Retail & E-Commerce

  • June 18, 2024

    Doubt Cast On Free Whole Foods Delivery 'Bait And Switch'

    A Washington federal judge appeared skeptical at a hearing Tuesday of claims that Amazon misled Prime members by advertising free Whole Foods grocery deliveries and then later pulling the perk in a "bait and switch," noting the retail giant has reserved the right to change Prime members' benefits.

  • June 18, 2024

    IPhone Buyers Want Canadian Data In Amazon Antitrust Case

    Apple Inc. and Amazon.com Inc. must be forced to turn over Canadian sales data as part of a lawsuit accusing the pair of hatching an anticompetitive agreement to choke third-party sales, a group of iPad and iPhone buyers told a Washington federal court.

  • June 18, 2024

    Amazon Hit With $5.9M Fine For Violating Calif. Quota Law

    California's labor commissioner has fined Amazon $5.9 million for violating the Golden State's Warehouse Quotas Law, which requires employers to give workers written notice of any quotas they must follow, according to a Tuesday announcement.

  • June 18, 2024

    Proposed Hemp Change In Line With Regs, Report Says

    A controversial proposed change to the statutory definition of hemp in the next Farm Bill would be broadly aligned with existing federal regulatory practices, according to a new report from Capitol Hill's policy research arm.

  • June 18, 2024

    4 Firms Steer Family-Owned Baker Europastry's IPO Plans

    Family-owned frozen bakery products giant Europastry S.A. said Tuesday that it plans to raise €225 million ($241.7 million) in fresh capital through an initial public offering on Spanish stock exchanges guided by four law firms, adding to a recent uptick in European IPOs.

  • June 18, 2024

    Blackstone Plans Takeover Of Japan's Infocom In $1.7B Deal

    Blackstone said Tuesday it is planning to take Japanese digital comic distributor Infocom private in a deal that marks its largest private equity deal ever in Japan, worth 275 billion yen ($1.7 billion). 

  • June 18, 2024

    Microsoft Says Starbucks Ruling Hurts FTC's Activision Case

    Microsoft told the Ninth Circuit on Monday that the U.S. Supreme Court's recent ruling requiring labor regulators to meet a four-factor test in order to win a preliminary injunction undercuts the Federal Trade Commission's bid to halt the company's $68.7 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard Inc.

  • June 18, 2024

    Circumvention Finding Twisted Trade Statute, Pipe Co. Says

    The U.S. Department of Commerce contorted its statutory authority to foist circumvention duties on a Vietnam-based pipe producer that has already cleared dumping and unfair subsidy allegations, the company said in a motion calling to roll back the levies.

  • June 18, 2024

    AIG Unit Says Exclusions Bar Pet Supply Co.'s BIPA Claims

    An AIG unit has told a Michigan federal court a pet supply store isn't owed defense for an underlying class action brought by employees alleging the store violated the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act, maintaining that a "recording and distribution" exclusion and "employment-related practices exclusion" were triggered.

  • June 18, 2024

    FTC Bristles At Axon's Citing Of Dropped Merger Case

    The Federal Trade Commission wanted to ensure a New Jersey federal judge knew the abandonment of a case contesting Axon's purchase of a fellow police body camera company had nothing to do with the merits of the challenge, in a Monday amicus brief partially backing a proposed class action.

  • June 18, 2024

    Rival Pool Supply Co. Looks To Duck Blueworks Ch. 11 Stay

    Pool supply company Hayward Industries Inc. has asked a bankruptcy court for a reprieve from the automatic stay protecting its bankrupt rival Blueworks Corp. as it seeks to secure final orders upholding a $16 million false advertising and unfair business practices judgment.

  • June 18, 2024

    Steel Co. Says Cambodian Hangers Are Skirting Hefty Duties

    A domestic hanger manufacturer accused its foreign rivals of skirting steep antidumping and countervailing steel tariffs by shipping hangers made with Chinese and Vietnamese steel from Cambodia.

  • June 18, 2024

    Amazon Union Workers Vote To Affiliate With Teamsters

    Workers at the only unionized Amazon warehouse in the U.S. have voted to fold their independent outfit into the Teamsters, the transportation and logistics union announced Tuesday.

  • June 18, 2024

    High Bidder Insists Auctioneers Turn Over Potential Van Gogh

    The highest bidder in an auction for a painting that might be a previously unknown work by Dutch master Vincent van Gogh is entitled to summary judgment for breach of contract against auction houses that have refused to turn it over to her, she said in a new filing in her state court lawsuit.

