Case Filings Alert™ reports daily on new cases filed in courts around the country, alerting you to significant new cases at the beginning of the litigation process, long before the case is settled or a decision handed down. A wide range of topics are covered, including product liability, intellectual property, antitrust, among others. A number of these cases, particularly the product liability litigation, will develop into mass torts as new cases raising similar issues are filed. Mass torts are covered in our report MDLCases.com, which deals with major multidistrict litigation (MDL) cases. Editor: Robert S. Want (rwant@LegalEditor.com).
October 5, 2026 – Constitution
U.S. Sues Ohio Court Over Restrictions on ICE Arrests
The federal government has sued the Franklin County Municipal Court in Ohio, seeking to invalidate a local rule restricting civil immigration arrests at the courthouse.
The complaint, filed in federal court in Columbus, Ohio, challenges Rule 2.10, which prohibits civil arrests of people attending proceedings or conducting other lawful court business. The rule permits arrests made under judicial warrants but not those based solely on administrative warrants.
In its lawsuit, the Justice Department argued that federal immigration law authorizes arrests under administrative warrants and, in some circumstances, without warrants. The suit alleges that the local court rule imposes requirements Congress rejected and “blatantly contravene[s] principles of intergovernmental immunity.” Since the rule took effect, Immigration and Customs Enforcement has made no civil immigration arrests at the courthouse, according to the complaint. The government says agents must instead conduct riskier, more expensive field operations that require additional personnel and surveillance.
October 2, 2026 – Product Liability
Apple iPhone Fire Lawsuit Alleges Phone Exploded, Causing Severe Burn Injuries
Plaintiff has sued Apple and T-Mobile, alleging that a defective iPhone 12 Pro Max suddenly caught fire while lying on her bed, leaving her with permanent burn injuries and other lasting physical and emotional harm.
The lawsuit claims that the phone “suddenly caught fire and burned the plaintiff,” causing “excruciating burn injuries” and other serious injuries while it was resting on her bed in a manner intended and foreseeable by defendants. The suit asserts that defects in the phone’s design, manufacture and warnings caused the fire and that the device “failed to perform and function as safely as an ordinary consumer would expect.”
The complaint was originally brought by plaintiff in Florida Circuit Court and later removed to federal court in Orlando, Fla. In addition to Apple and T-Mobile, it names Apple South Asia (Thailand) Ltd., Huizhou Desay Battery Co. Ltd., T-Mobile South LLC and T-Mobile US Inc. as defendants. Plaintiff contends that the iPhone remained substantially unchanged after purchase and that she followed the product’s warnings and instructions before the incident.
October 1, 2026 – Intellectual Property
Chubby Cattle Sues Chonky Cow Over Restaurant Branding
Chubby Cattle International has sued several restaurant operators, alleging that they copied its trademarks and branding to promote competing all-you-can-eat Wagyu barbecue restaurants.
The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, accuses Chonky Cow entities and their owners of trademark infringement and unlawful business practices. Chubby Cattle says it has used its name and distinctive gold-lettered, cattle-horn logo since 2015. The company, according to the complaint, operates or plans 31 Chubby Cattle restaurants and obtained federal registrations for its word and design marks in January 2025.
In its lawsuit, Chubby Cattle says defendant has applied to register “Chonky Cow Unlimited Wagyu BBQ” and has adopted similar gold lettering, cattle horns, and a black background. Plaintiff claims that defendants ignored an October 2025 cease-and-desist letter and pursued Chonky Cow restaurants in Concord, Hayward and San Jose, California. The suit says defendants sought to “trick customers” into believing the businesses were affiliated.
September 30, 2026 – Labor & Employment
EEOC Stopped Hearing Federal Workers’ Class Action Cases, Union Alleges
The American Federation of Government Employees and two federal correctional officers have sued the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, alleging that the agency unlawfully halted all federal-sector class discrimination complaints, leaving thousands of workers unable to pursue claims of systemic workplace discrimination.
The EEOC has violated the Administrative Procedure Act by directing administrative judges to indefinitely suspend class complaints despite regulations requiring they be processed promptly, according to the complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. Plaintiffs claim that judges have been barred from holding hearings, ruling on motions, issuing decisions, or otherwise advancing pending class cases. The complaint contends that the directive has “effectively clos[ed] the doors to a longstanding adjudicatory process” for federal employees.
The case centers on a certified EEOC class action brought by women employed at the Federal Correctional Complex in Pollock, Louisiana, who allege prison officials failed to address widespread sexual harassment by inmates. An EEOC administrative judge, the complaint says, notified the parties in December 2025 that “all case processing…must be paused until further notice,” adding that the order applied to “all class cases in the federal sector.” Plaintiffs argue that the indefinite suspension has left class members exposed to ongoing workplace discrimination while preventing them from obtaining hearings, injunctive relief, or other remedies.
