Food & Beverage

  • February 28, 2024

    AG James Accuses Meat Co. JBS Of Misleading Enviro Claims

    New York Attorney General Letitia James slapped JBS USA, the U.S. subsidiary of the world's largest producer of beef products, with a complaint in New York state court Wednesday, accusing the company of misleading the public about the environmental impact of its products.

  • February 28, 2024

    Bankrupt Coffee Co. Says Nicaraguan Asset Sale Unlikely

    Coffee supplier Mercon Coffee Corp. Wednesday told a New York bankruptcy judge it no longer believes it will be able to win government cooperation for the sale of its Nicaraguan assets before it runs out of cash to fund its Chapter 11 case.

  • February 28, 2024

    Enviro Orgs Sue EPA Over Factory Farm Water Pollution Regs

    Green groups are pushing the Ninth Circuit to revive their petition asking the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to craft new, stronger Clean Water Act regulations for the large animal feeding facilities they call "sewerless cities."

  • February 27, 2024

    Conn. Restaurant Rejects Revamped Wine-Tasting Death Suit

    Citing the statute of limitations and an alleged failure to plead a valid case, a venerable New Haven restaurant has asked a Connecticut state judge to reject an amended lawsuit accusing it of recklessly overserving alcohol at a "mandatory" employee wine tasting event and allegedly causing a worker's drunk driving death.

  • February 27, 2024

    Insurer Gets BIPA Coverage Win After Ill. Appeals Court Ruling

    An Illinois federal judge granted a win to an insurer in a coverage dispute with a condiment company over biometric privacy litigation, changing course Tuesday in response to a state appeals decision concerning an identical policy exclusion.

  • February 27, 2024

    $11M Meat Co. Deals Get Early OK In Colo. Wage Fixing Suit

    A Colorado federal judge Tuesday gave initial approval to class settlements with two meat producers and a consulting company, requiring $11.25 million in payments to resolve claims that they participated in a nationwide scheme to fix and depress wages for meat plant workers.

  • February 27, 2024

    FTC Puts Labor Focus In Merger Basket For 1st Time

    Higher consumer prices and reduced choice are no longer the only reasons the Federal Trade Commission will challenge mergers after the agency contested Kroger's planned $24.6 billion purchase of Albertsons based in part, for the first time ever, on allegations the deal will reduce competition for employees.

  • February 27, 2024

    Egg Co. Not Covered For Avian Flu Losses, Minn. Judge Says

    A Markel unit does not owe coverage to an egg supplier for losses it sustained due to an avian flu outbreak in 2022, a Minnesota federal judge ruled Tuesday, finding that a communicable disease exclusion in a site pollution and environmental policy precluded coverage.

  • February 27, 2024

    Company Escapes Coverage Row Over Lethal Ammonia Leak

    A contractor's affiliate whose employee died in an ammonia leak at a North Carolina cold storage facility needn't face claims stemming from the accident, the North Carolina Business Court said in a lawsuit originally brought against three insurers and others over coverage for the leak.

  • February 27, 2024

    States, Businesses Aim To Kill Feds' Revised Water Rule

    States and business groups have asked a North Dakota federal judge to force the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to revise regulations intended to define the scope of the federal government's authority under the Clean Water Act.

  • February 27, 2024

    Salmon Fishing Mitigation Effort Is Absent, Green Group Says

    Conservation group Wild Fish Conservancy told the Ninth Circuit the district court did not abuse its discretion in "narrowly partially vacating" an incidental take statement underpinning a Chinook salmon troll fishery in southeast Alaska, saying the overarching biological opinion is inconsistent with the Endangered Species Act.

  • February 27, 2024

    Judge Says Coffee Co.'s IP Claims Need More Time To Brew

    A Colorado federal judge on Tuesday rejected competing efforts to avoid trial in a cold brew equipment maker's infringement suit against an insulated mug company, with the judge finding it's too soon for her to rule on the merits of the case.

  • February 27, 2024

    3rd Circ. Won't Reconsider Coverage Ruling For Deli Stabbing

    The Third Circuit declined to review its decision that an insurer for a Philadelphia deli does not owe coverage for a $900,000 settlement reached with a man stabbed on the premises.

