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Food & Beverage
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December 19, 2024
2nd Circ. Affirms PepsiCo Win In TM Fight Over Energy Drink
The Second Circuit on Thursday affirmed a lower court's dismissal of a trademark suit against PepsiCo, saying in a summary order that the beverage company's "Mtn Dew Rise Energy" did not infringe the mark of nitro-brewed canned coffee drinks called "Rise."
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December 19, 2024
Michigan's Biggest Decisions Of 2024
This year, the Michigan Supreme Court instituted sweeping changes to the state's wage and paid leave laws, took some damages off the table for wrongful death plaintiffs, and recognized third-party retaliation claims.
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December 19, 2024
Chicken Soup Settles $3.1M Pet Food Feud Wth Alphia
Chicken Soup for the Pet Lover's Soul Inc. has settled a Connecticut lawsuit that accused it of breaching a deal with a manufacturer to buy more than 1.3 million pounds of pet food every month between October 2023 and September 2024, state court records show.
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December 19, 2024
In-House Vet Helps Norton Rose Grow In Denver
An experienced in-house attorney who most recently served as general counsel of real estate developer MDC Holdings has joined Norton Rose Fulbright's Denver office as senior counsel in its corporate, mergers and acquisitions, and securities practice.
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December 18, 2024
Pilgrim's Pride Gets Chicken Exit OK Under Contested Deal
Pilgrim's Pride is able to formally duck Sysco chicken price-fixing claims picked up by a Burford Capital LLC unit after an Illinois federal judge once again ruled that the companies are bound by a settlement between Pilgrim's Pride and Sysco that the litigation funding giant contested as too small.
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December 18, 2024
Solar Co. Wants Colo. Hemp Growers' $200M Suit Tossed
Energy company AES Corp. wants out of a $200 million lawsuit brought by Colorado hemp growers over broken irrigation lines, saying the farmers are "feign[ing] ignorance" in hopes of keeping the suit in Colorado federal court.
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December 18, 2024
KFC Ends Suit Against Church's Over 'Original Recipe' TM
KFC has agreed to end its lawsuit launched just last month that had sought to stop Church's Texas Chicken from using the term "original recipe" to promote its fried chicken.
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December 18, 2024
Judge Wants To Know If Colo. Kroger Merger Fight Is Moot
A Colorado state judge wants to know whether two recent decisions blocking the proposed $24.6 billion merger of The Kroger Co. and Albertsons Cos. Inc. has mooted Attorney General Phillip J. Weiser's challenge to the transaction, according to a briefing plan approved Tuesday.
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December 18, 2024
Medical Center Escapes COVID Outbreak Blame-Trading Suit
A Michigan state appeals panel nixed a wedding venue's defamation suit alleging it was falsely blamed after several guests at a reception contracted COVID-19, handing a win to a healthcare provider the venue pointed to as the source of the outbreak.
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December 17, 2024
Union Says DOL's H2-A Contracts Defy Court Order
A farmworkers union told a Washington federal judge Monday that the U.S. Department of Labor is violating a court injunction by greenlighting H-2A contracts that do not include 2020 prevailing wage rates for the upcoming cherry and apple harvests.
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December 17, 2024
Corteva Rips Inari's 'Shrill' Claim Of Sham Seed Patent Suit
Corteva Agriscience LLC has fired back at Inari Agriculture Inc.'s claim that a suit alleging Inari infringes Corteva's seed patents amounts to "objectively baseless" sham litigation, saying its rival is making "shrill assertions" that "cannot be squared" with an earlier ruling in the case.
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December 17, 2024
Little Caesar's Arbitration Clause Should Be Axed, Judge Told
An ex-Little Caesars worker seeking to represent the pizza chain's California employees in a putative wage-and-hour class action urged a Golden State federal judge Tuesday to invalidate the restaurant's new arbitration agreement banning workers from participating in the litigation, saying the company didn't make it clear the clause was voluntary.
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December 17, 2024
TM Group Weighs In On Preclusion In 2nd Circ. Winery Fight
A trademark group has said a Trademark Trial and Appeal Board decision upheld by a New York federal court in an Italian winemaker's fight against a Napa Valley, California, rival over similarly named wines is at odds with a separate board decision in a dispute that made its way to the U.S. Supreme Court.