September 29, 2026 – Consumer Fraud
FTC Challenges Hims & Hers Over Subscription Practices and Health Data Sharing
The Federal Trade Commission, joined by California and Utah consumer protection authorities, has sued Hims & Hers Health Inc., alleging that the telehealth company misled hundreds of thousands of consumers into unwanted prescription subscriptions, made cancellations unnecessarily difficult, and falsely promised to safeguard sensitive health information.
The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, claims that Hims & Hers violated the FTC Act, the Restore Online Shoppers’ Confidence Act, and state consumer protection laws. According to the complaint, the company advertised “free consult” services and told consumers they would “only be charged if prescribed.” The FTC contends that, in practice, many customers were automatically charged and enrolled in recurring prescription plans immediately after a provider reviewed their intake forms, without an opportunity to discuss or approve the recommended treatment.
The lawsuit further argues that Hims & Hers failed to clearly disclose refill dates, processed recurring charges before consumers expected them, and used confusing cancellation procedures that required customers to navigate multiple screens and surveys before subscriptions could be terminated. The company continued these practices, the suit says, despite years of consumer complaints. The complaint also accuses defendant of falsely assuring users their platform was “100% online, private, and secure” while sharing consumers’ sensitive health information with advertising platforms, including Meta and Snap.
September 28, 2026 – Product Liability
ChatGPT Caused Man’s Near-Fatal Health Crisis, Lawsuit Claims
A Florida pastor has sued OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman alleging that ChatGPT repeatedly dispensed dangerous medical advice, discouraged him from seeking professional treatment, and contributed to a near-fatal pulmonary embolism that left him hospitalized and facing a lengthy recovery.
Filed in San Francisco state court, the complaint alleges that plaintiff relied on hundreds of personalized ChatGPT responses after sharing extensive details about his health, medical records, and religious beliefs. According to the lawsuit, the chatbot assured him that his worsening dizziness and blood pressure instability did not yet warrant emergency care, telling him that his “careful recliner-based micro-recovery is exactly what’s buying your future” and encouraging him to remain largely immobile.
The suit claims that ChatGPT diagnosed plaintiff with dysautonomia, created individualized treatment plans, recommended medications and supplements, and increasingly omitted reminders to consult healthcare professionals. The chatbot also allegedly incorporated Christian language into its responses, assuring Winters that “God did not design your body to endlessly fail” while reinforcing his reliance on the chatbot rather than physicians. The complaint says the plaintiff suffered a massive pulmonary embolism in July 2025, after weeks of following ChatGPT’s guidance.
September 25, 2026 – Environment
Feds Sued by Environmental Groups for Rescinding Definition of ‘Harm’
A coalition of nine environmental organizations has sued the Trump administration in Seattle federal court, seeking to overturn a rule rescinding the Endangered Species Act’s longstanding definition of “harm,” arguing that the change strips protections for endangered wildlife by excluding habitat destruction from the law’s prohibition on unlawful “take.”
The lawsuit contends that the Interior Department and National Marine Fisheries Service unlawfully reversed more than 50 years of federal policy recognizing that significant habitat destruction can kill or injure protected species. Plaintiffs, including the Sierra Club and the Center for Biological Diversity, argue that “destruction and degradation of habitat kills threatened and endangered species just as surely as shooting them.”
According to the complaint, the agencies violated the Endangered Species Act, the Administrative Procedure Act, and the National Environmental Policy Act by rescinding the rule without adequate legal justification or environmental review. The complaint asserts that the repeal conflicts with the Endangered Species Act’s text, congressional intent, and a 1995 U.S. Supreme Court decision upholding the habitat-based definition of “take.” The organizations maintain that the change could weaken protections for species affected by logging, dam construction, road building, and energy development by excluding habitat degradation from the definition of “harm.
September 24, 2026 – Breach of Contract
xAI Files Lawsuit Against Grok User Over Sexualized ‘Deepfakes’
xAI alleges in its suit that plaintiff repeatedly violated the company’s terms of service by circumventing A.I. platform Grok’s safety guardrails to generate nonconsensual sexually explicit images, including alleged child sexual abuse material.
The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, accuses plaintiff of creating multiple xAI accounts under false identities and using deceptive prompts to bypass Grok’s safeguards. xAI claims that plaintiff transformed non-sexual photographs into explicit images without the subjects’ consent, calling his conduct “repeated, deliberate, and unconscionable violations” of its terms of service.
