Food & Beverage

  • April 29, 2025

    Pork Producers Want Ruling Tossed Over Clerk's Conduct

    Pork producers and Agri Stats Inc., which are defending themselves against a major price-fixing suit, are calling on the Minnesota federal judge overseeing the case to recuse himself and vacate his recent rulings, accusing one of his clerks of having inappropriate relationships with plaintiffs' attorneys in a new filing this week.

  • April 29, 2025

    Kroger-Owned Chain Fights To Keep UFCW Suit Alive

    The Kroger-owned grocery chain King Soopers urged a Colorado federal judge Tuesday to preserve its lawsuit against a United Food and Commercial Workers local, saying the company can prove that the union is placing unlawful pressure on it to bargain with multiple locals at once.

  • April 29, 2025

    DoorDash, Grubhub Settle Fee Cap Fight With NYC

    DoorDash, Grubhub and Uber Eats have reached a settlement in a case accusing New York City officials of passing legislation that unconstitutionally capped fees the delivery apps could charge restaurants, prompting a federal judge to sign off on a joint stipulation and order Monday that stayed the matter pending final resolution.

  • April 29, 2025

    Ex-Pot Water CEOs Denied Bid For More Info In Stock Case

    An Ohio federal judge on Tuesday denied bids by former CEOs of and others associated with American Premium Water Corp. for bills of particulars on an indictment alleging they manipulated the company's stock prices, finding the indictment gives them enough information to prepare their defenses.

  • April 29, 2025

    Judge Blocks Fla. Migrant Law, Wants Briefs On TRO Violation

    A Florida federal judge on Tuesday issued a preliminary injunction blocking enforcement of a state law criminalizing the entry of unauthorized migrants and set a show cause hearing on whether the attorney general should be held in contempt for possibly violating the judge's temporary restraining order against the law.

  • April 29, 2025

    Chicken Joint Sticky's Gets $2M Sale After Turnaround Woes

    Chicken restaurant Sticky's won a Delaware bankruptcy judge's tentative permission Tuesday to sign a contract to sell its assets to an investment fund for $2 million after surging poultry prices and New York City's congestion pricing program imperiled the company's Chapter 11 turnaround plan.

  • April 29, 2025

    Drinkers Not Vexed By Brand In 'Sea Of Tequilas,' 5th Circ. Told

    A Fifth Circuit panel seemed hesitant to accept a U.S. tequila startup's argument that it was selling its product in a "sea of tequilas" that all have similar marks, questioning Tuesday whether its branding had enough similarities to an older Mexican brand called "Clase Azul" to confuse consumers.

  • April 29, 2025

    Dem Reps. Introduce Bill To Repeal Ban On Fed. Pot Studies

    The co-chairs of the Congressional Cannabis Caucus on Tuesday introduced a bill to eliminate a portion of federal law blocking the Office of National Drug Control Policy from researching use of substances on Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act.

  • April 29, 2025

    Union Pension Fund Wins $132M Bailout Suit At 2nd Circ.

    A union pension fund won its multimillion-dollar dispute with the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. on appeal Tuesday, with the Second Circuit reversing a New York federal judge's 2023 decision that the PBGC was within its rights to reject the fund's 2022 application for $132 million in financial assistance.

  • April 29, 2025

    Boston Seafood Co. Says Salmon Exec Stole Trade Secrets

    A former C-suite executive and head of salmon accounts at a Boston-area seafood distributor spent months emailing sensitive trade secrets from his work account to a Norwegian competitor before joining it to launch a rival business in the U.S., according to a federal lawsuit filed Tuesday. 

  • April 29, 2025

    Opioid MDL Judge Won't Recuse Over Ex Parte Allegations

    An Ohio federal judge will not step aside from multidistrict opioid litigation after the plaintiffs' attorney, who had alleged the judge "regularly communicates" with other lawyers involved in the litigation, testified that there was no such communication after all, the judge ruled Tuesday.

  • April 28, 2025

    3rd Circ. Won't Rethink Teamsters Fund's Win In $39M Row

    The Third Circuit won't give a group of dairy businesses a second chance to prevent a Teamsters union pension fund from suing them and their affiliates to enforce a $39 million settlement, the court announced Monday.

  • April 28, 2025

    Ex-Celsius VP Gets 13 Months In Prison For Insider Trading

    A Florida federal judge sentenced Celsius Holdings Inc.'s former vice president and controller to more than a year in prison on Monday after the former executive of the energy drink company admitted to insider trading and using confidential financial information to acquire stocks and options, then sold them a month later for a profit.