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December 17, 2024
Alcohol Co. Sued Over Biz Hangover After COVID Lockdowns
Alcoholic beverage manufacturer MGP Ingredients Inc. has been hit with a proposed investor class action alleging the company misled the public about the continued success of its business following its exponential growth during the COVID-19 pandemic and related lockdowns.
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December 17, 2024
Franchise Group Can Keep Exclusive Control Of Its Ch. 11
A Delaware bankruptcy judge on Tuesday denied a motion to end the plan exclusivity window and other bankruptcy rights for debtors in Franchise Group Inc.'s Chapter 11, saying possible intercompany claims don't justify relief that the debtor argued would plunge the case into chaos.
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December 17, 2024
4th Circ. Undoes Classes Of Bojangles Managers In Wage Suit
A Fourth Circuit panel untangled two classes of over 5,000 shift managers accusing fried chicken restaurant chain Bojangles of owing workers pay for off-the-clock work, ruling Tuesday that a lower court's overly broad approach was fatal to keeping the certification in place.
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December 17, 2024
Starbucks Baristas Authorize Strike Amid First Contract Talks
Unionized Starbucks baristas have voted to authorize a strike at the coffee giant, Workers United announced Tuesday, as the parties went back to the negotiating table with outstanding issues for first contracts related to wages, benefits and settling unfair labor practice claims.
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December 17, 2024
Grubhub To Pay $25M To End FTC Suit Over Deceptive Tactics
The Federal Trade Commission and the Illinois attorney general teamed up Tuesday to announce a settlement that requires Grubhub Inc. to pay $25 million to resolve claims that the food-delivery service charged customers hidden junk fees, listed restaurants on its app without their permission and misled drivers about how much money they could make.
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December 17, 2024
Biden Admin Finalizes Revamp Of Seasonal Visa Programs
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security on Tuesday finalized changes to the program for foreign seasonal workers that will bolster worker protections, penalize employers who impose prohibited fees and make it easier for workers to change employers.
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December 16, 2024
Menendez Prosecutors Say 'Chat Chains' Were Admitted In Error
Federal prosecutors in the government's case against former Sen. Bob Menendez on Monday notified the New York federal court of another evidentiary blunder, this time saying they mistakenly admitted "long chat chains" that included "small portions of material" that should've been excluded.
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December 16, 2024
Merger Enforcers End Year On Upswing
The Biden administration's antitrust enforcers have boasted that one side effect of their aggressive approach to merger enforcement has been helping stop problematic deals from being cut in the first place, but the agencies also scored key court rulings blocking transactions in their final year that could have a more enduring effect.
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December 16, 2024
11th Circ. Says Citrus Grower's Coverage Row Was Ripe
A citrus grower's bid for damages from its insurer in connection with environmental remediation costs was ripe, the Eleventh Circuit said, reviving the case after finding that a Florida district court wrongly dismissed it by conflating the issue of ripeness with the merits of the grower's claims.
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December 16, 2024
Vegetable Co. Seeks $5M Policy Limit For Facility Fire
A Pacific Northwest vegetable processor said its insurer owed the full $5 million limit of its policy after a fire broke out at a Washington state facility and caused over $73 million in property damage and business income losses combined, according to a complaint removed to federal court.
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December 16, 2024
Disney To Pay $233M To End Calif. Wage Theft Case
Walt Disney Co. has agreed to shell out $233 million to end a five-year-long California state court case covering more than 51,000 workers accusing the company of failing to follow Anaheim's $15 minimum wage ordinance.
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December 16, 2024
Conn. Utility Says PFAS Class Claims Belong With Regulators
Most of the claims in a proposed class action against a Connecticut water company that allegedly failed to protect customers against "forever chemicals" cannot proceed because they needed to be heard first by state regulators, the utility argued in seeking to trim the complaint.
Expert Analysis
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What The NYSE Proposed Delisting Rule Could Mean For Cos.
The New York Stock Exchange's recently proposed rule would provide the exchange with discretionary authority to commence delisting proceedings for a company substantially shifting its primary business focus, raising concerns for NYSE-listed companies over the exact definition of the exchange's proposed "substantially different" standard, say attorneys at Winston & Strawn.
