Antitrust Law Daily Wrap Up, PRIVACY NEWS: Class Counsel Appointed in Google Cookie Placement Privacy Litigation, (Nov 20, 2012)

By William Zale, J.D.

In multidistrict litigation based on allegations that Google purposefully circumvented the privacy settings of Apple’s Safari Browser, permitting Google to track users’ behavior on non-Google sites without the users’ consent, interim class counsel has been appointed by the federal district court in Wilmington, Delaware (In re Google Inc. Cookie Placement Consumer Privacy Litigation, November 16, 2012, Robinson S.). The court granted the motion of plaintiffs represented by Keefe Bartels, LLC and others (“the Sossin group”).

Both of the two competing attorney groups have impressive credentials and the underlying qualifications to serve as lead counsel, the court said. The Sossin group, which represents 16 of 24 cases, made a stronger showing under Rule 23(g)(1)(A)(i) and (iv) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, the court found. The Sossin group specifically addressed their understanding of the legal issues and their work to identify or investigate potential claims, as well as their proposed leadership structure and the resources they will bring to bear on behalf of the putative class, according to the court.

The case is MDL Civ. No. 12-2358-SLR.

News: Privacy