  • June 18, 2024

    Mich. AG To Pursue Deadlocked Charges In Carhartt Atty Case

    Prosecutors will continue pursuing embezzlement charges against a Michigan attorney accused of stealing from his client, a former leader of the Carhartt workwear company, after a Wayne County jury couldn't reach a decision on those claims but acquitted the attorney on other charges.

  • June 17, 2024

    'What Am I Supposed To Do?': Epic-Apple Doc Row Irks Judge

    A California federal judge presiding over Epic Games' high-stakes antitrust compliance fight against Apple expressed frustration Monday with the parties' disagreement over the scope of Apple's document production, asking counsel repeatedly "What am I supposed to do?" and "Do I need to get somebody on the stand to explain this?"

  • June 17, 2024

    Discover Unit Settles Visa Card Transfers Antitrust Suit

    Pulse Network LLC gave notice Friday that it has settled its antitrust suit accusing Visa of locking banks and merchants into its debit network, resolving decade-old litigation two years after the Fifth Circuit revived the suit and ordered its reassignment away from a judge harboring "ingrained skepticism."

  • June 17, 2024

    Ad Tech Judge Says No 'Moving Target' Damages, No Jury

    A Virginia federal judge refused to consider the government's "late-arriving" math on how much federal agencies were overcharged by Google's digital advertising placement technology, according to an order unsealed Friday, a decision that allowed Google to successfully short-circuit the U.S. Department of Justice's damages claim and avoid a jury trial sought by the agency.

  • June 17, 2024

    Male Enhancement Pills Infringe RAW Trademark, Co. Says

    HBI International, the American distributor of the RAW line of smoking products, has filed a lawsuit in Georgia federal court alleging Mash Enterprise LLC used "identical copies" of its trademarks, trade dress and copyrighted packaging to sell male enhancement pills and beverages.

  • June 17, 2024

    Cocoa Trade Case May Hinge On Justices' Mifepristone Ruling

    The U.S. Supreme Court's recent narrow ruling on standing in a case over access to the abortion medication mifepristone may figure prominently in upcoming oral arguments in a dispute involving imported cocoa allegedly harvested via forced child labor before the U.S. Court of International Trade, a judge said Monday.

  • June 17, 2024

    Google Says Texas Took Opposing Positions On Key Law

    Google told a Texas federal court the state attorney general's office made arguments in the case accusing the tech giant of monopolizing display advertising technology that directly contradict arguments the state is making in a case challenging the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act.

  • June 17, 2024

    Bookstores Appeal Denied Bid To Join FTC's Amazon Case

    A trade association for bookstores is appealing to the Ninth Circuit after a lower court refused its request to intervene in the Federal Trade Commission's antitrust suit against Amazon that raises concerns about the e-commerce giant's sale of books and contracts with publishers.

  • June 17, 2024

    Foreign Investors Sue Over Lost $7.7M NYC Mall Investment

    Fourteen foreign investors who lost the entirety of their $7.7 million investment in a New York City shopping mall project filed suit against two lenders, a developer and the manager of an EB-5 lender in New York federal court, saying they are owed damages.

  • June 17, 2024

    Huawei Slams Netgear's 'Tenuous' RICO Case

    Huawei has responded to a racketeering and antitrust case from a major U.S. maker of Wi-Fi routers by calling it "rife with tenuous legal and factual claims" and comparing its reworking of patent infringement allegations to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission's failed antitrust case against Qualcomm.

  • June 17, 2024

    Repeat Violations Land Ore. Forwarder Export Denial Order

    An Oregon-based package forwarder has lost export privileges just days before clearing a three-year probationary period for alleged unlicensed rifle scope exports, after an audit revealed 176 new violations, the U.S. Department of Commerce announced Monday.

Expert Analysis

  • Firms Must Rethink How They Train New Lawyers In AI Age

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    As law firms begin to use generative artificial intelligence to complete lower-level legal tasks, they’ll need to consider new ways to train summer associates and early-career attorneys, keeping in mind the five stages of skill acquisition, says Liisa Thomas at Sheppard Mullin.