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Trademark In Artistic Works 1 Year After Jack Daniel's
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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Series
Fishing Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Atop the list of ways fishing makes me a better lawyer is the relief it offers from the chronic stress of a demanding caseload, but it has also improved my listening skills and patience, and has served as an exceptional setting for building earnest relationships, says Steven DeGeorge at Robinson Bradshaw.
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A Healthier Legal Industry Starts With Emotional Intelligence
The legal profession has long been plagued by high rates of mental health issues, in part due to attorneys’ early training and broader societal stereotypes — but developing one’s emotional intelligence is one way to foster positive change, collectively and individually, says attorney Esperanza Franco.
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Calif. Web Tracking Cases Show Courts' Indecision Over CIPA
Several hundred cases filed to date, and two recent conflicting rulings, underscore California courts' uncertainty over whether the use of web analytics tools to track users' website interactions can give rise to a violation of the California Invasion of Privacy Act, says Patricia Brum at Snell & Wilmer.
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To Make Your Legal Writing Clear, Emulate A Master Chef
To deliver clear and effective written advocacy, lawyers should follow the model of a fine dining chef — seasoning a foundation of pure facts with punchy descriptors, spicing it up with analogies, refining the recipe and trimming the fat — thus catering to a sophisticated audience of decision-makers, says Reuben Guttman at Guttman Buschner.
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Circuit Judge Writes An Opinion, AI Helps: What Now?
Last week's Eleventh Circuit opinion in Snell v. United Specialty Insurance, notable for a concurrence outlining the use of artificial intelligence to evaluate a term's common meaning, is hopefully the first step toward developing a coherent basis for the judiciary's generative AI use, says David Zaslowsky at Baker McKenzie.
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'Food As Health' Serves Up Fresh Legal Considerations
The growth of food as medicine presents a significant opportunity for healthcare organizations and nontraditional healthcare players to improve patient outcomes and reduce costs, though these innovative programs also bring compliance considerations that must be carefully navigated, say attorneys at McDermott.
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After Years Of Popularity, PAGA's Fate Is Up In The Air
The last two years held important victories for plaintiff-side employment attorneys in California Private Attorneys General Act litigation at the trial and appellate court levels, but this hotbed of activity will quickly lose steam if voters approve a ballot measure in November to enact the California Fair Pay and Employer Accountability Act, says Paul Sherman at Kabat Chapman.
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Perspectives
Trauma-Informed Legal Approaches For Pro Bono Attorneys
As National Trauma Awareness Month ends, pro bono attorneys should nevertheless continue to acknowledge the mental and physical effects of trauma, allowing them to better represent clients, and protect themselves from compassion fatigue and burnout, say Katherine Cronin at Stinson and Katharine Manning at Blackbird.
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Series
Playing Music Makes Me A Better Lawyer
My deep and passionate involvement in playing, writing and producing music equipped me with skills — like creativity, improvisation and problem-solving — that contribute to the success of my legal career, says attorney Kenneth Greene.
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Proposed Cannabis Reschedule Sidesteps State Law Effects
The U.S. Department of Justice's recent proposal to move cannabis to Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act provides certain benefits, but its failure to address how the rescheduling would interact with existing state cannabis laws disappointed industry participants hoping for clarity on this crucial question, says Ian Stewart at Wilson Elser.
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How Attys Can Avoid Pitfalls When Withdrawing From A Case
The Trump campaign's recent scuffle over its bid to replace its counsel in a pregnancy retaliation suit offers a chance to remind attorneys that many troubles inherent in withdrawing from a case can be mitigated or entirely avoided by communicating with clients openly and frequently, says Christopher Konneker at Orsinger Nelson.
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How Real Estate Cos. Can Protect Their IP In The Metaverse
The rise of virtual and augmented reality creates new intellectual property challenges and opportunities for real estate owners, but certain steps, including conducting a diligence investigation to develop an understanding of current obligations, can help companies mitigate IP issues in the metaverse, says George Pavlik at Levenfeld Pearlstein.
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Using A Children's Book Approach In Firm Marketing Content
From “The Giving Tree” to “Where the Wild Things Are,” most children’s books are easy to remember because they use simple words and numbers to tell stories with a human impact — a formula law firms should emulate in their marketing content to stay front of mind for potential clients, says Seema Desai Maglio at The Found Word.