SEATTLE – Hagens Berman co-founder and managing partner, Steve W. Berman, earned Law360’s 2022 Titans of the Plaintiffs Bar award for his significant achievements fighting for the rights of plaintiffs in matters pertaining to antitrust law, and consumer rights in the areas of college athletics, mobile app development, vehicle emissions and more.

“It is an honor to receive this recognition for the important work Hagens Berman continues to dedicate itself to,” Berman said. “Our firm will continue in the pursuit of justice for our clients and look to new possibilities to fight for the rights of plaintiffs against the likes of well-funded mega-conglomerates that would rather see plaintiffs’ rights expunged through forced arbitration and coverups.”

This year’s recipients of the Titans of the Plaintiff’s Bar award exemplify “the broad work of holding corporations accountable and protecting the rights of consumers,” per Law360. The title is awarded to attorneys based on significant case filings and wins over the past year, as well as prominent attributes of the attorney’s work and influences.

Law360 recognized Berman’s caseload in the past year, which included many significant victories and settlements.

In June of 2021, Steve and the firm won a first-of-its-kind class-action lawsuit against the NCAA for allegedly engaging in anti-competitive practices in its grants-in-aid, which drastically reduced the number of scholarships and financial aid college athletes receive to an amount below the actual cost of attendance and far below what the free market would bare. This case ushered changes to the NCAA and college athlete structure that will entirely alter college sports. Berman led the firm in a major, uphill battle in filing this case and saw it through to success – a unanimous victory from the U.S. Supreme Court regarding the injunctive portion, following a $208 million settlement covering damages.

In May of 2021, Steve and the Hagens Berman team finalized a $1.3 billion deal with Hyundai and Kia pertaining to a class action for widespread spontaneous, non-crash induced fires and engine failures. In another recent win against an automaker, Steve saw the culmination of an independently researched emissions-cheating class action against Mercedes, resulting in $700 million for plaintiffs. The firm pioneered the case, followed by the DOJ’s investigation. Ensuing investigations resulted in $2.2 billion in principle with the DOJ and EPA. Berman now leads the firm’s efforts to support emissions-cheating group actions against Mercedes on behalf of owners and lessees of affected vehicles in England & Wales and the Netherlands.

Steve also led the firm to two victories against Apple. In one class action, the firm secured a $100 million settlement on behalf of US iOS app developers and developers of in-app products sold on Apple’s App Store. According to the lawsuit, Apple monopolized U.S. distribution for iOS apps and in-app digital products, resulting in commission overcharges to developers. In the second legal victory against Apple, the court granted preliminary approval for a $95 million class-action settlement resolving consumer claims that Apple failed to honor its AppleCare warranties.

In October of 2021, plaintiffs represented by Hagens Berman achieved a $66.7 million settlement against Visa and Mastercard concerning inflated ATM fees that Bank of America, JP Morgan Chase and Wells Fargo charged consumers through longstanding price-fixing agreements.

The Titan of the Plaintiff’s Bar award is in its fourth year, and Berman has received the recognition as many times as possible, with the publication barring prior year’s winners from eligibility in the subsequent iteration. In 2018 and 2020, Berman was selected for his work in groundbreaking litigation against the NCAA, big oil companies, the University of Southern California and a number of automakers including Volkswagen, BMW, General Motors, Fiat Chrysler, Ford, Hyundai, Kia and more.

Read more about Steve W. Berman’s recent awards and successes.

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About Hagens Berman
Hagens Berman is a global plaintiffs’ rights complex litigation law firm with a tenacious drive for achieving real results for those harmed by corporate negligence and fraud. Since its founding in 1993, the firm’s determination has earned it numerous national accolades, awards and titles of “Most Feared Plaintiff’s Firm,” MVPs and Trailblazers of class-action law. More about the law firm and its successes can be found at www.hbsslaw.com. Follow the firm for updates and news at @ClassActionLaw.

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