  • February 27, 2024

    Food Co. Gets Inflated ESOP Deal Suit Kicked To Arbitration

    An Illinois federal judge said a worker must arbitrate her suit claiming a food manufacturer sold inflated company shares to its employee stock ownership plan, finding the plan's arbitration agreement allows the business to sidestep an exception blocking some federal benefit law claims from out-of-court resolutions.

  • February 26, 2024

    Altria Unit Drops Suit Against Dozens Of Vape Makers

    Altria Group Inc. subsidiary NJOY has quietly dropped a California federal lawsuit accusing more than 30 vape product makers of breaking state and federal laws by selling flavored tobacco products that are forbidden in the Golden State.

  • February 26, 2024

    EPA Must Act On Failed Skagit River Temps Plan, Tribe Says

    The Swinomish Indian Tribal Community said it plans to sue the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for Endangered Species Act violations unless it revisits a failed Washington state plan to address high water temperatures in the Lower Skagit River Basin that are harming protected salmon species.

  • February 26, 2024

    Family Dollar OKs Record $41.7M Deal With DOJ Over Rodents

    The U.S. Department of Justice on Monday announced that Family Dollar Stores LLC will pay $41.7 million after pleading guilty to storing food and drugs in unsanitary conditions at a rodent-infested warehouse, in what federal prosecutors called the largest monetary penalty in a food safety case.

  • February 26, 2024

    Nestle Fights Class Cert. In Child Labor Labeling Suit

    Nestle USA Inc. urged a California federal judge on Friday to reject a shopper's bid to certify multiple classes of Golden State consumers challenging the company's "sustainably sourced" chocolate labels, arguing that the proposed classes can't "lump together" nearly 60 different labels on different products.

  • February 26, 2024

    Disney Sued Over Woman's Death From Allergen-Filled Meal

    A New York man whose wife died of an allergic reaction after eating at an Irish restaurant at Walt Disney World is suing both the restaurant and Walt Disney Parks and Resorts for negligence, asserting they were repeatedly assured that the food they were served was free of allergens.

  • February 26, 2024

    Hydroelectric Co. Asks For Pause On Puyallup Dam Order

    A hydroelectric company appealing to the Ninth Circuit is asking a Washington federal judge to stay an order that directed it to remove part of a temporary rock dam on the Puyallup River, saying the order would require it to make changes that are likely to damage its facility.

  • February 26, 2024

    Chancery Says 'Game Over' On Fee Windfalls For Easy Cases

    A Delaware vice chancellor has publicly slammed stockholder attorneys who sought an $850,000 fee for "minuscule" hours spent on a corporate benefit case after a recent string of suits filed to police stockholder rights to separate class votes on company transactions.

  • February 26, 2024

    Catching Up With Delaware's Chancery Court

    Delaware's Court of Chancery dropped two potentially far-reaching decisions last week: one about founder control at Moelis & Co. and another about TripAdvisor's planned move to Nevada. On top of that, there were new cases involving Citrix Systems, Alcoa Corp., BGC Partners Inc. and Cantor Fitzgerald LP.

  • February 26, 2024

    Burford, Sysco Object To Nixed Swap In Price-Fixing Suits

    Restaurant food distributor Sysco and a Burford Capital affiliate both objected to a federal magistrate judge's decision not to allow the affiliate to replace Sysco in sprawling price-fixing lawsuits against pork and beef producers, asserting that the denial contravenes civil procedure rules and public policy.

  • February 26, 2024

    FTC Challenges Kroger's $25B Albertsons Buy

    The Federal Trade Commission announced a new, national front Monday against Kroger's heavily criticized $24.6 billion purchase of fellow grocery store giant Albertsons, challenging a deal it said threatens both shoppers and workers and cannot be saved by the planned divestiture of a "hodgepodge" of hundreds of stores.

  • February 26, 2024

    Paul Hastings Adds FDA Practice Chair From King & Spalding

    Paul Hastings LLP announced Monday that a King & Spalding partner specializing in the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and life sciences has joined the firm as chair of its new FDA practice in Washington, D.C.

Expert Analysis

  • ChatGPT Can't Predict The Future Of Antitrust And AI (Yet)

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    Though OpenAI's ChatGPT has made artificial intelligence a popular topic of conversation recently, the subject of AI and antitrust has been around for years, raising the question of what other competitive concerns might arise as the technology becomes more sophisticated and ubiquitous in our marketplace, say attorneys at Faegre Drinker.

