COOK COUNTY RECORD

CLEVELAND (Legal Newsline) – The judge overseeing nearly 2,000 opioid lawsuits must address concerns that the cases over which he is presiding are an improper power grab by plaintiffs lawyers who signed up cities and counties as clients.

CLEVELAND (Legal Newsline) – A jury will determine who, if anyone, is liable for the nation’s addiction crisis, but the judge overseeing a historic trial will decide how much they would pay.

Now, Rannazzisi is helping private lawyers pin the blame squarely on manufacturers and distributors of opioids, as well as pharmacies. A post-DEA alliance with trial lawyers has been worth six figures for Rannazzisi, who has been hailed as a whistleblower by those cheering attempts to prosecute the opioid industry for the nation’s addiction crisis.

WASHINGTON (Legal Newsline) – They have a catchy, sinister-sounding nickname and have caught the attention of lawyers and politicians. But what these “forever chemicals” don’t have is a known toxicity level.

INDIANAPOLIS (Legal Newsline) – A Chicago class action law firm used a contract that would have left its client liable for thousands in attorneys fees if she chose to settle her case against its wishes.

WASHINGTON (Legal Newsline) – Since last year’s U.S. Supreme Court ruling that dealt a blow to forum-shopping personal injury attorneys, companies threatened with sprawling, 50-state litigation have not been forced into defending cases all over the country.

As the director of a federal consumer protection agency seemingly fights for his job, he has gone ahead with plans to finalize a controversial rule – and a court challenge seems imminent.

One company recently brought into the world of litigation under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act doesn’t like what it sees. BrandRep is taking its anger out on Beverly Hills, CA, attorney Todd Friedman, one of the most prolific lawsuit-filers in the country.

FDS Bank says the man no longer qualifies for Social Security disability benefits because he has made approximately $800,000 from filing 31 lawsuits. FDS says he made less than $30,000 in 2009 working construction before creating a scheme to manufacture claims under the federal Telephone Consumer Protection Act.

More than 25 years after its passage, a federal telemarketing law hasn’t just created a cottage industry for lawyers – it has spawned a group of professional plaintiffs like Stoops who are armed with several cell phones for the purpose of receiving debt collection calls often intended for other individuals.

CHICAGO - A company that frequently finds itself targeted by asbestos attorneys is taking the reins on racketeering claims that allege those lawyers manipulated the system to unfairly drive up the costs of settlements and verdicts.

WASHINGTON (Legal Newsline) – Under threat of a presidential veto, the U.S. House of Representatives on Friday passed a bill that targets class action lawsuits and the asbestos injury compensation system.

CHICAGO – Information collected from the Chicago Housing Authority shows low-income families who are participating in a rent voucher program are living in some of Chicago’s most luxurious apartment buildings.In August, the CHA announced it was making changes to its Housing Choice Voucher program, two weeks after a Chicago Business article reported that federal funds administered by CHA were being used

PosnerA federal appeals court has overturned the approval of a multi-million dollar class action settlement, describing it as “inequitable – even scandalous.”The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit on Monday overturned a settlement involving window-maker Pella Corporation that was estimated to be worth $90 million, though the court feels its value is much, much less.Class counsel was to receive