Food & Beverage

  • April 18, 2024

    Coffee Bean Hit With ADA Suit Over Costly Milk Alternatives

    The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf customers hit the coffee chain with a proposed class action Wednesday in California federal court, alleging it discriminates against people with lactose intolerance by requiring consumers to pay a surcharge for dairy-free alternatives.

  • April 18, 2024

    Commerce Chided For Not Explaining Itself In Catfish Cases

    The U.S. Court of International Trade has kicked the final decision in a 2019 review of catfish duties back to the U.S. Department of Commerce, saying the agency flubbed basic administrative law by failing to "show its work" amid crisscrossing claims.

  • April 18, 2024

    3rd Circ. Unclear If 'Session Replay' Web Code Directed At Pa.

    A Third Circuit panel seemed torn Thursday over whether websites like those of Papa John's or Mattress Firm "directed conduct" at Pennsylvania when they ran "session replay" software to track users' visits and whether that gave courts in the Keystone State jurisdiction over users' claims that such tracking violated laws against wiretapping.

  • April 18, 2024

    Mich. Supreme Court To Hear Jet's Pizza Settlement Appeal

    A woman arguing that her settlement with a Jet's Pizza delivery driver should not have snuffed out her vicarious-liability claim against the driver's employer will get a hearing before Michigan's highest court.

  • April 18, 2024

    $550K Fingerprint BIPA Deal Receives Ill. Judge's Initial OK

    An Illinois federal judge gave his early blessing Wednesday to a nearly $550,000 settlement between global food supplier Rich Products Corp. and hundreds of current and former employees who claimed the company illegally collected and used their scanned fingerprint data.

  • April 18, 2024

    Sugar Co. Urges 11th Circ. To Revive Helms-Burton Suit

    North American Sugar Industries Inc. asked the Eleventh Circuit Thursday to revive its suit accusing several companies that shipped wind turbines to Cuba of violating the Helms-Burton Act, saying the trial court erred in tossing its claims for lack of jurisdiction.

  • April 18, 2024

    Trade Court Says Gov't Must Redo Mexican Tomato Probe

    The U.S. Court of International Trade ordered the U.S. Department of Commerce to redo a decades-old investigation into Mexican tomatoes, saying officials couldn't update the probe with new information when they were called to resume the long-delayed review.

  • April 18, 2024

    FDA Head Gets GOP Rep.'s Rebuke Over Pot Rescheduling

    The Republican chair of a U.S. House of Representatives Appropriations subcommittee on Thursday chided the commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the agency's recommendation last year to loosen restrictions on marijuana.

  • April 18, 2024

    Saladworks Operator Misclassified Asst. Managers, Suit Says

    A Pennsylvania-based franchisee of fast-casual salad eatery Saladworks misclassified its assistant managers as overtime-exempt even though they should have earned time-and-a-half wages for overtime hours, a former manager alleged in a proposed collective action filed in federal court Thursday.

  • April 18, 2024

    Kellogg Beats ERISA Suit Over Use Of Outdated Data

    A Michigan federal judge tossed litigation accusing Kellogg of shortchanging married retirees by relying on outdated life expectancies and interest rates when calculating their pension payments, agreeing with the company that the Employee Retirement Income Security Act doesn't require the data used to be reasonable.

  • April 17, 2024

    Tribal Groups Say Final Fish Harvesting Rule Violates NEPA

    Two Alaskan tribal organizations are asking a federal court to vacate a final groundfish harvest rule for the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands, arguing that it fails to account for the rapid and unprecedented shifts in their ecosystems caused by climate change over the past two decades.

  • April 17, 2024

    Senate Scorn Suggests Election Strife For Biden On Trade

    Two White House announcements on Wednesday aimed at girding the U.S. industrial sector against Chinese competition did little to quell senators' frustrations over President Joe Biden's resolve to tackle unfair trade practices, adding pressure to Biden's reelection bid.

  • April 17, 2024

    Kraft Sued Over Lead Contamination In Lunchables

    Kraft has been slapped with a proposed class action over its popular Lunchables snack kits after independent testing of the kits allegedly found that they contained high, though legally allowable, levels of lead and other harmful substances.

  • April 17, 2024

    Wash. Winemaker Wants Insurers To Cover $30M Spoiled Wine

    A Washington state winemaker has launched a lawsuit against certain Lloyd's of London underwriters in state court, seeking coverage under a pair of insurance policies for more than $30 million worth of cabernet sauvignon that became too acidic to sell while being stored by another wine producer prior to bottling.

