A class action filed against Apple in May 2014 alleging that Apple CEO Tim Cook knew about defective logic boards in MacBooks in 2011—and willfully and intentionally concealed the defects—was dismissed this past January. 

After landing in U.S. District Court in the Northern District of California, Apple moved to dismiss the case in part because Plaintiffs were unable to provide specific support for any of their claims.  The District Court agreed, finding, “Plaintiffs provide no other specific facts as to Apple’s alleged violation of the . . . statutes,” and “[m]erely naming the statutes is insufficient.  The complaint therefore does not state with required particularity how Apple’s alleged conduct was unlawful.”  Marcus v. Apple Inc., 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 2140, at *9 (N.D. Cal. Jan. 8, 2015).

The Court held Plaintiffs were unable to show that Apple’s logic boards were “unfit” for their intended purpose based on allegations in the complaint:  “Both plaintiffs were able to adequately use their computers for approximately 18 months and two years, respectively.”  Id. at *25.  In their complaint, Plaintiffs also failed to show that Apple misrepresented the performance and technical innovations of its MacBook.  Id.

While potentially a big win for the computing giant, Plaintiffs have requested leave to cure the errors in the complaint.  On March 3, 2015, the Court has requested additional briefing.  A ruling on Plaintiffs’ motion has not yet been issued.