Synopsis In a court order, U. S. District Judge James Donato in San Francisco appointed Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro and Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan with "some reservations" given the past "rocky relationship" between the two law firms. Reuters A U. S. judge on Tuesday appointed two prominent U. S. law firms as co-leaders of consumer claims against Meta Platforms Inc 's Facebook , saying he hoped they would put aside their dispute over control of the antitrust case and work together. In a court order, U. S. District Judge James Donato in San Francisco appointed Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro and Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan with "some reservations" given the past "rocky relationship" between the two law firms. "It is the court's expectation that the attorneys will treat this appointment as the start of a new day, and put behind them the conflicts that gave rise to these proceedings," Donato wrote. The case involves a group of consumers who contend Facebook exploited user data to maintain its market power. The company has denied the claims. Law firms routinely vie for sole or co-leadership roles in high-profile class actions, since such appointments by judges can help steer cases and earn firms bigger cuts of legal fees. Hagens Berman partner Shana Scarlett and Quinn Emanuel partner Kevin Teruya, the two lawyers appointed to represent a prospective consumer class, did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment. Discover the stories of your interest Blockchain 5 Stories Cyber-safety 7 Stories Fintech 9 Stories E-comm 9 Stories ML 8 Stories Edtech 6 Stories Representatives for Quinn Emanuel and Facebook declined to comment, and a spokesperson for Hagens Berman did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment. Scarlett in recent court filings said Quinn Emanuel was not respecting her view as a leading antitrust attorney based on her gender. Quinn Emanuel denied the claim, saying it has "worked very hard to be cooperative with all counsel on the case, including female counsel. " Both firms had been appointed co-counsel in 2021 by a judge who has since been elevated to a U. S. appeals court. Donato started the appointment process from scratch in January amid quarreling between Seattle-based plaintiffs' firm Hagens Berman and 900-lawyer Quinn Emanuel. The firms sought individual, sole appointment and not co-leadership. Donato said in Tuesday's order that the designation of co-leadership was interim and that "further reports of dysfunctionality or breakdowns in the work relationship" would likely result in designation of new counsel. The case is Klein v. Meta Platforms Inc, U. S. District Court for the Northern District of California, No. 5:20-cv-08570. For consumer class: Shana Scarlett of Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro; Kevin Teruya of Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan For Facebook: Sonal Mehta, David Gringer and Ari Holtzblatt of Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr Don’t miss out on ET Prime stories! Get your daily dose of business updates on WhatsApp. click here! Wednesday, 22 Feb, 2023 Experience Your Economic Times Newspaper, The Digital Way! Read Complete Print Edition » Front Page Pure Politics Brands & Companies Economy More On the Podium: Chartbuster Growth, Pandemic Heroes Bharti Enterprises chairman Sunil Bharti Mittal chosen as Business Leader of the Year, ICICI Bank as Company of the Year and health minister Mansukh Mandaviya as Business Reformer of the Year Sebi Seeks Details onRatings of Adani Cos’ Loans and Securities The Indian capital markets regulator has sought details of all ratings of local loans and securities of Adani group companies from credit rating firms. ‘Growth may have Come Down to About 5% in Q3’ India’s economic growth likely slumped to a median 5. 0% in the third quarter, its lowest this fiscal year, according to an ET poll of 11 economists. Forecasts ranged from 4. 3% to 5. 2%. An adverse base effect and mixed economic performance dragged growth down from 6. 3% in the second quarter, according to them. Read More News on Facebook antitrust case quinn emanuel meta platforms inc Facebook case antitrust case Facebook Stay on top of technology and startup news that matters. Subscribe to our daily newsletter for the latest and must-read tech news, delivered straight to your inbox. . . . more less ETPrime stories of the day Real Estate Interest rates are rising, so are rental yields. Is it the right time to invest in property? 8 mins read 3 insights to kick-start your day, featuring Swiggy’s “poor judgement” 3 mins read Strategy Stock Radar: Technical charts suggest HDFC Bank is likely to hit fresh record highs in next 3-6 months; time to buy? 3 mins read Subscribe to ETPrime.