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Food & Beverage
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August 14, 2024
Kroger Hit With Prop 65 Suit Over Metals In Snacks, Cinnamon
Kroger and Ralphs sell roasted seaweed snacks and ground cinnamon containing cadmium and lead, which are known to cause cancer and reproductive toxicity, without warning consumers in violation of Proposition 65, according to a complaint filed in California state court by a consumer protection group.
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August 14, 2024
Suit Claims Giant Uses Banned, Toxic Oil In Orange Soda
A proposed class of soda drinkers is suing The Giant Co. LLC in Pennsylvania federal court, alleging that it makes and sells orange soda made with a kind of vegetable oil that federal regulators banned for its negative effects on the thyroid gland.
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August 14, 2024
Skadden, Davis Polk Guide $2.1B US Food Service Deal
Skadden-led Performance Food Group Co. said Wednesday it has agreed to purchase private equity-backed food service distributor Cheney Bros. Inc., represented by Davis Polk, for $2.1 billion in cash.
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August 14, 2024
Candy Giant Mars Paying $36B For Pringles-Maker Kellanova
Snack food and candy giant Mars Inc. said Wednesday it has agreed to purchase Kellanova, the maker of Cheez-It and Pringles snacks, for $35.9 billion, including assumed debt, in a deal that "enables Mars to further shape the future of snacking" and is the largest merger announced all year.
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August 13, 2024
Fund Manager Seeks Del. Legal Fee Rulings In Ponzi Fight
Attorneys for a former hedge fund manager now entangled in wide-ranging Ponzi scheme allegations urged a Delaware vice chancellor on Tuesday toward quick action on his legal fee indemnification claims, citing "great risk" from mounting personal liability exposure.
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August 13, 2024
Full 7th Circ. Asked To Review Tossing Of Protein Pouch Fight
A Florida-based protein powder maker is asking the Seventh Circuit to reconsider its upholding of a Wisconsin federal court's decision to toss its claims over allegedly defective plastic zipper pouches on the grounds that they were filed too late.
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August 13, 2024
Campbell Soup Co. Defends V8 Splash Labeling As Accurate
Campbell Soup Co. has urged a New Jersey federal judge to toss a putative class action alleging it duped consumers into thinking its V8 Splash beverages are naturally flavored and healthy, saying the drinks' labels never claimed the drinks were free of artificial flavors.
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August 13, 2024
Aramark Applicant Drops Wash. Pay Transparency Suit
A job applicant on Monday dropped her proposed class action accusing Aramark of failing to include full pay ranges in job postings in violation of Washington state's wage transparency law.
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August 13, 2024
Parts Maker Can't Escape Goya Death Suit
A machine manufacturer must face claims that a negligent inspection at a Texas-based Goya food distribution center led to a forklift operator burning to death after crashing into a pipe carrying hot beans, a federal judge has ruled, saying a jury could still find the company liable for failing to warn of the low hanging pipe.
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August 13, 2024
Kroger Blasts FTC's 'Head-To-Head' Competition Claims
Kroger and Albertsons have assailed the Federal Trade Commission's challenge to their merger, telling an Oregon federal judge that there's no need to preliminarily block the deal because the agency is pushing a "never before applied" theory that reducing head-to-head competition is illegal, which the grocery stores said is undone by the law and the companies' planned divestiture of 579 stores.
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August 13, 2024
Tort Report: Disney Blasted For 'Absurd' Arbitration Bid
A Disney unit's unconventional bid to arbitrate a wrongful death suit and a hefty crash suit verdict out of California lead Law360's Tort Report, which compiles recent personal injury and medical malpractice news that may have flown under the radar.
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August 13, 2024
Eateries Can't Stop $75M Settlements In Chicken Antitrust Suit
An Illinois federal judge granted final approval Tuesday to $75 million in settlements between direct chicken purchasers and House of Raeford Farms and Koch Foods in a massive consolidated price-fixing case, denying an objection by restaurants, which he said could not second-guess class counsel's decisions after failing to opt out.
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August 13, 2024
Fla. Produce Co. Can't Change Settlement, EEOC Says
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission asked a Michigan federal court Tuesday to enforce a settlement with a Florida-based produce supplier that is now insisting on changing the deal over sexual harassment claims after the parties had already agreed on the terms.
