Filing of federal securities class actions continued to wane during the first half of 2010, according to separate reports released this week. Both NERA Economic Consulting and the Stanford Law School Securities Class Action Clearinghouse reported that filings during the first half of 2010 were down compared to one year ago. The numbers have been on the decline since 2008

A federal judge in Los Angeles refused on Monday to throw out a class action against Toyota over defective headlights on the company’s Prius vehicles. The case alleges that Toyota failed to inform consumers that the headlights on recent-model Priuses can sporadically turn on and off

In late 2008, Manatt, Phelps & Phillips and McKool Smith won a $28 million verdict in a class action accusing the NFL players’ union of intentionally excluding retired players from licensing deals, including an ultra-lucrative deal through which the video game maker Electronic Arts purchased the right to use player names and images. Now, two separate classes of retired NFL players have sued the law firms, alleging they blew a chance for much greater damages.

A New Jersey federal magistrate judge gave preliminary approval on Tuesday to an $8.4 million settlement of a class action alleging prepaid calling cards did not provide the quantity of minutes advertised. The deal will affect hundreds of thousands of people who bought STi Prepaid cards from 2001 until the present. The plaintiffs alleged violations of nine states’ laws against unfair and deceptive trade practices

The 3rd Circuit has set aside a $295 million settlement of a class action antitrust suit alleging a price-fixing conspiracy in the international market for diamonds allegedly orchestrated by the De Beers group of companies headquartered in South Africa. The court ruled the settlement must be vacated because the lower court improperly certified a nationwide class of indirect purchasers despite recognizing that would bar some of those plaintiffs from pursuing such indirect claims under their own states’ laws.