Food & Beverage

  • July 24, 2024

    Eggland's Best Accused Of Lying About Hens' 'Pleasant' Digs

    Egg brand Eggland's Best was hit with a lawsuit accusing it of misleading consumers by describing living conditions for certain laying hens as "pleasant" when in reality those chickens allegedly "live in typical factory farming conditions."

  • July 24, 2024

    Safeway Gets Early Win In Floor Co.'s SEIU Conspiracy Suit

    A floor cleaning company can't pursue its claim that Safeway took part in a civil conspiracy with a Service Employees International Union affiliate to award a contract to a competitor, a California federal judge ruled.

  • July 24, 2024

    Peanut Allergy Death Suit Returns To Conn. State Court

    Settling accusations of procedural "gamesmanship," a federal judge has approved an agreement to return to Connecticut state court a lawsuit against the Stew Leonard's grocery store chain by the estate of an Ailey School-trained ballet dancer who allegedly died from eating mislabeled peanut-laden cookies manufactured by another company.

  • July 24, 2024

    Last Holdouts Avoid Trial With Deal Over Chicken Price-Fixing

    Chicken buyer plaintiffs say they've reached a settlement with Mountaire Farms and Koch Foods in their suit against the country's biggest broiler chicken producers for allegedly conspiring to raise prices, telling an Illinois federal judge to call off the trial that had been scheduled for September.

  • July 24, 2024

    Hemp Cos. Get Stay Of DEA Subpoenas Seeking Records

    A Texas federal judge on Wednesday stayed enforcement of U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration subpoenas seeking financial and other records from a group of hemp and vape sellers, who had argued earlier this week that the subpoenas were overbroad and unlinked to any federal investigation.

  • July 24, 2024

    Red Lobster Accused Of Shorting Wages With Tip Credit

    Red Lobster has not been paying its tipped employees all their wages owed, a worker claimed in a proposed collective action in Maryland federal court, saying the seafood chain made them perform excessive non-tip-generating work that drove their take-home pay below minimum wage.

  • July 24, 2024

    Vintage Wine Estates Hits Ch. 11 With Intent To Sell Assets

    Vintage Wine Estates, which owns 30 wine brands in California, Oregon and Washington, filed for Chapter 11 protection Wednesday with a plan to sell its assets after post-pandemic wine demand dropped.

  • July 23, 2024

    Kroger And Colo. Talks To Avoid Merger Hearing Stall Out

    Negotiations between Kroger Co. and Colorado enforcers to avoid an injunction hearing in the state's challenge to a $24 billion merger with Albertsons appeared to have stalled, prompting the grocers Tuesday to pitch a state judge on other options to avoid the fast-approaching proceeding.

  • July 23, 2024

    Cannabis Industry Stakeholders Weigh In On Rescheduling

    As the period for public comment on the Biden administration's proposal to reclassify marijuana came to a close Monday, anti-legalization activists, marijuana industry advocates and state cannabis regulators each submitted their thoughts on the potential policy shift.

  • July 23, 2024

    EPA Must Ban PFAS In Pesticides, Environmental Groups Say

    Farmer advocacy groups and environmentalists urged the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to flex its regulatory muscles and prohibit the use of pesticide formulas and containers made with so-called forever chemicals, according to a petition that says the agency is doing little to address the issue.

  • July 23, 2024

    FTC Attys On Kroger Case Get Extensions After IT Outage

    The administrative law judge overseeing the Federal Trade Commission's in-house challenge to Kroger and Albertsons' $25 billion merger has given the agency and the grocery behemoths two extra days on a couple of filing deadlines after the FTC said the worldwide Microsoft outage left several counsel laptops unusable.

  • July 23, 2024

    Judge Won't Force Meta To Run Bankrupt Rubio's Ads

    A Delaware bankruptcy judge on Tuesday denied a temporary restraining order requested by fast-casual seafood chain Rubio's Coastal Grill against Meta Platforms Inc., which alleged Meta violated an automatic stay in the Chapter 11 case by not running Rubio's ads after the company didn't pay fees it had incurred prepetition. 

