Pending Actions

Kalcheim Law Group, P.C.

Pending Actions

Attorneys with the Kalcheim Law Group, P.C. have acted as either Lead Counsel or Co-Lead Counsel in the below listed Class and Pending Actions.

Harris v. Nissan North America, Inc., et al

United States District Court, Central District Case No. CV08-7815-GHK (PJWx)
(Pending Approval)

Case brought on behalf of all consumers who purchased or leased a Nissan 2009 GT-R sports coupe that was equipped with “launch control,” which contained a design defect in the transmission that prevented the launch control from being operated as represented by Nissan to consumers.  As a result of a settlement, Nissan was required to honor the powertrain warranty for a period of five years, which they had previously denied with respect to launch control defects. Nissan was also required to grant amnesty for any launches prior to the settlement date and input software to fix the launch control feature.

Lampone v. Blockbuster, Inc.

United States District Court, Central District Case No. CV09-04611-AHM (RCx) (Pending)

This pending case is brought on behalf of all California consumers who, during the class period, paid a rental fee to Blockbuster, did not return their rental within a specified time of the due date, and were charged by Blockbuster for the rental period and the full retail purchase price, as opposed to having their rental be “converted” to a purchase, as the terms of their agreement guarantees.

Montgomery v. Orbitz, LLC

Los Angeles Superior Court Case No. BC335441 (Preliminary Approval GRANTED/ Pending Final Approval)

SUMMARY NOTICE OF PROPOSED CLASS ACTION SETTLEMENT
Montgomery v. Orbitz, LLC, Case No. BC335441 (Los Angeles Superior Court) (West, J.)

If you paid a mandatory fee to a Starwood or Marriott brand hotel that you booked and paid for through Orbitz, YOUR RIGHTS MAY BE AFFECTED BY A CLASS ACTION SETTLEMENT.

Plaintiffs Nicole Montgomery and Wallace Leasure filed a lawsuit against Orbitz, LLC alleging that Orbitz engaged in business practices that violate California’s Unfair Competition Law.  Specifically, plaintiffs allege that Orbitz failed to adequately disclose additional mandatory fees and taxes that consumers who booked hotel accommodation through Orbitz were required to pay to the hotels at the time of their stays.  Orbitz denies that it failed to disclose any relevant information or that it violated any law.  The Superior Court for the County of Los Angeles has not decided the merits of Plaintiffs’ claim or Orbitz’s defenses.

The Court has ordered that the Lawsuit may proceed as a class action on behalf of two classes: (1) consumers who paid undisclosed mandatory hotel fees or taxes to Marriott brand hotels in connection with hotel stays booked and paid for through Orbitz between January 1, 2003 and June 4, 2010 (the “Orbitz/Marriott Class”); and (2) consumers who paid undisclosed mandatory hotel fees or taxes to Starwood brand hotels in connection with hotel stays booked and paid for through Orbitz between January 1, 2003 and December 18, 2009 (the “Orbitz/Starwood Class”).  The classes include consumers who are residents of California and stayed at hotels located either within or outside of California, and consumers who are not residents of California and stayed at hotels located within California.

The Court has preliminarily approved a settlement of the Lawsuit.  If finally approved by the Court, the settlement will require Orbitz to pay a total of $100,000 to be distributed to Class members, pay the expenses of notifying Class members of the settlement, and pay any litigation expenses and attorney fees awarded by the Court.  The settlement provides a plan of distribution pursuant to which Class members can recover up to 50% of the amount they paid to Marriott and Starwood brand hotels for mandatory fees that allegedly were not disclosed to them at the time they made their reservations using Orbitz.  Orbitz’s willingness to enter into this settlement should not be interpreted as an admission of any wrongdoing.

Judge Carl J. West will hold the hearing on final approval of the settlement on September 16, 2011 at 9:00a.m. in his courtroom at Central Civil West Courthouse, 600 S. Commonwealth Avenue, Los Angeles, CA.  You may attend the hearing but are not required to do so to participate in the settlement.

If you are a member of the Orbitz/Marriott Class or the Orbitz/Starwood Class, and you have not already opted out of participation in the Lawsuit, you can:  (1) participate in the settlement, or (2) object to the settlement.  To exercise either of these options, you must take certain actions promptly.

To participate in the settlement, you must submit the appropriate Proof of Claim Form, which you can obtain by clicking here[1] or by requesting it from class counsel:  Mitch Kalcheim, Kalcheim Law Group, P.C., 9300 Wilshire Boulevard, Suite 508, Beverly Hills, CA 90212, telephone 310-461-1210 or toll-free 888-292-0405, email: mitch@kallawgroup.com.  You must complete a separate Proof of Claim Form for each reservation for which you wish to make a claim.  Your completed, signed and dated Form, together with copies of optional documentation, must be mailed to the address listed on the Form and postmarked no later than August 15, 2011.

If you want to object to the settlement, you can obtain the instructions for so doing from class counsel, whose address, telephone number and email are set forth above.  You must comply with those instructions on or before August 11, 2011.

If you do nothing and the settlement receives final Court approval, you cannot participate in the settlement or sue Orbitz or any Marriott or Starwood brand hotel on your own concerning matters that are subject to the settlement.

You can obtain a more complete description of the settlement by clicking here[2] or by reviewing the file for Lawsuit during normal business hours at the Office of the Clerk of Court at Central Civil West Courthouse, 600 S. Commonwealth Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90005.

PLEASE DO NOT CALL THE COURT OR ORBITZ.