Procter & Gamble successfully resolves class action claims after U.S. Supreme Court denies request for certiorari review by objectors to settlement
Client(s) Procter & Gamble Company, The
Jones Day defended The Procter & Gamble Company ("P&G") and its subsidiary The Gillette Company in two consumer class actions concerning advertising of Duracell AA & AAA Ultra Batteries. The two cases, filed in federal courts in California and Florida in 2012, alleged that Duracell falsely advertised its Ultra line of batteries as Duracell's longest lasting. After more than a year of litigation and protracted negotiations, the parties settled the cases while the class certification was under submission. The nationwide class settlement attracted several significant objectors, including the Center for Class Action Fairness ("CCFA"), which has become nationally known for challenging class action settlements. The CCFA argued that the settlement was unfair because it paid too little to the class and too much to class counsel. The district court, however, approved the settlement on the ground that it was a fair and adequate settlement because it offered full compensation to class members, and the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed. CCFA then petitioned for certiorari to the United States Supreme Court. On March 21, the Supreme Court denied certiorari, thus bringing the long-running case to a close.
Poertner v. The Gillette Co. and The Procter & Gamble Co., Case No. 6:12-CV-00803-GAP-DAB (M.D. Fla.); Collins v. The Gillette Co. and The Procter & Gamble Co., Case No. CV-12-1778-EDL (N.D. Cal.); Batman v. The Gillette Co., No. 14-13882-FF (11th Cir.) and No. 15-765 (U.S.)
