Court Gives Final Approval to iPhone 7 Class Action Settlement

A California federal judge has given final approval to a class action settlement resolving claims about iPhone 7 audio problems.

Under the terms of the settlement, class members can receive cash payments in different amounts depending on whether they paid out-of-pocket to repair their phones. Those payments should be scheduled for distribution now that the settlement is approved.

Gregory F. Coleman, Adam A. Edwards, and William A. Ladnier of Milberg represented the plaintiffs and the class in the lawsuit.

Case Background

The lawsuit—Lisa Tabak, et al. v. Apple, Inc.—was originally filed on May 6, 2019 in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. It alleged that the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus were prone to audio issues due to a defective chip in the devices. Apple was accused of concealing the defect and failing to provide free repairs to affected customers, in violation of consumer protection laws.

According to the complaint, the audio chip defect, which plaintiffs said caused “grayed out” speaker buttons during calls, loss of voice command capabilities for Siri, an inoperable Voice Memos app, degradation of microphone fidelity, and other audio issues, was caused by substandard materials.

Plaintiffs alleged that the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus’s casing can bend excessively through normal and intended use, severing the connection between the audio IC chip and the logic board. This affects the functionality of the devices’ audio system, resulting in poor sound, and preventing users from making phone calls and using the devices’ voice features, such as the Siri application.

The symptoms of what the complaint calls the “Audio IC Defect” are the same as those repair industry insiders have dubbed “loop disease.”

In their filing, plaintiffs attributed the defect to substandard materials. Following several years of litigation and discovery, an initial agreement was reached by the parties to resolve the claims, with Apple paying $35 million into a settlement fund.

To qualify for payment, users must have owned an iPhone 7 or iPhone 7 Plus between September 16, 2016 and January 3, 2023 and reported audio issues covered by the settlement to Apple, and/or paid Apple out of pocket for repairs or replacements related to the covered issues.

• Class Members who paid out-of-pocket expenses to Apple for a repair or replacement for a covered issue are eligible for a cash payment between $50 and $349.
• Those who reported a covered issue to Apple but did not pay Apple for a repair or replacement can receive up to $200.

The claim deadline ended on July 3, 2024. Per the terms of the settlement, payments will be distributed to class members upon final court approval.

A final settlement hearing was held on July 18, 2024. The court’s order granting final approval was issued on October 30, 2024.

Questions about payments and other terms can be sent to the Settlement Administrator.

Milberg Serves as Class Counsel

Milberg attorneys were appointed as class counsel in the iPhone 7 class action lawsuit. The court appoints class counsel based on their experience, ethical standards, and ability to represent the class’s interests.

Milberg attorneys were chosen as class counsel because they are “competent and capable” of exercising their responsibilities to the class, the court noted in a preliminary settlement agreement posted to the settlement website.

The final approval order states that Milberg attorneys, as class counsel, “are experienced in class action litigation and have vigorously prosecuted this action on behalf of the Class.”

It further says that “Counsel achieved a very good result for the Class; counsel took on substantial risk in bringing the case, which they brought on contingency; and the case has been pending for over five years.”

It is through Class Counsel’s work in this litigation that the Settlement was able to be obtained for Plaintiffs’ and Class Members’ benefit.

A contingency-fee model aligns the interests of class members and their lawyers. The fee is “contingent” on the case’s success, incentivizing attorneys to achieve the best outcome for their clients.

The attorneys spent nearly 8,000 hours litigating this case on behalf of the class and incurred more than $175,000 in fees and costs, according to the order.

A court notice filed in April 2024 explains that “Class Counsel expended this time, effort, and costs, all at great risk, as they represented Plaintiffs and the Class on a contingency basis, agreeing to bear all costs until a beneficial resolution was reached and to fully bear the risk of loss, should no successful resolution be achieved.”

The notice adds that, “It is through Class Counsel’s work in this litigation that the Settlement was able to be obtained for Plaintiffs’ and Class Members’ benefit.”

Milberg filed the fifth most class action lawsuits of any law firm in the country from 2021 to 2023. Over the same period, the firm filed the third most consumer protection cases.

Greg Coleman and Adam Edwards were named to The Best Lawyers in America list for 2025. Will Ladnier received a Super Lawyers Rising Star designation for 2023 – 2024.