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Samuel Crimmins

Sam Crimmins is an associate in the firm’s Washington D.C. office. He is a member of the Class Actions Practice Group. His practice focuses on complex civil litigation.

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A court in the Northern District of Illinois recently issued a mixed ruling dismissing in part a putative class action claiming that a company violated the Illinois Consumer Fraud Act (“ICFA”) by allegedly failing to disclose that its dry shampoo products potentially contained the carcinogen benzene.  Although the court allowed the case to move forward on the ICFA claim to the extent that the claims were based on a theory that the products were adulterated, the court found the ICFA claim preempted by the FDA to the extent it relied on a theory that benzene should have been included on the ingredients list.…

Continue Reading Court Issues Mixed Ruling in Benzene Hair Product Case

The Ninth Circuit recently held in Chamber of Commerce v. Bonta that the Federal Arbitration Act preempts a California law that criminalizes employer conduct that requires employees to consent to arbitrate claims arising under the California Fair Employment and Housing Act.  This ruling came after the same panel previously held that the law, Assembly Bill 51, was not preempted because it focused on “pre-agreement” behavior and not the arbitration agreement itself.  In 2021, the panel sua sponte decided to rehear the case, apparently after Judge Fletcher (who was in the majority in both decisions) changed his mind on the law’s validity.  In doing so, the panel eliminated a circuit split it had previously created between itself and the First and Fourth Circuits.…

Continue Reading Ninth Circuit Reverses Course on Arbitration