Grok says it repeatedly rejected plaintiff’s prompt requests because they violated the platform’s content moderation policies, but he allegedly continued modifying prompts in an effort to evade those protections. xAI says its acceptable use policy expressly prohibits depicting people “in a pornographic manner,” creating nonconsensual intimate imagery, and the “sexualization or exploitation of children.”
September 23, 2026 – Product Liability
Ninja Blender Lawsuit Alleges Unsecured Blade Caused Severe Laceration Injuries
Plaintiff has sued SharkNinja Operating LLC in Boston federal court, alleging that a defective Ninja QB1000 Series blender caused severe laceration injuries when its unsecured blade assembly detached during normal use, despite the company’s prior knowledge of similar safety risks.
While plaintiff was using the blender for its intended purpose of preparing food, according to the complaint, the stacked blade assembly detached from the base and caused serious cuts. The complaint contends that the QB1000 Series is defectively designed because its six-blade assembly “does not lock into place and is not secured to the gear shaft.” And as a result, it can fall from the pitcher while consumers are pouring its contents, exposing users to “severe lacerations and injuries requiring medical attention.”
SharkNinja had long been aware of the hazard, plaintiff argues, citing a 2015 recall of approximately 1.1 million Ninja BL660 blenders conducted with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. The complaint notes that the agency received 53 reports of laceration injuries linked to blade assemblies falling from pitchers after lids were removed. The lawsuit asserts that safer, economically feasible alternative designs — such as securing the blade assembly to the gear shaft or incorporating a locking mechanism — could have prevented plaintiff’s injuries.
September 22, 2026 – Intellectual Property
Sanofi Sues Pfizer, Alleging Covid-19 Vaccine Infringes mRNA Patents
Sanofi and its subsidiaries have filed a patent infringement lawsuit against Pfizer, alleging that defendant’s Covid-19 vaccine, Comirnaty®, unlawfully uses eight patented mRNA technologies developed by Translate Bio, a biotechnology company Sanofi acquired in 2021. (A similar suit was filed against Moderna.)
Filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey, the complaint alleges that Pfizer infringed patents covering methods for purifying messenger RNA, lipid nanoparticle delivery systems, and lipid compositions essential to administering mRNA vaccines. Sanofi claims in its suit that Translate Bio spent nearly two decades developing the technology and that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office repeatedly recognized plaintiff’s innovations by issuing the patents at issue.
Sanofi contends that Pfizer’s vaccine and prescribing information directly and indirectly infringe multiple patent claims by using the patented delivery methods and encouraging healthcare professionals to administer the vaccine as instructed. Sanofi further claims that the patented methods are “essential to the safe and effective administration of Comirnaty®” and argues that the vaccine’s formulation and purification practices fall within the scope of the asserted patents.
September 21, 2026 – Constitution
Novartis Sues Illinois Over Drug Discount Law
Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp. has sued the state of Illinois, seeking to block a new state law governing discounted drug sales under the federal 340B program, which requires drug companies to sell outpatient medications at major price discounts to certain health care providers that serve low-income and uninsured patients.
The complaint, filed in federal court in Chicago, alleges that state law H.B. 2371 violates the Constitution’s Supremacy and Commerce clauses. The law prohibits manufacturers from restricting the number or location of contract pharmacies eligible hospitals and clinics can use.
Novartis says federal law allows manufacturers to impose reasonable conditions on 340B discounts, including limiting covered entities without in-house pharmacies to one contract pharmacy and requiring basic claims data. The company accuses Illinois of outlawing conditions that federal courts have upheld. The drugmaker contends that the law improperly expands federal program obligations, disrupts uniform federal oversight, and regulates transactions occurring outside Illinois. It called the state law a “lose-lose situation,” forcing Novartis either to abandon its policies or risk fines of up to $1,000 per transaction.
September 18, 2026 – Cybersecurity
Amazon-Owned Health Care Provider Hit With Lawsuit Over Data Breach
A proposed class action filed in San Francisco federal court accuses One Medical of failing to adequately protect patients’ personal and health information, alleging that a June 2026 cyberattack exposed sensitive records and left thousands at risk of identity theft and fraud.
Plaintiff says that an unauthorized party accessed third-party file storage systems owned by One Medical between June 8 and June 11, 2026. According to the complaint, the ShinyHunters cybercriminal group has claimed responsibility for the breach, which allegedly affected an undisclosed number of One Medical patients in several U.S. metropolitan areas.
The lawsuit contends that One Medical, which Amazon acquired in 2023, failed to implement reasonable cybersecurity safeguards despite publicly assuring patients that it takes “the security and confidentiality of your personal information seriously” and that “[p]rivacy and security are foundational to how we design and operate our products and services.” The suit says that One Medical delayed notifying affected patients and failed to disclose key details, including the number of individuals affected, the attack’s root cause, and whether the stolen information was encrypted.
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