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August 13, 2024
Food Law Atty Rejoins Thompson Coburn From Davis Wright
Thompson Coburn LLP said this week that a former partner who focuses on agriculture and food law has rejoined the firm's St. Louis office after a stint with Davis Wright Tremaine LLP.
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August 12, 2024
Colo. Brewery And Ex-Manager Settle Embezzlement Suit
A Colorado brewery and its ex-manager accused of embezzling more than $600,000 for his own business agreed to permanently dismiss a lawsuit, one day after a state judge let the brewery seek punitive damages in the case.
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August 12, 2024
NLRB Official Says Justices' Ruling Doesn't Ax Injunction Bid
The U.S. Supreme Court's decision to nix a two-part legal test available to National Labor Relations Board prosecutors pursuing injunctions in some circuits and standardize the use of a four-part test will not diminish prosecutors' likelihood of winning an injunction against a Michigan hospital, an NLRB official argued.
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August 12, 2024
Microplastics False Ad Complaint 'Doesn't Hold Water'
An Illinois federal judge has thrown out a proposed class action alleging that BlueTriton Brands Inc. doesn't tell consumers that its Ice Mountain spring water contains microplastics, saying no reasonable consumer would believe "100% natural spring water" is a guarantee down to the molecular level.
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August 12, 2024
Fed. Circ. Says Co. Can't Patent Coke Zero's Secret Sweetener
A Federal Circuit panel found Monday that the company that developed the artificial sweetener used in Coke Zero can't patent its formula after it has already touched the lips of customers even if they kept the recipe secret, something that's consistent with "precedent going back to the 1800s."
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August 12, 2024
Cannabis Drink Cos. Drop Challenge To Iowa THC Law
After failing to temporarily block an Iowa law that imposed new restrictions on hemp-derived THC consumables, two manufactures of cannabis-infused drinks have decided to drop their lawsuit seeking to upend the statute, according to a notice filed in federal court.
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August 12, 2024
Beyond Meat Escapes Investor Suit Over Production Woes
A California federal judge has tossed a proposed class action accusing vegan burger manufacturer Beyond Meat of securities fraud, saying investors will need to be more specific about what the company's CEO knew at the time he touted the company's allegedly faltering partnerships with fast-food restaurants like McDonald's.
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August 12, 2024
Catching Up With Delaware's Chancery Court
Multimillion-dollar share conversions, power struggles in a classic rock band, a good deal for fandom collectibles, and a pindown by two heavyweights were all part of the spectacle in Delaware's Court of Chancery last week. New cases involved pharmaceutical companies, cannabis, drones and liquid-gas exports. In case you missed it, here's the latest from the Chancery Court.
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August 09, 2024
The Long Road To Legalizing Pot In Florida And South Dakota
Voters in Florida and South Dakota will have the opportunity this Election Day to legalize recreational marijuana for adults 21 and over, and while the two efforts vary in their particulars, they both follow years of work by legalizers to craft a proposal that could gain court approval.
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August 09, 2024
Domino's Drivers' Attys Urge Court To Reject Sanctions Bid
Attorneys for Domino's Pizza delivery drivers alleging the company doesn't properly reimburse for mileage expenses have implored a Michigan federal judge not to sanction them, saying they weren't aware of arbitration agreements the company alleges should preclude the action until Domino's produced them.
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August 09, 2024
DC Circ. Says Animal Group Can't File Perdue False Ad Suit
The Animal Legal Defense Fund doesn't have standing to sue the U.S. Department of Agriculture over labels the agency approved for Perdue poultry products that the advocacy group says mislead customers into believing the animals have access to the outdoors, the D.C. Circuit ruled Friday.
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August 09, 2024
Kraft-Heinz Investor Can't Revive Del. Insider Trading Suit
Attorneys for a Kraft Heinz stockholder lost a bid to convince Delaware's Court of Chancery that new evidence justified reopening a dismissed suit alleging that company insiders with ties to a controlling investor, Brazilian private equity firm 3G Capital Inc., sold $1.2 billion worth of shares on nonpublic information.
Expert Analysis
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Spartan Arbitration Tactics Against Well-Funded Opponents
Like the ancient Spartans who held off a numerically superior Persian army at the Battle of Thermopylae, trial attorneys and clients faced with arbitration against an opponent with a bigger war chest can take a strategic approach to create a pass to victory, say Kostas Katsiris and Benjamin Argyle at Venable.
