Court of Appeals Affirms Korein Tillery as Class Counsel—City of Creve Coeur v. Netflix & Hulu

March 29, 2023

Korein Tillery obtained an important victory on behalf of over 400 Missouri municipalities in City of Creve Coeur v. Netflix, Inc., Case No. 18SL-CC02819 (Mo. Cir. Ct. St. Louis County), a case of first impression in the United States against streaming video companies such as Netflix and Hulu alleging that their failure to pay franchise fees violated Missouri’s 2007 Video Services Provider Act, § 67.2675, RSMo, et seq.

The Missouri Court of Appeals this week unanimously affirmed the trial court’s decision to certify the case as a class action and appoint Korein Tillery and two of its partners (Steven Berezney and Garrett Broshuis) as class counsel. This is a critical step forward in the Missouri municipalities’ quest to require Netflix and Hulu to pay the same fees that their competitors have paid and continue to pay.

The trial court’s certification Order and the Court of Appeals’ affirming opinion can be accessed at the included links.