  • July 23, 2024

    NC Meatpacking Co. Can Depose Workers In Wage Dispute

    A North Carolina federal court has permitted a chicken processing company to question two workers as part of a wage suit against the wishes of a putative class of employees, saying the interrogation request didn't come too late.

  • July 23, 2024

    General Mills Settles 2012 Suit Over 'All Natural' Kix Cereal

    Consumers have reached a settlement with General Mills Inc. to resolve a 2012 suit alleging it lied about Kix cereal being "all natural" even though it contains bioengineered ingredients, according to a New Jersey federal court order.

  • July 23, 2024

    Senate Dems Roll Out Bill To Codify Chevron Deference

    Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., led a group of Democratic senators Tuesday in introducing a bill to codify the now-defunct doctrine of Chevron deference after it was struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court last month.

  • July 23, 2024

    Mass. Pig Farming Law Survives Pork Industry Challenge

    A Massachusetts federal judge on Tuesday shot down a suit from out-of-state hog farmers and food producers challenging a state law that bans the sale of pork from pigs that are kept in tightly confined spaces, saying nothing in the law conflicts with federal statutes.

  • July 23, 2024

    Wyoming Hemp Regulations Not Preempted By 2018 Farm Bill

    A Wyoming federal judge won't block enforcement of a newly enacted law regulating hemp-derived intoxicating products, saying the 2018 Farm Bill that legalized hemp products doesn't preempt the regulation.

  • July 23, 2024

    Whole Foods Settles With Ex-Worker In BLM Mask Dispute

    Whole Foods Market has reached a tentative settlement with a former employee at its Cambridge, Massachusetts, store who says she was fired in 2020 in retaliation for wearing a Black Lives Matter mask, a month before the case was set to go to trial.

  • July 23, 2024

    5-Hour Energy Partner Owes No Tax On Sale, DC Circ. Says

    The D.C. Circuit found Tuesday that a Canadian citizen's $6.5 million in gains from her sale of a U.S. partnership interest in a company that sold 5-hour Energy drinks was not federally taxable as inventory income, reversing a U.S. Tax Court ruling.

  • July 22, 2024

    Conn. PFAS Judge Needs More Info Before Deciding Toss Bid

    A water utility and a proposed class of water customers agreed to submit additional briefs to a Connecticut state court judge tasked with determining whether those who claim to have experienced "subclinical cellular changes" after drinking water that allegedly contains "forever chemicals" have alleged an injury sufficient for judicial review.

  • July 22, 2024

    Iowa Defends New Hemp Law From CBD Cos.' Challenge

    A federal court should not interrupt Iowa as it continues to roll out new restrictions on consumables infused with hemp-derived THC, the state argued, saying there's been "no arbitrary enforcement" of the law, nor has its language proven to be "unconstitutionally vague."

  • July 22, 2024

    Nebraska AG Stops Shops From Selling Synthetic THC

    Six Nebraska smoke shops have agreed to stop selling synthetic THC products, according to an announcement by the state's Attorney General's Office, which has sued more than a dozen retailers for violations of state consumer protection and food safety laws.

  • July 22, 2024

    99 Cents Only Pivots To New Buyers After $8M Bid Rescinded

    Discount retail chain 99 Cents Only asked a Delaware bankruptcy court to approve alternative sales for two California real estate parcels after the winning bidder who submitted a $8 million offer failed to close the deal over the last two months.

  • July 22, 2024

    DuPont, NC To Drop Docs Dispute In 'Forever Chemicals' Case

    North Carolina and DuPont have come to terms in a dispute over allegedly missing documents as part of the state's lawsuit alleging the predecessor of Chemours and other chemical companies poisoned North Carolina's environment with "forever chemicals."

  • July 22, 2024

    Retooled Conn. Wine Tasting Death Suit Deemed Untimely  

    The estate of a woman killed in a drunk driving crash can't pursue new claims in its suit against the restaurant where she worked because they were filed too late, a Connecticut state court judge has ruled.

Expert Analysis

  • In Memoriam: The Modern Administrative State

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    On June 28, the modern administrative state, where courts deferred to agency interpretations of ambiguous statutes, died when the U.S. Supreme Court overruled its previous decision in Chevron v. Natural Resources Defense Council — but it is survived by many cases decided under the Chevron framework, say Joseph Schaeffer and Jessica Deyoe at Babst Calland.

