Last week, Judge Broderick granted NYU’s motion to dismiss a class action complaint brought by a “John Doe” alleging that NYU Law Review gives “preferential treatment to women, non-Asian racial minorities, homosexuals, and transgender people when selecting its members” due, in part, to the journal’s practice of “requir[ing] each applicant to submit a statement of interest that provides ‘a more comprehensive view of [him or her] as an individual.’” John Doe is a first-year law student, who “aspires to join his school’s law review.”Continue Reading Judge Broderick Rejects as Speculative Anonymous Plaintiff’s Claims that NYU Law Review’s Diversity Policies Unlawfully Discriminate

In an opinion today, Judge Furman dismissed a putative class action against a retailer, Bonobos, whose customer data (names, addresses, emails, and the like) was stolen and posted online. Judge Furman found that the plaintiff, Bradley Cooper, did not allege a level of impending harm or risk that was sufficient to establish standing to sue. Judge Furman contrasted the facts at issue with those in other cases where more sensitive information was stolen (like Social Security numbers), giving rise to high risk of identity theft.

Cooper had sought to establish standing based on his alleged risk of “credential stuffing,” which is described in the opinion as a “technique in which [hackers] enter credentials gained from a hack into third-party websites, hoping that they will match an existing account because the consumer has reused the same password elsewhere,” but Judge Furman was not persuaded:
Continue Reading Judge Furman Dismisses Data Breach Class Action Because Stolen Information Didn’t Give Rise to “Impending” Harm

Friday morning, the Second Circuit vacated the district court’s dismissal of a suit challenging President Trump’s business dealings under the Foreign and Domestic Emoluments Clauses of the U.S. Constitution.  (See our prior coverage here.)  In December 2017, Judge Daniels found that Plaintiffs had failed the causation and redressability prongs of the Article III standing inquiry, and lacked prudential standing because they fell outside the “zone of interests” that the Emoluments Clauses were intended to protect.

In a 2-1 decision, the Second Circuit held that Plaintiffs had satisfied the requirements for standing:
Continue Reading Second Circuit Revives Emoluments Case Against President Trump, Creating Circuit Split

In an opinion Wednesday, Judge Crotty dismissed a class action accusing a retailer of violating a law (referred to as “FACTA”) requiring that no more than the final five digits of credit cards be printed on receipts.  The plaintiff allegedly received receipts exposing 10 digits.  Judge Crotty found that the Supreme Court’s decision last year in Spokeo. Inc. v. Robins, 136 S. Ct. 1540 (2016) made clear that a statutory violation, without more, was insufficient to confer standing:
Continue Reading Judge Crotty:  No Customer Standing Where Receipts Wrongfully Printed Too Many Credit Card Digits

Yesterday, Judge Koeltl dismissed a putative class action complaint against video game company Take-Two claiming that the company had improperly used facial recognition software.  The complaint alleged that the MyPlayer feature in Take-Two’s “NBA 2K15” and “NBA 2K16” games, which created an image of the game player’s face for a custom character in the game, violated Illinois’ Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA).

Applying the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent holding in Spokeo, Inc. v. Robins, Judge Koetl found that that the plaintiffs – players whose facial scans were stored by Take-Two – could not show a sufficiently individualized and concrete injury required for Article III standing, in part because the feature worked exactly as advertised:
Continue Reading Judge Koeltl Holds That Video Game Players Lack Standing to Challenge Use of Their Facial Images

In an opinion yesterday, Judge Batts dismissed claims by investors in a Madoff feeder fund against the fund’s managers and auditors because, under the law of the British Virgin Islands (where the funds were organized), only the fund had standing to assert the claims. If fact, she noted, similar claims against the same defendants are being pursued by the fund itself in BVI liquidation proceedings:
Continue Reading Judge Batts: Investors in Madoff Feeder Fund Lack Standing to Sue Fund Managers and Auditors

Last week, Judge Karas denied in part a motion to dismiss a putative class action against Nestle Purina, maker of the “Beggin’ Strips” line of dog treats.  The suit, on behalf of New York consumers who purchased the treats, alleged that Nestle Purina’s advertisements created the impression that bacon was a key ingredient in the treats, while in reality in was only a minor ingredient.  Judge Karas declined to dismiss the case as a matter of law at this stage, as he could not say as a matter of law that no reasonable consumer would believe that the treats were “predominantly made out of real pork bacon” based on the allegations in the complaint.
Continue Reading Judge Karas Refuses to Dismiss Dog Owner’s Claim to Have Been Duped Over Bacon Content of “Beggin’ Strips”

In an opinion yesterday, Judge Abrams dismissed a suit by an Upper East Side resident complaining about the opening of an Apple Store “eighty-seven and one-half” feet from his home.  The plaintiff claimed that “there will be a massive increase in pedestrian traffic,” that “the very existence of an Apple store creates and multiplies crowds,”

In an opinion yesterday, Judge Nathan rejected a complaint brought by federal employees who are set to be located from 26 Federal Plaza to One World Trade Center.  They claim the new lease is illegal, and that the move would harm them because (among other reasons) they fear their new office will be attacked.  Judge Nathan found that these fears were insufficient to establish standing:
Continue Reading Judge Nathan: Government Workers Cannot Sue Over Terrorism Fears Arising from Being Relocated to WTC

In an opinion today, Judge Furman largely denied a motion to dismiss the city of Perry, Iowa’s putative class action (first covered here) against the makers of so-called “flushable” wipes that allegedly are not flushable at all and allegedly damage the city’s sewer systems.
Continue Reading Judge Furman Allows City’s Case Against “Flushable” Wipe Makers to Proceed