Everyone seemingly got some tangible benefit — except for nearly all of the 1 million consumers covered by the class action lawsuit filed in their name. None of the consumers got money, only discount coupons toward new Ford purchases. Few used them.

The practice of settling class action lawsuits by doling out discount coupons rather than cash has come under fire from tort reform activists and others who complain that such lawsuits mainly benefit the lawyers — and even the companies being sued — at the expense of their clients.

Sacramento County Superior Court Judge David De Alba authorized the settlement of a class action that lawyers argued could be worth as much as $500 million to people who owned Ford Explorers during the 1990s.

In exchange for dropping the lawsuit that alleged rollover problems unfairly diminished the resale value of Explorers, Ford customers could receive a $500 discount coupon toward the purchase of a new SUV or a $300 coupon to buy another Ford vehicle. Consumers had until April 29, 2008 to apply for the coupons.

De Alba awarded the lawyers $25 million in fees and expenses after presiding over a 50-day trial without a jury in 2007. The case settled before the judge reached a verdict.

Trina Thompson filed a lawsuit last week against Monroe College in Bronx Supreme Court. The 27-year-old is seeking the $70,000 she spent on tuition.

Thompson says she's been unable to find gainful employment since she received her information technology degree in April.

She says the Bronx school's Office of Career Advancement hasn't provided her with the leads and career advice it promises.

Monroe College spokesman Gary Axelbank says Thompson's lawsuit is completely without merit.

The college insists it helps its graduates find jobs.

Attorneys in U.S. District Court in Boston gave opening statements Tuesday in the recording industry's lawsuit against 25-year-old Joel Tenenbaum of Providence, R.I.

Tenenbaum, represented by Harvard Law professor Charles Nesson, is accused of downloading and distributing thousands of songs, though the case focuses on 30.

Recording industry lawyer Tim Reynolds says song swappers such as Tenenbaum seriously damage music labels.

Tenenbaum is only the second music-downloading defendant to go to trial. Last month, a federal jury ruled a Minnesota woman must pay $1.92 million for copyright infringement.

He'll have to listen repeatedly to the horrific details of the crimes against his wife, who was strangled, and two daughters, who were tied to their beds. All three died of smoke inhalation from a fire police say the intruders set as they fled Petit's house after holding the family hostage for hours. Petit, a prominent physician who was beaten during the ordeal, will sit feet away from the defendants as they assert their rights and file appeal after appeal.

Attorneys for defendants Steven Hayes and Joshua Komisarjevsky said this week in court that their offer to plead guilty on exchange for life in prison could have ended it all. But defense attorneys said prosecutors refused because they want to win death sentences.

The American Civil Liberties Union said Wednesday it considers the restraining order against Barrington resident Michelle Langlois an infringement on her right to free speech.

ACLU executive director Steven Brown said a Kent County Family Court judge ordered Langlois in late June not to post comments about a child custody case involving her brother and his ex-wife, Tracey Martin. Langlois deleted her postings on the social networking site.

Martin's attorney, Jerome Sweeney, says the comments traumatized the couple's children and included intimate details about their parents' marriage.

Federal prosecutors in Manhattan say Deborah Duffy participated in a scheme to defraud investors in Greenwich-based WG Trading Co. from 1996 through February. They say she and others at the company failed to invest $131 million as promised and instead used it for their personal benefit.

The government says the company's customers included charitable and university foundations, pension and retirement plans and other institutions.

Two investment advisers who ran the business have been charged in the case.

Duffy entered her plea Tuesday. She signed a cooperation agreement with the government. Sentencing is set for Jan. 21.

In a verbal statement, Ajmal Kasab described his group's journey from Karachi, Pakistan on a boat, their subsequent landing in Mumbai on Nov. 26, and his assault on a railway station and a hospital with a comrade he identified as Abu Ismail.

The other gunmen, also armed with automatic rifles and grenades, attacked a Jewish center and two five-star hotels, including the Taj Mahal. The rampage ended at the historic hotel days later after commandos killed the attackers holed up there.

"I was firing and Abu was hurling hand grenades (at the railway station)," Kasab told the court. "We both fired, me and Abu Ismail. We fired on the public."

Earlier Kasab, 21, stood up before the special court hearing his case just as a prosecution witness was to take the stand and addressed the judge. "Sir, I plead guilty to my crime," he said, triggering a collective gasp in the courtroom.