Facts

Terry Horvath, Jeremy Forsythe, Ronald Johnson, and Fred Montgomery filed a purported class action against LG Electronics Mobilecomm USA Inc. concerning LG's mobile phone.

PLAINTIFFS' CONTENTIONS:
Plaintiffs contended that LG's LG-P999 G2x mobile phone had an inherent design and/or manufacturing defect that causes the phones to randomly freeze, crash, reset, or power-off completely. Plaintiffs contended that the defect rendered their phones inoperable and unfit for their intended use and purpose. Plaintiffs also contended that the phone had other defects, including "screen bleeds," which caused screen images to produce low quality display, thereby detrimentally affecting consumers' viewing experience. Plaintiffs contended that they attempted to have their phones repaired or replaced. They also contended that they gave LG pre-lawsuit written notice and an opportunity to cure the defect, but to no avail. Thus, plaintiffs asserted causes of action for breach of express warranty; breach of implied warranty; violation of the Song-Beverly Warranty Act; violation of the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act; violation of the California Unfair Competition Law; violation of the Consumer Legal Remedies Act; and common counts for assumpsit and quasi-contract.

DEFENDANT'S CONTENTIONS:
LG filed a motion to dismiss plaintiffs' complaint for failure to state claim for relief.

Result

The court granted LG's motion to dismiss in part, and denied it in part. The court agreed to dismiss plaintiffs' cause of action for breach of express warranty based on design defects, but denied it as to the remainder of plaintiffs' cause of action for breach of express warranty. The court likewise denied LG's motion to dismiss plaintiffs' other claims. The parties then agreed to settle the dispute, entitling eligible claimants to a $19.00 cash payment. Claimants who received several replacement phones may collect a $19 cash payment for each inoperable phone. The court also awarded $1,646,784.25 in attorneys fees and $30,166.01 in reimbursement of expenses.

Other Information

FILING DATE: July 18, 2011.