  • April 28, 2025

    Judge In NY Dismisses Athlete's Suit Over Gatorade Gummies

    A New York federal judge on Monday tossed a lawsuit lodged by a promising Texas-based sprinter alleging the Gatorade Co. supplied him with contaminated recovery gummies that led to his doping ban, saying lost endorsement opportunities were purely economic harm and not a personal injury.

  • April 28, 2025

    Ziploc 'Microwave Safe' Bags Shed Microplastics, Buyer Says

    S.C. Johnson & Son Inc. falsely markets Ziploc bags and containers as "microwave safe" and suitable for use in freezers despite knowing they are made from materials that shed microplastics into food when the products are used as directed, according to a proposed class action filed in California federal court.

  • April 28, 2025

    High Court Takes On Removal Issue In Hain Baby Food Case

    The U.S. Supreme Court will decide whether the erroneous dismissal of a defendant upon a case's removal to federal court warrants undoing the years-later final result, agreeing Monday to hear Whole Foods and Hain Celestial Group's bid to preserve a midtrial win over allegedly tainted baby food. 

  • April 28, 2025

    Estate Sues Insurer Over 'Paltry' Offer In DUI Death Case

    The estate of a motorcyclist killed by a driver allegedly overserved at a Washington bar has sued to force the bar's specialty insurance company to cover a partial settlement in an underlying wrongful death suit.

  • April 28, 2025

    EPA Touts Intention To Act On PFAS Contamination

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Monday said it's planning a series of actions to address pollution from forever chemicals, including the designation of a leader for PFAS regulation and issues at the EPA.

  • April 28, 2025

    China Doesn't Need US Grains, Seed Oils, State Planner Says

    China doesn't need to import grains and seed oils from the U.S. because it can source them domestically or internationally, an official from the country's state planning commission said Monday about the most valuable category of U.S. exports to China.

  • April 28, 2025

    High Court Passes On Coke Sweetener Patent Case

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday rejected a Texas chemical company's challenge to a Federal Circuit decision scratching claims in a patent on the process to create the artificial sweetener used in Coke Zero, in a case that addressed whether the secret usage of that process could preclude its patent eligibility. 

  • April 25, 2025

    Baby Food Maker Keeps Win In Suit Saying It Concealed Toxins

    The Ninth Circuit on Friday affirmed a summary judgment win for California-based Plum Organics, saying in an unpublished opinion that parents who accused the baby food maker of failing to disclose potential toxins in its baby food products didn't sufficiently prove that Plum's products pose an unreasonable safety hazard.

  • April 25, 2025

    Texas High Court Keeps Alive REIT's 'Short And Distort' Suit

    The Texas Supreme Court found that a farmland-centered real estate investment trust's suit against a Dallas-based hedge fund could continue, but in a Friday opinion it also said a bid to dismiss the suit under the state's anti-SLAPP law could proceed on the merits.

  • April 25, 2025

    Trimmed Challenge To Fla. Lab-Grown Meat Ban Moves Ahead

    A Florida federal judge Friday largely disposed of a food technology company's lawsuit challenging the state's law that bans cultivated, or lab-grown, meat products but kept alive a claim that the law is unconstitutional because it violates the company's right to sell its products through interstate commerce.

  • April 25, 2025

    ​​​​​​​Calif. Justices Say Sauce Cos. Can't Cap Willful Injury Liability

    The California Supreme Court held Thursday that New England Country Foods can seek unlimited damages against a competitor for allegedly stealing its barbecue sauce recipe, answering a certified question from the Ninth Circuit that a contract provision between the companies restricting liability for willful injury is unenforceable.

  • April 25, 2025

    Mondelez Says Ghost Can't Use Sour Patch, Other Snack TMs

    Two Mondelez International subsidiaries have filed suit in Illinois to halt Ghost LLC's marketing of energy products that feature Sour Patch Kids, Oreo and certain other iconic snack brand trademarks, claiming Ghost's license to do so ended when Keurig Dr. Pepper began controlling the company.

Expert Analysis

  • Series

    Exercising On My Peloton Bike Makes Me A Better Lawyer

    Author Photo

    While I originally came to the Peloton bike for exercise, one cycling instructor’s teachings have come to serve as a road map for practicing law thoughtfully and mindfully, which has opened opportunities for growth and change in my career, says Andrea Kirshenbaum at Littler.

  • 5 Drug And Device Developments That Shaped 2024

    Author Photo

    The last year saw significant legal developments affecting drug and device manufacturers, with landmark decisions and regulatory changes that require vigilance and agility from the industry, say attorneys at Faegre Drinker.

