HAGENS BERMAN

Hagens Berman is a leader in the protection of consumers, representing millions in large-scale cases that challenge practices that defraud or take advantage of consumers.

Corporate wrongdoing against consumers has many faces. Companies may infringe on consumers' rights through deceptive advertising practices, financing and insurance scams, redlining practices, price-fixing agreements, and defective or flawed products. Unscrupulous companies also can overcharge each customer only a small amount, stopping serious complaints but adding up to tremendous amounts of undeserved money.

Hagens Berman realizes that often-voiceless consumers suffer the brunt of corporate wrongdoing, and have little power to hold companies responsible for their actions. In response, our firm uses litigation to confront fraudulent practices that consumers alone cannot effectively dispute.

We make consumers' concerns a priority, collecting consumer complaints against suspected companies and exploring all avenues for prosecution. We encourage you to report corporate actions that you believe may be fraudulent.

Cases:

• Electricity Rate Payers - The suit claims that several electric power companies conspired to drive up prices during a power crisis.

• Kryptonite Bike Locks - This class action against the distributors of the popular Kryptonite bike locks, charges that their locks are not secure and can be easily opened by a non-skilled person using a ball point pen.

• Quality Food Centers/Mad Cow - Consumers filed a proposed class-action suit against grocery store chain Quality Food Centers (QFC), claiming that it should have warned those who purchased beef potentially tainted with 'mad cow disease'.

• Rush Medical - The suit against Rush Medical, alleges that the institution is using fraudulent price-gouging tactics to make millions of dollars.

• Tenet Healthcare - Now settled, the original lawsuit against Tenet claimed that patients not covered by insurance plans were charged excessive prices at 114 hospitals owned and operated by Tenet subsidiaries in 16 different states.