Amanda Bronstad

Amanda Bronstad is the ALM staff reporter covering class actions and mass torts nationwide. She writes the email dispatch Law.com Class Actions: Critical Mass. She is based in Los Angeles.

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August 30, 2023 | The Recorder

California Appeals Court Weighs Gilead's 'Ballooning and Unpredictable Tort Exposure'

"Plaintiffs ask this court to recognize a duty that no court in any state has ever recognized," Gilead lawyer E. Joshua Rosenkranz, at Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe, said during oral arguments on Wednesday before California's First District Court of Appeal.

By Amanda Bronstad

5 minute read

August 30, 2023 | Law.com

Critical Mass With Law.com's Amanda Bronstad: 3M Agrees to $6B Earplug Settlement, Ninth Circuit Holds Up Common Benefit Fees

This week: 3M announced a $6 billion settlement on Tuesday to resolve hundreds of thousands of lawsuits over its combat earplugs. After punting in the Roundup litigation, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit supported common benefit assessments in a separate case. Find out who represents Whirlpool in California class actions over disclosures to consumers.

By Amanda Bronstad

6 minute read

August 29, 2023 | Law.com

3M to Pay $6B to Resolve Thousands of Combat Earplug Lawsuits

The settlement, announced on Tuesday, resolves 240,000 lawsuits in multidistrict litigation in the Southern District of Florida and thousands more cases in Minnesota state courts.

By Amanda Bronstad

3 minute read

August 29, 2023 | Law.com

'Factually and Legally Irresponsible': Sparks Fly Over Who Caused Hawaii Wildfires

On Aug. 24, the County of Maui sued Hawaiian Electric, which turned around on Sunday with a statement casting blame on the county's response to this month's wildfires.

By Amanda Bronstad

4 minute read

August 25, 2023 | The Recorder

After Punting in Roundup MDL, 9th Circuit Upholds Common Benefit Assessments

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, on Thursday, upheld common benefit fee assessments against settlements reached outside the Bard IVC filter multidistrict litigation by plaintiffs' attorney Ben Martin.

By Amanda Bronstad

5 minute read

August 24, 2023 | Law.com

Noted Negotiator Joe Rice Joins PFAS Leadership Team to 'Get These Settlements Finalized'

Rice's appointment, approved on Aug. 22, comes after lawyers reached more than $13.5 billion in settlements with 3M and DuPont that resolves lawsuits over the forever chemical PFAS in public drinking water supplies.

By Amanda Bronstad

4 minute read

August 23, 2023 | Law.com

On First Day of Mental Competency Hearing, Tom Girardi's Lawyers Grill Government's Expert

Craig Harbaugh, a federal public defender for Tom Girardi, cross-examined Dr. Diana Goldstein, a neuropsychologist and expert for the federal government, on Wednesday, the first day of a mental competency hearing.

By Amanda Bronstad

4 minute read

August 23, 2023 | Law.com

Critical Mass With Law.com's Amanda Bronstad: Lawyers Tee Up Talc Trials Against Johnson & Johnson, Hawaiian Electric Hints at Defense in Wildfire Suits

Welcome to Law.com Class Actions: Critical Mass, a weekly briefing for class action and mass tort attorneys. This week: With Johnson & Johnson's second…

By Amanda Bronstad

6 minute read

August 21, 2023 | Law.com

As Lawsuits Mount Over Maui Wildfires, Hawaiian Electric Hints at Defenses

In an Aug. 18 filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Hawaiian Electric drew distinctions between laws in California versus Hawaii and explained why it didn't shut off power during the wildfires.

By Amanda Bronstad

4 minute read

August 18, 2023 | New Jersey Law Journal

'Circumstances Have Changed': Lawyers Pitch Consolidated Talc Trials Against J&J

Lead attorneys in the talc multidistrict litigation, vowing to "proceed with alacrity," already have proposed a bellwether trial plan, which Johnson & Johnson opposed this week.

By Amanda Bronstad

5 minute read

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