  • How To Manage During A Trade Dispute With USMCA Partners

    Author Photo

    Companies can try to minimize the potential impacts of future tariffs on Mexican and Canadian goods, and uncertainty about future trade relations, by evaluating supply chains, considering how they may be modified, and engaging with the new administration over exemptions and the upcoming review of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

  • Exploring Venue Strategy For Trump-Era Regulatory Litigation

    Author Photo

    Litigation will likely play a prominent role in shaping policy outcomes during the second Trump administration, and stakeholders have several tools at their disposal to steer regulatory litigation toward more favorable venues, say attorneys at Covington.

  • Product Safety Issues In 2024 Highlight Need For Vigilance

    Author Photo

    A look at some of the medications and foods that led to significant class actions last year demonstrates the need for robust regulatory systems and proactive measures to protect consumers from defective and harmful products, says Jennifer Taylor at the Law Offices of James Scott Farrin.

  • Lessons Learned From 2024's Top ADA Decisions

    Author Photo

    Last year's major litigation related to the Americans with Disabilities Act highlights that when dealing with accommodation requests, employers must communicate clearly, appreciate context and remain flexible in addressing needs, say attorneys at Dechert.

  • Series

    Playing Esports Makes Me A Better Lawyer

    Author Photo

    Competing in a global esports tournament at Wimbledon last year not only fulfilled my childhood dream, but also sharpened skills that are essential to my day job, including strategic thinking, confidence and networking, says AJ Schuyler at Jackson Lewis.

  • The 6 Most Significant FCRA Litigation Developments Of 2024

    Author Photo

    From a key sovereign immunity decision at the U.S. Supreme Court to a ruling on creditworthiness out of the Seventh Circuit, several important Fair Credit Reporting Act cases wound their way through the courts in 2024, each offering takeaways for both plaintiffs and defendants, say attorneys at Shipkevich.

  • An Associate's Guide To Career Development In 2025

    Author Photo

    As the new year begins, associates at all levels should consider establishing career metrics, fostering key relationships and employing other specific strategies to help move through the complexities of the legal profession with confidence and emerge as trailblazers, say EJ Stern and Amanda George at Fractional Law Firm.

  • Series

    Fixing Up Cars Makes Me A Better Lawyer

    Author Photo

    From problem-solving to patience and adaptability to organization, the skills developed working under the hood of a car directly translate to being a more effective lawyer, says Christopher Mdeway at Kaufman Dolowich.

  • 2024's Most Notable FTC Actions Against Dark Patterns And AI

    Author Photo

    In 2024 the Federal Trade Commission ramped up enforcement actions related to dark patterns, loudly signaling its concern that advertisers will use AI to manipulate consumer habits and its intention to curb businesses' use and marketing of AI to prevent alleged consumer deception, say attorneys at Goodwin.

  • Making The Pitch To Grow Your Company's Legal Team

    Author Photo

    In a compressed economy, convincing the C-suite to invest in additional legal talent can be a herculean task, but a convincing pitch — supported by metrics and cost analyses — may help in-house counsel justify the growth of their team, say Elizabeth Smith and Roger Garceau at Major Lindsey.

  • When US Privilege Law Applies To Docs Made Outside The US

    Author Photo

    As globalization manifests itself in disputes over foreign-created documents, a California federal court’s recent trademark decision illustrates nuances of both U.S. privilege frameworks and foreign evidentiary protections that attorneys must increasingly bear in mind, say attorneys at Hunton.

  • Notable 2024 Trademark Cases And What To Watch In 2025

    Author Photo

    Emerging disputes between established tech giants and smaller trademark holders promise to test the boundaries of trademark protection in 2025, following a 2024 marked with disputes in areas ranging from cybersquatting to geographic marks, says Danner Kline at Bradley Arant.

  • Green Projects Face States' Foreign Land Ownership Limits

    Author Photo

    As states impose restrictions and disclosure requirements around foreign investment in agricultural land — in some cases piggybacking on existing federal rules — renewable energy developers and investors must pay close attention to how the rules vary, says Daniel Fanning at Husch Blackwell.

Want to publish in Law360?


Submit an idea

Have a news tip?


Contact us here
Can't find the article you're looking for? Click here to search the Food & Beverage archive.
Hello! I'm Law360's automated support bot.

How can I help you today?

For example, you can type:
  • I forgot my password
  • I took a free trial but didn't get a verification email
  • How do I sign up for a newsletter?
Ask a question!