Amy P. Lally

Consumer Class Actions

Los Angeles

A trial lawyer for 25 years, Amy P. Lally said the shift in the legal landscape in 2003 with the passage of the federal Class Action Fairness Act and the Proposition 64 amendments to the California Unfair Competition Law carved out a new niche in the federal consumer class action practice, which she now spearheads at Sidley.

Her recent achievements include a major victory on behalf of The Container Store, Inc. in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California regarding class action claims related to alleged violations of the federal Video Privacy Protection Act. Hernandez v. The Container Store, 2:23-cv-05067 (C.D. Cal., filed June 26, 2023).

In January, Judge Hernán D. Vera dismissed, with prejudice, the class action claims. At issue was alleged reporting of views of video content on The Container Store webpage to TikTok. Specifically, the plaintiff contended that Lally's client tracks and reports customer data including IP addresses, users' device specifics and browser information to TikTok without permission and in violation of the VPPA.

"This case was particularly significant as it was one of the first VPPA lawsuits filed against a retailer not primarily engaged in the business of selling or renting videos," Lally said. "The plaintiffs aimed to apply the decades-old law in a new context, targeting an industry previously not considered under its purview."

She continued: "Novel legal theories are challenging to address on a motion to dismiss because of the absence of case law directly addressing the new theory. Our team was able to meet that challenge by focusing the Court on the plain language of the statute."

Lally was also victorious on behalf of Golo, LLC (Golo) in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California where a judgement to dismiss class action claims related to Unfair Competition Law, False Advertising Law and Consumer Legal Remedies Act was rendered. Bubak v. Golo, 1:21-cv-00492 (E.D. Cal., filed March 24, 2021).

Golo, a dietary supplement company, allegedly made misrepresentations about a product and the plaintiff alleged Lally's client made implied disease claims without prior FDA approval.

The case was significant because it was the first application of the new Ninth Circuit precedent on preemption to a dietary supplement.

When asked about trends, Lally again discussed the Video Privacy Protection Act.

"Privacy class actions related to website tools are being filed at a rapid case throughout the country, but especially in California," she said. "The VPPA is one type of those cases. But class actions also are being filed under multiple provisions of the California Invasion of Privacy Act and other state and federal laws. The application of analog laws to a digital world is fertile ground for new case theories. Motions to dismiss are meeting mixed results as courts grapple to interpret the law in the face of emerging technologies."