Hare v. David S. Brown Enterprises, LTD.
Hare v. David S. Brown Enterprises, LTD. (Sup. Md.): On March 7, 2025, Cohen Milstein and the Public Justice Center submitted an amicus curiae brief to the Supreme Court of Maryland in support of petitioner Katrina Hare in Hare v. David S. Brown Enterprises, LTD. The case revolves around Katrina Hare, an elderly and disabled African American woman who was denied housing by a landlord because she did not meet its minimum income requirement of $47,700 a year, even though her Housing Choice Voucher would have covered all but $126 of the rent. The Circuit Court of Baltimore County ruled in favor of the landlord and claimed the denial was not discriminatory.
Providence Health Services Church Plan Litigation
Griffith v. Providence Health & Services, et al. (W.D. Wash.): Cohen Milstein represented more than 73,000 employees at Providence Health Services, who alleged that the non-profit healthcare conglomerate and its subsidiaries improperly claimed that the Providence Health & Services Cash Balance Retirement Plan qualified as a “Church Plan” under ERISA. Plaintiffs further claimed that if it was a “Church Plan,” then it did not comply with the many protections afforded to pension beneficiaries under ERISA. On March 21, 2017, the court granted final approval of a landmark $351 million settlement.
Bon Secours Church Plan Litigation
Hodges, et al. v. Bon Secours Health System, Inc., et al. (D. Md.): On December 21, 2017, the court issued an order and final judgment granting final approval of a $98.3 million settlement. Plaintiffs alleged that Bon Secours Health Plan improperly defined seven defined benefit pension plans as “Church Plans,” which are exempt from ERISA, and for breaching their fiduciary responsibilities in managing the plans under ERISA. Plaintiffs further alleged that application of the Church Plan exemption to the Bon Secours Plans violated the Establishment Clause of the United States Constitution. This settlement is unique not only for covering the total amount the plans that were underfunded but also for the fact that it was reached while three similar Church Plan/ERISA exemption cases, also led by Cohen Milstein, were consolidated before and ultimately granted review by the Supreme Court of the United States.
Probationary Federal Employees Appeals
Probationary Federal Employees Appeals (M.S.P.B.): Cohen Milstein and co-counsel represent probationary federal employees in class action appeals against 20 federal government agencies for unlawfully terminating them from their respective jobs. The appellants include those who were terminated in mass layoffs by the Trump Administration. Allegedly, the government agencies failed to perform the mass terminations in accordance with proper procedures—namely, the requirements for conducting reductions in force (RIFs) of federal workforces. The appellants seek full restoration to their jobs and backpay on behalf of themselves and the putative classes they represent.
Doe v. St. Anselm’s Abbey School, Inc.
Cohen Milstein, with co-counsel from Public Justice and Correia & Puth, represents John Doe, a former student at St. Anselm’s Abbey School, as well as his mother, Jane Doe. John and Jane Doe claim that St. Anselm’s failed to take meaningful action to address relentless harassment, to which John Doe was subjected because of his […]
Block Inc. AML Securities Litigation
Gonsalves v. Block, Inc., et al. (N.D. Cal.): Cohen Milstein, as co-lead counsel, represents investors in a putative securities class action against Block, Inc., a financial technology company best known for its Square and Cash App platforms. Investors allege that Block and Block’s CEO, Jack Dorsey, and CFO/COO, Amrita Ahuja, misled investors about the strength of Block’s compliance protocols and the reliability of its reported user metrics for the Cash App platform. As investors came to realize that Cash App’s reported growth was illusory, Block’s stock price plummeted more than 80%, erasing billions of dollars in market value.
Apple Inc. iOS App Antitrust Litigation
Proton AG v. Apple, Inc. (N.D. Cal.): Cohen Milstein is representing Proton AG, a global leader in privacy focused software, in a putative antitrust class action against Apple Inc. for allegedly monopolizing the iOS app distribution and iOS app payment processing markets. Proton claims that Apple, one of the world’s most valuable companies, has eliminated competition and extracted supracompetitive profits from app developers through a web of exclusionary conduct.
In re Valve Antitrust Litigation
In re Valve Antitrust Litigation (W.D. Wash.): Cohen Milstein, as Interim Lead Class Counsel, is representing consumers who purchased personal computer video games from third-party game publishers via Valve, Inc’s online retail platform Steam. The consumers allege Valve has abused and unlawfully maintained its decades-long dominant position in the PC game platform market, forcing consumers to pay higher prices for fewer and lower-quality games – all in violation of federal and state antitrust laws.
In re SanDisk Securities Litigation
In re: SanDisk LLC Securities Litigation (N.D. Cal.): Cohen Milstein represented investors in this certified securities class action against SanDisk, and the company’s former CEO and CFO. Plaintiffs alleged that the defendants made false and misleading statements regarding SanDisk’s supposed success integrating a key corporate acquisition for its all-important enterprise solid-state drive business and the strength of SanDisk’s enterprise sales team and strategy, among other things. A host of undisclosed problems with the integration and the enterprise business, however, caused SanDisk’s enterprise revenue to fall, including revenue derived from the acquisition, and to badly miss internal sales forecasts. On October 23, 2019, the court granted final approval of a $50 million settlement.