  • April 17, 2024

    DC Judge Questions 7-Eleven Position On FTC Constraints

    A D.C. federal judge on Wednesday pressed counsel for 7-Eleven on the company's claims that only the U.S. attorney general can seek civil penalties on behalf of the Federal Trade Commission, questioning how the commission itself can be limited when the FTC Act gives it the right to take up actions if the U.S. Department of Justice does not.

  • April 17, 2024

    Cinemark Shorted Thirsty Moviegoers By 2 Ounces, Suit Says

    Movie theater chain Cinemark USA Inc. is ripping off customers by lying about its purported 24-ounce drink sizes when in reality, the plastic containers can only hold 22 ounces of liquid, according to a proposed class action filed in Texas federal court.

  • April 17, 2024

    Ga. High Court Urged To Broaden Atty Malpractice Time Limit

    Counsel for an Atlanta restaurateur urged the Supreme Court of Georgia on Wednesday to revive a malpractice claim against his former lawyer by allowing for a more expansive statute of limitations when breach of contract claims enter the mix.

  • April 17, 2024

    Compass Group Gets New Damages Trial In $8M Death Suit

    A California state appeals court has rejected cross-appeals from food service giant Compass Group USA Inc. and a mother suing it for negligence in a wrongful death suit that ended in an $8 million verdict, sending the case back for a new trial on damages.

  • April 17, 2024

    Welch's Rehire Challenge Should Fail, Judge Recommends

    Welch Foods should comply with an arbitrator's order to rehire a Teamsters-represented worker fired for making vulgar comments to a female co-worker, a Pennsylvania federal magistrate judge said, recommending that the district judge toss the company's challenge to the order.

  • April 16, 2024

    Corp. Transparency Act A Valid Use Of Powers, 11th Circ. Told

    The U.S. Department of Treasury told the Eleventh Circuit that a federal district court erred in finding the Corporate Transparency Act unconstitutional, saying the lower court misunderstood the law's scope and relation to efforts to curb financial crime.

  • April 16, 2024

    Vineyard Wind Urges 1st Circ. To Uphold Project Approval

    Developers of an offshore wind energy project near Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts, on Tuesday urged the First Circuit not to revive a fishing group's legal challenge to the endeavor, arguing the environmental review process was solid.

  • April 16, 2024

    US Tequila Startup Defeats Older Mexican Rival's TM Case

    A Texas federal judge has decided that the tequila marketplace is big enough for both a U.S. startup called "Casa Azul" and an older Mexican brand called "Clase Azul," whose lawyers unsuccessfully tried to persuade the judge of its fame by playing a music video by reggaeton rapper Ozuna. 

  • April 16, 2024

    Amway Parent Must Face Trial In Retirees' 401(k) Suit

    A Michigan federal judge refused Tuesday to totally free Amway's parent company from a class action accusing it of stacking its 401(k) with unwise investments and excessive fees, saying a jury should determine whether the company's investment review process was prudent.

  • April 16, 2024

    6th Circ. Won't Rehear White Ex-Kroger Manager's Bias Case

    A former manager for Kroger will not get to argue his claims he was fired because he is a white man before the full Sixth Circuit, according to a new order, letting stand the appellate court's decision to dismiss the former manager's claims.

  • April 16, 2024

    Plaintiff Wants Big Sugar Antitrust Suits Consolidated In Fla.

    A plaintiff in one of more than a dozen antitrust suits accusing sugar companies of engaging in a price-fixing scheme argued that the litigation should be consolidated in Florida, which is responsible for more than half of all American sugarcane production and is home to more of the sugar company defendants than any other jurisdiction.

Expert Analysis

  • What Cos. Should Know About FTC's Proposed Junk Fee Rule

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    The Federal Trade Commission recently announced a notice of proposed rulemaking targeting junk fees and how businesses may advertise prices to consumers — and since it would give the agency powers to seek monetary penalties against businesses that do not comply, companies should look to get ahead now, say Phyllis Marcus and Nicole Johnson at Hunton Andrews.

  • AI Can Help Lawyers Overcome The Programming Barrier

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    Legal professionals without programming expertise can use generative artificial intelligence to harness the power of automation and other technology solutions to streamline their work, without the steep learning curve traditionally associated with coding, says George Zalepa at Greenberg Traurig.

