The plaintiffs in the class action lawsuit claim that Yahoo-Overture promised high-quality placement of Pay-Per-Click (PPC) ads, then took innocent advertisers’ hard-earned cash after allowing ads to be placed in spyware, along with websites that were anything but high-quality… Like sites reached by typing a URL incorrectly (typosquatter), or by accident: domain parking and bulk registration.

At first glance, the case looks like an easy win. After all, Google just laid out US$90 million to make a similar class action go away. But these plaintiffs aren’t taking any chances. They’ve assembled a well-heeled crew with lots of experience taking down the big guys.

Lisa Rodriguez has gone after Intelligroup for securities fraud and Merck for violations of the Employee Retirement Securities Act. In addition, she has served on the Board of Editors of the Fen-Phen Strategist.

Donna Siegel Moffa worked with Rodriguez as co-lead counsel in “successfully challenging the practices of certain companies in the rent-to-own industry.”

Ben Edelman is a Harvard Law School grad who’s working on his Ph.D. at the Department of Economics at Harvard. He’s also considered Public Enemy #1 by most of those who engage in adware, spyware, pay-per-click and affiliate commission fraud. Edelman has been documenting (and complaining about) Yahoo-Overture’s alleged PPC transgressions on his website for at least nine months.

Michael J. Boni recently hammered out a proposed class action settlement with Verizon, after charging that the firm had blocked email from certain geographical areas in an overzealous effort to reduce spam.

According to the proposed settlement, those who can prove failure to receive email from a sender in the Asian Region may get US$3.50 for each month between October 1, 2004 and May 31, 2005, for a maximum of US$28.00. Similarly, the value of missing European email maxes out at a whopping US$21.00.

Meanwhile, TMC reports that Boni’s firm is asking for US$1.4 million for performing the public service.

Among other projects, Boni’s also working a class action against Google for scanning books.

Michael Donovan is admitted to practice before the Supreme Court of the United States, and has taken on Citibank, Fleet Bank and Beneficial Management Corp, among many, many others. (Citibank prevailed with the Supremes.) In January, a judge approved his class action against Wal-Mart for pressuring Pennsylvania employees to work off-the-clock.

Alan M. Feldman is on the faculty of the Academy of Advocacy, is Chancellor of the Philadelphia Bar Association and has been elected President of the Philadelphia Trial Lawyers Association. And he’s worked with Donovan before, teaming up to win US$5.6 million in a class action lawsuit against Kia for defective brake systems in Kia Sephias. Each Pennsylvanian who qualified could get up to US$600 for repair and replacement.

Jonathan Shub was a co-lead counsel in taking Maytag to the cleaners for “leaving clothing covered in mold, as a result of problems with the door latch, wax motor, motor control, and related circuit boards.”

Maximum PC reported, “Shub is becoming renowned for orchestrating suits that have simultaneously benefited consumers and exposed buggy hardware.”

In response, Yahoo says, “We didn’t do it… We’ll fight vigorously… etc…”

…Just like Google said.

Email Battles Backgrounder: