A Sony lawsuit can be quite complex. The company has settled multiple lawsuits, and many plaintiffs are confused as to whether they should file a lawsuit, and what the legal parameters are. The fact is that there are many different types of these cases, and they vary greatly in nature and often depend on facts that are unique to each individual case. Here are some basic information that may be helpful to any potential plaintiffs.
Sony Lawsuit
First, it is important to realize that there are two main categories of Sony cases. There are both class-action and individual claims, and while a settlement can occur in either case, class-action plaintiffs will typically receive a more monetary settlement when compared to individual claims. However, in either case, the ultimate goal is to hold Sony responsible for their alleged conduct, which can make pursuing such a case quite challenging.
One of the most common scenarios that would warrant a class-action lawsuit against Sony involves breach of warranty, or a manufacturing defect. In this situation, the alleged defect-or breach of contract-is a component of the product itself, which Sony has acknowledged it did not manufacture or deliver. When a plaintiff files a complaint in such a case, sony has a few options. They can choose to admit to the breach, which would allow them to proceed with a lawsuit, or they can assign their claim to another company that could come forward with similar complaints based on the same breach.
Another scenario is if the alleged defrauding act is the result of a digital games distribution error. If a player believes that the PlayStation DVDs disc produced by Sony contains errors, but Sony has yet to produce proof, plaintiffs can file a complaint and seek damages. There are a few differences between this scenario and the one involving breach of warranty, however. In the case of a digital game’s distributor, the goal is to hold the distributor accountable for selling products that are defective. With a Sony digital games lawsuit, the goal is to hold Sony accountable for introducing defects into the market through the faulty digital games discs sold to consumers.
A third possible scenario is negligence, or even consumer fraud. In this case, plaintiffs would simply be asking for compensation for injuries or pain and suffering caused by the Sony’s merchandise. For instance, a player who suffers an injury playing a certain game would be seeking monetary damages from Sony for failing to warn them about the risk inherent in playing that game. While the scenario above might be the product of a slip-and-fall accident rather than a manufacturing defect, this lawsuit might still be brought up against the manufacturer.
If a Sony lawsuit comes to light, the company could be facing serious trouble financially. In the wake of bankruptcy in January of 2009, hedge fund manager James Vicary took a personal hit when his firm filed a suit against the electronics company over a defective Vicary shoe. Vicary had previously purchased the shoe through a direct selling company and was looking forward to making a big profit off of the sale. As the suit became public, Vicary lost his job at the hedge fund and could not pursue the lawsuit. The court found in favor of the company, and ordered Vicary to pay the company $1 million in back taxes, as well as pay for the legal fees incurred in the case.
