'Courts Have to Do Better': Juul MDL Judge Dings Diversity Deficits at Plaintiffs Firms

At a Monday hearing, U.S. District Judge William Orrick, in the Northern District of California, allowed up to $150 million in attorney fees to move forward but questioned the lack of diversity among the 62 plaintiffs firms in the Juul multidistrict litigation.

December 18, 2023 at 03:23 PM

5 minute read

Diversity

Amanda Bronstad
staff reporter

The original version of this story was published on The Recorder

What You Need to Know

U.S. District Judge William Orrick, who has spoken publicly about diversity in MDLs, required plaintiffs lawyers to provide a demographic report.
Co-lead plaintiffs counsel Sarah London shared the judge's diversity concerns. 'It is a categorical problem in our bar,' she told him.
Two objectors had challenged the fees, which included $76.5 million in a class action settlement and common benefit fees in three other Juul agreements.

A federal judge allowed plaintiffs lawyers in Juul Labs Inc. settlements to move forward on up to $150 million in attorney fees but said it was "troubling" that not a single lawyer among the 62 firms in the litigation was Black or Latino.