The court of appeals vacated a district court order approving a settlement agreement and remanded. The court held that the record failed to substantiate the reasonableness of an award to class counsel that exceeded by a factor of eight the settlement amount awarded to the members of the class.
Michael Jones and others filed twenty-six putative class actions in courts around the country against Motorola, Inc., Plantronics, Inc., and GN Netcom, Inc., alleging the defendants knowingly failed to disclose the potential risk of noise-induced hearing loss associated with extended use of their wireless Bluetooth headsets at high volumes, in violation of state consumer fraud protection and unfair business practice laws. The plaintiffs sought money damages on behalf of millions of individuals who had purchased Bluetooth headsets since June 30, 2002, purportedly in reliance on allegedly misleading representations about the safety and usability of the product. Plaintiffs sought actual damages in the amount paid for the product, which they claimed to be between $70 and $150 per headset, along with injunctive relief, restitution, punitive damages, attorneys’ fees and costs.
