strategically evaluated and assessed to maximize the likelihood of recovery which will best serve the interest of the entire class of investors that have been harmed.
Antitrust / Anticompetitive Conduct
Merriman Legal, LLC’s class action antitrust practice includes representation of businesses and individuals who are victims of price-fixing, monopolization, and other anti-competitive conduct. We know how to handle state and federal antitrust cases in Ohio and throughout the country. Through our actions, we have vigorously protected the public from unfair and deceptive trade practices, ensuring market competition. In 2007, we obtained an $11.5 million jury verdict (In re Scrap Metal Antitrust Litigation). Plaintiffs alleged that scrap dealers unlawfully conspired to fix the price of scrap metal.
Unfair Insurance Practices (Class Action)
Insurance policies are contracts competitive written by insurance companies and oftentimes amended unilaterally to protect the financial interest of the company. Where an insurance carrier uniformly alters or interprets an insurance contract to deny an insured the protections paid for by the insured it can give rise to a class action lawsuit protecting the interest of all insureds affected by the company’s wrongful conduct and to prevent further action which will serve to cause detriment to all insured.
