Attorney General Mark Brnovich, in his continuing effort to involve his office in headline grabbing stunts while ignoring public corruption, filed a letter brief urging a federal court in California to reject an imbalanced class action settlement relating to Wilson & DeMarini softball bats that would give the class action lawyers in the case the majority of the settlement and leave consumers taking home only coupons of questionable value.
Hiroyuki Oda, et al. v. Wilson Sporting Goods Co. alleged that Wilson Sporting Goods Co. sold certain 2013 and 2014 model softball bats called the “White Steel” that were (1) defectively designed (bats fail prematurely due to defects) and (2) refused to honor warranties. The judge in the case questioned the class action settlement fee arrangement, noting that the lawyers would take home almost half a million dollars in fees while leaving the 10,240 class members with $75 or $35 coupons. Attorney General Brnovich’s letter urges the Court to step in, protect consumers, and reject the deal in order to prevent that unfair outcome from happening.
To date, this is the 7th action filed by the Arizona Attorney General’s Office to object to what he claims are unfair settlements.