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Juul, Altria Investors Class Action Lawsuit Overview:
- Who: Investors who lodged a class action lawsuit against Altria Group Inc. and Juul Labs have filed a motion to compel against former Juul Labs director Riaz Valani.
- Why: Investors claim Valani is refusing to sit in a deposition for enough time for them to ask all the questions they need to.
- Where: The class action lawsuit was filed in California federal court.
Investors who lodged a class action lawsuit against Altria Group Inc. and Juul Labs Inc. filed a motion to compel against Juul Labs former director Riaz Valani last week.
Investors are asking a California federal court to order Valani to sit on the record for a deposition they say will last no more than seven hours.
Valani has so far refused to attend a deposition for more than an hour at a time, say investors, who argue it is hindering the trials progress.
“A full exploration of the topic — which includes presenting and examining Mr. Valani with documents produced in discovery — cannot be done in an hour’s time,” the motion states.
Counsel for Valani have argued that forcing him to attend depositions for more than an hour would cause an “undue burden,” on their client, according to the motion.
Class Action Claims Altria and Juul ‘Harmed’ Investors With Misleading Statements Regarding Advertising to the Youth Demographic
Investors claim Altria, a tobacco company, and Juul, a vaping company, harmed them by making misleading and false statements about the company’s dealings with the youth demographic, notably how they market to child consumers and commit to prevent underage usage.
While still at Juul, Valani collaborated with Altria on a joint press release provided to the public in December 2018 that investors allege was misleading and contributed to the class action lawsuit being filed, according to the motion.
“Mr. Valani’s deposition is clearly necessary,” the motion states. “To prove their case in the underlying action, the petitioners must demonstrate that the corporate defendants, via people whose intent can be imputed to them, made the alleged false statements at issue.”
Other litigation surrounding Altria, Juul, and Valani, is currently ongoing, and, while Valani has been deposed for other matters, investors argue they have isolated questions that are necessary to resolving the securities class action lawsuit, according to the motion.
Do you believe Riaz Valani should be forced to sit in a deposition lasting no more than seven hours? Let us know in the comments!
The plaintiffs are represented by Jennifer Pafiti, Jeremy A. Lieberman, Michael J. Wernke, Veronica V. Montenegro, and Patrick V. Dahlstrom of Pomerantz LLP.
The Juul, Altria, Investors Class Action Lawsuit is Klein, et al. v. Valani., Case No. 3:21-mc-80239, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.
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