  • Preparing Law Students For A New, AI-Assisted Legal World

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    As artificial intelligence rapidly transforms the legal landscape, law schools must integrate technology and curricula that address AI’s innate challenges — from ethics to data security — to help students stay ahead of the curve, say Daniel Garrie at Law & Forensics, Ryan Abbott at JAMS and Karen Silverman at Cantellus Group.

  • Series

    ESG Around The World: South Korea

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    Numerous ESG trends have materialized in South Korea in the past three years, with impacts ranging from greenwashing prevention and carbon neutrality measures to workplace harassment and board diversity initiatives, say Chang Wook Min and Hyun Chan Jung at Jipyong.

  • Employer Takeaways From 2nd Circ. Equal Pay Ruling

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    The Second Circuit 's recent decision in Eisenhauer v. Culinary Institute of America reversed a long-held understanding of the Equal Pay Act, ultimately making it easier for employers to defend against equal pay claims brought under federal law, but it is not a clear escape hatch for employers, say Thelma Akpan and Katelyn McCombs at Littler.

  • General Counsel Need Data Literacy To Keep Up With AI

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    With the rise of accessible and powerful generative artificial intelligence solutions, it is imperative for general counsel to understand the use and application of data for myriad important activities, from evaluating the e-discovery process to monitoring compliance analytics and more, says Colin Levy at Malbek.

  • Rite Aid's Reasons For Ch. 11 Go Beyond Opioid Suits

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    Despite opioid-related lawsuits being the perceived reason that pushed Rite Aid into bankruptcy, the company's recent Chapter 11 filing reveals its tenuous position in the pharmaceutical retail market, and only time will tell whether bankruptcy will right-size the company, says Daniel Gielchinsky at DGIM Law.

  • Navigating Discovery Of Generative AI Information

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    As generative artificial intelligence tools become increasingly ubiquitous, companies must make sure to preserve generative AI data when there is reasonable expectation of litigation, and to include transcripts in litigation hold notices, as they may be relevant to discovery requests, say Nick Peterson and Corey Hauser at Wiley.

  • Finding Focus: Strategies For Attorneys With ADHD

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    Given the prevalence of ADHD among attorneys, it is imperative that the legal community gain a better understanding of how ADHD affects well-being, and that resources and strategies exist for attorneys with this disability to manage their symptoms and achieve success, say Casey Dixon at Dixon Life Coaching and Krista Larson at Stinson.

  • How Fla. Bankruptcy Ruling May Affect Equity Owners

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    A Florida bankruptcy court’s recent ruling in Vital Pharmaceuticals — which rejected the Third Circuit’s Majestic Star decision that determined a bankrupt corporation’s flow-through status was not protected by the automatic stay — may significantly affect how equity owners can mitigate the impact of flow-through structures in bankruptcy, say Eric Behl-Remijan and Natasha Hwangpo at Ropes & Gray.

  • M&A Ruling Buoys Loss Calculation Method, R&W Insurance

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    The recent Southern District of New York decision in Taylor Precision Products v. Larimer affirms the use of EBITDA as a basis to quantify loss, highlighting the potential shortcomings of a traditional seller indemnity compared to representation and warranty insurance, say Mark Schwartz at Lockton, and William O’Neil and Gretchen Scavo at Winston & Strawn.

  • How Consumer Complaints Can Help Companies

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    As seen most recently in Zoom's terms of service controversy, consumer complaints — despite initially seeming troubling for companies — can offer businesses the opportunity to identify, tackle and resolve budding challenges before those challenges escalate into larger issues, say Meghan Stoppel and Hannah Cornett at Cozen O'Connor.

  • Opinion

    Life Sciences Regulators Must Write Cloud-Specific Guidance

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    As cloud services continue to revolutionize the life sciences industry's ability to conduct regulated activities, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and other regulators should update their data management policies to clearly support and encourage use of cloud technology, say Nate Brown and Marlee Gallant at Akin.

  • Attorneys, Law Schools Must Adapt To New Era Of Evidence

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    Technological advancements mean more direct evidence is being created than ever before, and attorneys as well as law schools must modify their methods to account for new challenges in how this evidence is collected and used to try cases, says Reuben Guttman at Guttman Buschner.

  • Analyzing The Legal Ripples Of The EPA's PFAS Regulation

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    As the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency makes major moves on its pledge to regulate per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, the developing body of PFAS regulation will lead to an increase in litigation, and personal injury and product liability claims, say attorneys at Gordon & Rees.

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