As you may have previously read, in early December 2015, the Judicial Panel on Multi-District Litigation transferred all of the federally filed Volkswagen class action lawsuits to Judge Charles Breyer, who sits in the Northern District of California, in San Francisco. The Northern District of California, along with the District of New Jersey (Newark) and the Eastern District of Michigan (Detroit) were all contenders for the transfer. Based on our experience working on large-scale class actions like this one, we certainly were not surprised that a California court was selected, particularly given California’s interest, through heightened pollution standards, in this case.
Judge Breyer is a very well-respected judge whom we know very well. He is the brother of Justice Steven Breyer who sits on the Supreme Court. Judge Breyer is also the presiding judge in the lawsuits arising out of the Asiana Flight 214 crash at the San Francisco airport on July 6, 2013. We are the lead attorneys in that case and represent about 50 passengers who were on board the aircraft. We have been before Judge Breyer on numerous occasions, and as such Judge Breyer is very familiar with our law firm. In addition, California consumer protection law, if found to apply to your claims, is very favorable law. Our California office and attorneys provide us with a local presence if necessary. Rest assured that we will be able to represent your interests and vigorously prosecute your claim in the Northern District of California regardless of the state in which you reside.
Update:
Kreindler & Kreindler attorney Daniel O. Rose just returned from attending the first court conference before Judge Breyer in the Volkswagen case. It was primarily an opportunity for Judge Breyer to shares his views on the case and to get an update from the Volkswagen attorneys. Judge Breyer made several noteworthy points:
1) First, he is certainly committed to a speedy resolution of the case if possible. He understands that for many VW owners and lessees, their car is a significant investment and is an important part of their lives.
2) Second, he wants to give the owners/lessees the options they are entitled to, whether litigating through trial if need be, or settlement at any point. To that end he will appoint a Special Master to oversee a settlement effort. The Special Master will work with the lawyers to see if a mechanism for offering fair settlement offers can be setup.
Some of you may have heard that Ken Feinberg was hired by Volkswagen as an "independent" claims administrator. Our firm worked closely with Ken Feinberg as part of the Victims Compensation Fund for the 9-11 families. Mr. Feinberg was the Special Master for the fund appointed by the government. We represented over 600 families in the VCF. We learned how to work well with Mr. Feinberg to get the best results for our clients impacted by 9-11. In his capacity as Special Master for the VCF, however, Mr. Feinberg was working in a much more "independent" capacity. Here, where he is being paid by Volkswagen, his interests may be much more closely aligned with Volkswagen, and his decisions and actions will have to be much more closely scrutinized. We believe Judge Breyer recognized this concern as well and emphasized that any effort Mr. Feinberg may be engaged in on behalf of Volkswagen must be transparent.