  • Employer Drug-Testing Policies Must Evolve With State Law

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    As multistate employers face ongoing challenges in drafting consistent marijuana testing policies due to the evolving patchwork of state laws, they should note some emerging patterns among local and state statutes to ensure compliance in different jurisdictions, say attorneys at Troutman Pepper.

  • In-House At A Food Company: Tackling Generative AI

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    Generative artificial intelligence is challenging the status quo of in-house legal teams, bringing both opportunities and challenges in areas such as intellectual property and cybersecurity, and highlighting the need for experimentation and exposure, says Lisa Mather at Mars Wrigley.

  • Blunders That Made 'Bakked' Cannabis TM Go Up In Smoke

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    The Trademark Trial and Appeal Board’s recent denial of National Concessions Group’s application to register the mark “BAKKED” illustrates mistakes that cannabis companies must be wary of in pursuing federal registration as examiners may look beyond the four corners of an application, say attorneys at Seyfarth.

  • Level Up Lawyers' Business Development With Gamification

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    With employee engagement at a 10-year low in the U.S., there are several gamification techniques marketing and business development teams at law firms can use to make generating new clients and matters more appealing to lawyers, says Heather McCullough at Society 54.

  • Mallory Ruling Leaves Personal Jurisdiction Deeply Unsettled

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    In Mallory v. Norfolk Southern Railway, a closely divided U.S. Supreme Court recently rolled back key aspects of its 2017 opinion in Daimler AG v. Bauman that limited personal jurisdiction, leaving as many questions for businesses as it answers, say John Cerreta and James Rotondo at Day Pitney.

  • 5 Ways Firms Can Rethink Office Design In A Hybrid World

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    As workplaces across the country adapt to flexible work, law firms must prioritize individuality, amenities and technology in office design, says Kristin Cerutti at Nelson Worldwide.

  • False Ad Snapshot Shows Risks Of Geographic Origin Claims

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    A look at recent and historical cases involving deceptive use of geographic origin descriptors show that companies proclaiming they are American, but that sell products originating from outside the U.S., could be at risk under unfair competition laws or Federal Trade Commission enforcement, say attorneys at Carlson Gaskey.

  • Opinion

    Bar Score Is Best Hiring Metric Post-Affirmative Action

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    After the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling striking down affirmative action admissions policies, law firms looking to foster diversity in hiring should view an applicant's Multistate Bar Examination score as the best metric of legal ability — over law school name or GPA, says attorney Alice Griffin.

  • FDA Trends Show Compliance Priorities For Supplement Cos.

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    Several recent developments at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration affecting dietary supplements provide practical insight into why companies should focus their compliance and risk management operations on the fundamentals, says Nicholas Diamond at Jackson Walker.

  • How End Of Forced Arb. Is Affecting Sex Harassment Cases

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    A little over a year after the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault Act became effective, we have started seeing substantive interpretation of the EFAA, almost exclusively from the U.S. district courts in New York, and there are two key takeaways for employers, says Lisa Haldar at Lawrence & Bundy.

  • An Evil Bear May Provide High Court TM Ruling Clarification

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    The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent ruling in Jack Daniel's v. VIP Products leaves unanswered questions about the intersection of the First Amendment and trademark rights, which may be answered by the reconsideration of a dismissed case involving Disney and Lotso the bear from “Toy Story 3," say attorneys at Bracewell.

  • Ghosting In BigLaw: How To Come Back From Lack Of Feedback

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    Junior associates can feel powerless when senior colleagues cut off contact instead of providing useful feedback, but young attorneys can get back on track by focusing on practical professional development and reexamining their career priorities, says Rachel Patterson at Orrick.

  • Mitigating Risks Of Developing Drugs And Devices With AI

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    As the use of artificial intelligence in drug and medical device development advances, companies should implement five key steps to identify and mitigate areas of potential risk before regulatory frameworks catch up, say attorneys at King & Spalding.

  • Nonprofit ESG Collabs Should Beware Antitrust Risks

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    With state and federal agencies increasingly bringing costly and distracting antitrust investigations against environmental, social and governance alliances, nonprofits that plan to collaborate on ESG efforts should follow four high-level guidelines for mitigating their risk, say attorneys at Arnold & Porter.

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