LOS ANGELES, CA — Two plaintiffs have settled their individual claims in what was a proposed class-action lawsuit against Apple Inc. that questioned the company's alleged claims that its model 6 and 7 watches are water-resistant.
The plaintiffs in the Los Angeles Superior Court lawsuit are Isabelo Pascual and Ashley Green, who live in Los Angeles and San Bernardino counties, respectively. Pascual bought the series 6 watch and Green the series 7 model. Both were purchased between October 2020 and October 2023.
On Wednesday, the plaintiffs' attorneys' filed court papers with Judge Lawrence P. Riff stating that their clients have resolved their individual claims and are no longer pursuing the case for certification as a class action. Although the class claims are being dropped, they are being done so "without prejudice," which allows other buyers of the watch to bring their own individual or class actions.
The settlement terms were not disclosed.
The suit included images of sample Apple watch ads within the pleadings, which stated that the plaintiffs expected the products were swimproof and water resistant. Pascual and Green paid more for the watches than they would have had they known they were not swimproof and water resistant, in which case they would have paid less, the suit filed in May 2024 stated.
"Despite using images of the devices in and around water and using marketing language like "H2O, You're good to go," "Make a splash with your watch," "Perfect for swimming, surfing or water balloon fights" and "Swimproof," the products are not water-resistant as understood by plaintiffs and consumers and routinely fail in brief encounters with water," the suit alleged.
In their original plans for a class action, the plaintiffs said they wanted to represent all people in California who purchased the watches in the state during the statute of limitations periods for each cause of action alleged: violations of the false advertising law, the unfair competition law and the consumer legal remedies act.
The plaintiffs sought restitution, attorneys' fees and compensatory damages.
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