  • What 4 Cyber Protection Actions Mean For Marine Transport

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    Several recent steps by the Biden administration are necessary to address the cyber threats that increasingly disrupt the maritime sector, but also impose new legal risks, liabilities and operating costs on the owners and operators of U.S.-flagged vessels and facilities, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

  • Inside Antitrust Agencies' Rollup And Serial Acquisition Moves

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    The recent request for public comments on serial acquisitions and rollup strategies from the Federal Trade Commission and U.S. Justice Department mark the antitrust agencies' continued focus on actions that fall below premerger reporting thresholds, say attorneys at Paul Weiss.

  • Think Like A Lawyer: Always Be Closing

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    When a lawyer presents their case with the right propulsive structure throughout trial, there is little need for further argument after the close of evidence — and in fact, rehashing it all may test jurors’ patience — so attorneys should consider other strategies for closing arguments, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.

  • Rare Robinson-Patman Ruling Exhibits Key Antitrust Risk

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    A rare federal court decision under the Robinson-Patman Act, which prohibits certain kinds of price discrimination, highlights the antitrust risks faced by certain suppliers and is likely to be cited by future plaintiffs and enforcement officials calling for renewed scrutiny of pricing and discounting practices, say attorneys at Baker McKenzie.

  • Counterfeits At The Olympics Pose IP Challenges

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    With the 2024 Olympic Games quickly approaching, the proliferation of counterfeit Olympic merchandise poses a difficult challenge to the protection of intellectual property rights and the preservation of the Olympic brand's integrity, says Kimiya Shams at Devialet.

  • Series

    Playing Chess Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    There are many ways that chess skills translate directly into lawyer skills, but for me, the bigger career lessons go beyond the direct parallels — playing chess has shown me the value of seeing gradual improvement in and focusing deep concentration on a nonwork endeavor, says attorney Steven Fink.

  • Crafting An Effective Workplace AI Policy After DOL Guidance

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    Employers should take proactive steps to minimize their liability risk after the U.S. Department of Labor released artificial intelligence guidance principles on May 16, reflecting the reality that companies must begin putting into place policies that will dictate their expectations for how employees will use AI, say David Disler and Courtnie Bolden at ​​​​​​​Porzio Bromberg.

  • Litigation Inspiration: Attys Can Be Heroic Like Olympians

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    Although litigation won’t earn anyone an Olympic medal in Paris this summer, it can be worthy of the same lasting honor if attorneys exercise focused restraint — seeking both their clients’ interests and those of the court — instead of merely pursuing every advantage short of sanctionable conduct, says Bennett Rawicki at Hilgers Graben.

  • Lean Into The 'Great Restoration' To Retain Legal Talent

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    As the “great resignation,” in which employees voluntarily left their jobs in droves, has largely dissipated, legal employers should now work toward the idea of a “great restoration,” adopting strategies to effectively hire, onboard and retain top legal talent, says Molly McGrath at Hiring & Empowering Solutions.

  • Momofuku Chili War May Chill Common Phrase TM Apps

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    Momofuku’s recent trademark battle over the “Chili Crunch” mark shows that over-enforcement when protecting exclusivity rights may backfire not just in the public eye, but with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office as well, says Anthony Panebianco at Davis Malm.

  • Unlocking Blockchain Opportunities Amid Legal Uncertainty

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    Dozens of laws and legal precedents will come into the fore as Web3, metaverse and non-fungible tokens gain momentum, so organizations need to design their programs with a broader view of potential exposures — and opportunities, say Teresa Goody Guillén and Robert Musiala at BakerHostetler and Steve McNew at FTI Consulting.

  • 4 Ways Businesses Can Address Threat Of Mass Arbitration

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    Attorneys at DLA Piper examine the rise of mass arbitration in light of JAMS' new procedures and guidelines, and provide four steps e-commerce businesses can take when revising their dispute resolution provisions to maximize the chances those revisions will be held enforceable.

  • How Cannabis Rescheduling May Alter Paraphernalia Imports

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    The Biden administration's recent proposal to loosen federal restrictions on marijuana use raises questions about how U.S. Customs and Border Protection enforcement policies may shift when it comes to enforcing a separate federal ban on marijuana accessory imports, says R. Kevin Williams at Clark Hill.

  • Trademark In Artistic Works 1 Year After Jack Daniel's

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    In the year since the U.S. Supreme Court's Jack Daniel's v. VIP Products ruling, courts have applied Jack Daniel's inconsistently to deny First Amendment protection to artistic works, providing guidance for dismissing trademark claims relating to film and TV titles, say Hardy Ehlers and Neema Sahni at Covington.

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