Ferguson

REARDON, Acting P.J.

Appellants, objectors to a proposed class action settlement in the In re Unocal Refinery Litigation stemming from a chemical release at the Unocal refinery in Rodeo, sued class counsel shortly after they secured awards in an arbitration proceeding established to allocate the settlement fund. [1] The trial court sustained demurrers to their fraud causes of action and then entered summary judgment in favor of Lieff Cabraser. We affirm the order sustaining the demurrer as well as the summary judgment.

In August 1994 a processing tower at the Unocal refinery in Rodeo developed a leak, resulting in release into the atmosphere of the toxic chemical compound "Catacarb." Thousands of residents from neighboring communities were affected.

Respondent law firm Lieff Cabraser filed a class action complaint against Unocal in February 1995. Other firms filed complaints against Unocal on behalf of individuals and on behalf of putative classes. For example, appellants signed contingent fee contracts with Michael Meadows and the Casper, Meadows & Schwartz firm (Casper Firm) to represent them against Unocal, and they were named as plaintiffs in an action filed by the Casper…