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CSA Case Could Shift Intrastate Commercial Cannabis
In Canna Provisions v. Merrick Garland, cannabis companies argue that the Controlled Substances Act is unconstitutional as applied to intrastate commercial cannabis activity; the Massachusetts federal court's eventual decision will be important to the cannabis industry for several reasons, including that the threat of federal enforcement would disappear overnight, says Hilary Bricken at Husch Blackwell.
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What Recent Study Shows About AI's Promise For Legal Tasks
Amid both skepticism and excitement about the promise of generative artificial intelligence in legal contexts, the first randomized controlled trial studying its impact on basic lawyering tasks shows mixed but promising results, and underscores the need for attorneys to proactively engage with AI, says Daniel Schwarcz at University of Minnesota Law School.
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Legal Considerations For Circular Economy Strategies
As circular economy goals — generating revenue at multiple points in a product's life cycle — become nearly ubiquitous in corporate sustainability practices, companies should reassess existing strategies by focusing on government incentives, regulations, and reporting and disclosure requirements, say Rachel Saltzman and Erin Grisby at Hunton.
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Preempting Bottled Water Microplastics Fraud Claims
Food products like bottled water are increasingly likely to be targets of consumer fraud complaints due to alleged microplastics contamination — but depending on the labeling or advertising at issue, the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act can provide a powerful preemption defense, say Tariq Naeem and Brenda Sweet at Tucker Ellis.
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Litigation Inspiration: A Source Of Untapped Fulfillment
As increasing numbers of attorneys struggle with stress and mental health issues, business litigators can find protection against burnout by remembering their important role in society — because fulfillment in one’s work isn’t just reserved for public interest lawyers, say Bennett Rawicki and Peter Bigelow at Hilgers Graben.
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The Challenges Of Measuring Harm In Slack-Fill Cases
A recent California federal court partial class certification ruling was a rare victory for plaintiffs in a case over slack-fill empty space in packaged products, indicating that damages arguments may be important at the certification stage, say Sushrut Jain and Valentina Bernasconi at Edgeworth Economics.
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Series
Skiing Makes Me A Better Lawyer
A lifetime of skiing has helped me develop important professional skills, and taught me that embracing challenges with a spirit of adventure can allow lawyers to push boundaries, expand their capabilities and ultimately excel in their careers, says Andrea Przybysz at Tucker Ellis.
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Think Like A Lawyer: Forget Everything You Know About IRAC
The mode of legal reasoning most students learn in law school, often called “Issue, Rule, Application, Conclusion,” or IRAC, erroneously frames analysis as a separate, discrete step, resulting in disorganized briefs and untold obfuscation — but the fix is pretty simple, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.
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The Corporate Transparency Act Isn't Dead Yet
After an Alabama federal court's ruling last week rendering the Corporate Transparency Act unconstitutional, changes to the law may ultimately be required, but ongoing compliance is still the best course of action for most, says George Singer at Holland & Hart.
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How Firms Can Ensure Associate Gender Parity Lasts
Among associates, women now outnumber men for the first time, but progress toward gender equality at the top of the legal profession remains glacially slow, and firms must implement time-tested solutions to ensure associates’ gender parity lasts throughout their careers, say Kelly Culhane and Nicole Joseph at Culhane Meadows.
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Bracing Cos. For Calif. Privacy Agency's Restored Authority
A recent California state appeals court decision greenlights the California Privacy Protection Agency's enforcement of certain consumer privacy regulations, which may speed up compliance requirements, so businesses considering use of artificial intelligence, for instance, may want to reassess their handling of privacy notices and opt-out requests, say Kevin Angle and Matthew Cin at Ropes & Gray.
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7 Common Myths About Lateral Partner Moves
As lateral recruiting remains a key factor for law firm growth, partners considering a lateral move should be aware of a few commonly held myths — some of which contain a kernel of truth, and some of which are flat out wrong, says Dave Maurer at Major Lindsey.
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Series
Cheering In The NFL Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Balancing my time between a BigLaw career and my role as an NFL cheerleader has taught me that pursuing your passions outside of work is not a distraction, but rather an opportunity to harness important skills that can positively affect how you approach work and view success in your career, says Rachel Schuster at Sheppard Mullin.
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Mitigating Whistleblower Risks After High Court UBS Ruling
While it is always good practice for companies to periodically review whistleblower trainings, policies and procedures, the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent whistleblower-friendly ruling in Murray v. UBS Securities helps demonstrate their importance in reducing litigation risk, say attorneys at Arnold & Porter.