Microsoft to Face Xbox Disc Scratch Class Action Lawsuit

Based on the recurring consumer reports of scratched Xbox discs caused by a defect in the Xbox 360 consoles, Microsoft will have to face the plaintiffs complaints in the form of a Xbox disc scratch class action lawsuit.

According to recent news reports, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals stated on July 20 that Microsoft would either face plaintiffs’ claims in Xbox disc scratch litigation or face the judgment of the Supreme Court.

Microsoft has faced allegations of disc scratch problems since the release of the Xbox 360 console in 2005, and since 2008 the company has allegedly received more than 55,000 consumer complaints about disc scratches caused by an Xbox 360 design defect. However, in the midst of all these Xbox disc scratch lawsuits and consumer allegations, the tech company maintains that the scratched discs are a direct result of consumer misuse of the console and discs.

For example, the company states that most scratched discs are probably caused by consumers moving Xbox 360 consoles with a disc still present in the tray. However, if the disc was a game published by Microsoft, a consumer were given the option of having a scratched disc replaced at no cost to them.

The Xbox disc scratch class action lawsuit, originally filed in 2011 by lead plaintiff Seth Baker, seeks to discover if the disc scratches were a result of user error or a design flaw in the Xbox 360 console. This case had previously been dismissed as a class action, but the 9th Circuit reversed this decision back in March of this year, thus reviving the Xbox disc scratch litigation against Microsoft.

According to the Xbox class action lawsuit, “[A]lthough individual factors may affect the timing and extent of the disc scratching, they do not affect whether the Xboxes were sold with a defective disc system. Plaintiffs contend that (1) whether the Xbox is defectively designed and (2) whether such design defect breaches an express or an implied warranty are both issues capable of common proof.”

The 9th Circuit has agreed and the case will move forward. In the wake of the higher court’s reversal of the previous dismissal of this Xbox disc scratch class action lawsuit, Microsoft submitted a motion to have the case reheard by a larger group of judges. However, Judges Johnnie Rawlinson and Carlos T. Bea, who served as the judges to reverse the original denial of this litigation, denied the company’s request, which also means that the court will not accept any petitions to have the Xbox disc scratch class action lawsuit reheard in the in the future. Ultimately, this means Microsoft will have to face the allegations of Xbox disc scratch design defects.

The Xbox Disc Scratch Class Action Lawsuit is Baker, et al. v. Microsoft Corporation, Case No. 12-35946, in U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit.

UPDATE: On June 17, 2016, Microsoft told the Supreme Court that the plaintiffs alleging Xbox 360s were defective can’t revive the claims in a proposed class action lawsuit following their voluntary dismissal of individual claims, arguing that the Court of Appeals did not have jurisdiction.

UPDATE 2: On June 12, 2017, in a unanimous decision, the U.S. Supreme Court concluded that plaintiffs in the Xbox class action lawsuit cannot seek appeal of the trial court’s denial of Class certification after they voluntarily dismissed their own claims.