  • How To Clean Up Your Generative AI-Produced Legal Drafts

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    As law firms increasingly rely on generative artificial intelligence tools to produce legal text, attorneys should be on guard for the overuse of cohesive devices in initial drafts, and consider a few editing pointers to clean up AI’s repetitive and choppy outputs, says Ivy Grey at WordRake.

  • Constitutional Protections For Cannabis Companies Are Hazy

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    Cannabis businesses are subject to federal enforcement and tax, but often without the benefit of constitutional protections — and the entanglement of state and federal law and conflicting judicial opinions are creating confusion in the space, says Amber Lengacher at Purple Circle.

  • Series

    Boxing Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Boxing has influenced my legal work by enabling me to confidently hone the skills I've learned from the sport, like the ability to remain calm under pressure, evaluate an opponent's weaknesses and recognize when to seize an important opportunity, says Kirsten Soto at Clyde & Co.

  • Anticipating Disputes In Small Biz Partnerships And LLCs

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    In light of persistently high failures of small business partnerships and limited liability companies, mediator Frank Burke discusses proactive strategies for protecting and defining business rights and responsibilities, as well as reactive measures for owners.

  • Opinion

    Industry Self-Regulation Will Shine Post-Chevron

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's Loper decision will shape the contours of industry self-regulation in the years to come, providing opportunities for this often-misunderstood practice, says Eric Reicin at BBB National Programs.

  • 3 Ways Agencies Will Keep Making Law After Chevron

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    The U.S. Supreme Court clearly thinks it has done something big in overturning the Chevron precedent that had given deference to agencies' statutory interpretations, but regulated parties have to consider how agencies retain significant power to shape the law and its meaning, say attorneys at K&L Gates.

  • Roundup

    After Chevron

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    In the month since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the Chevron deference standard, this Expert Analysis series has featured attorneys discussing the potential impact across 26 different rulemaking and litigation areas.

  • Series

    After Chevron: Expect Few Changes In ITC Rulemaking

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's opinion overruling the Chevron doctrine will have less impact on the U.S. International Trade Commission than other agencies administering trade statutes, given that the commission exercises its congressionally granted authority in a manner that allows for consistent decision making at both agency and judicial levels, say attorneys at Polsinelli.

  • Opinion

    Atty Well-Being Efforts Ignore Root Causes Of The Problem

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    The legal industry is engaged in a critical conversation about lawyers' mental health, but current attorney well-being programs primarily focus on helping lawyers cope with the stress of excessive workloads, instead of examining whether this work culture is even fundamentally compatible with lawyer well-being, says Jonathan Baum at Avenir Guild.

  • How Cannabis Rescheduling May Affect Current Operators

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    The U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency's proposal to reschedule marijuana to Schedule III provides relief in the form of federal policy from the stigma and burdens of Schedule I, but commercial cannabis operations will remain unchanged until the federal-state cannabis policy gap is remedied by Congress, say Meital Manzuri and Alexis Lazzeri at Manzuri Law.

  • Series

    Skiing And Surfing Make Me A Better Lawyer

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    The skills I’ve learned while riding waves in the ocean and slopes in the mountains have translated to my legal career — developing strong mentor relationships, remaining calm in difficult situations, and being prepared and able to move to a backup plan when needed, says Brian Claassen at Knobbe Martens.

  • Unpacking The Circuit Split Over A Federal Atty Fee Rule

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    Federal circuit courts that have addressed Rule 41(d) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure are split as to whether attorney fees are included as part of the costs of a previously dismissed action, so practitioners aiming to recover or avoid fees should tailor arguments to the appropriate court, says Joseph Myles and Lionel Lavenue at Finnegan.

  • A Look At Calif. Contract Considerations In Fiji Water Ruling

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    A California appellate court's recent decision in Carolina Beverage v. Fiji Water, that a party may not seek contractual recovery on the basis of constructive termination, offers a look at contract construction and other considerations on negotiating distribution agreements, says Michael Laszlo at Clark Hill.

  • After A Brief Hiccup, The 'Rocket Docket' Soars Back To No. 1

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    The Eastern District of Virginia’s precipitous 2022 fall from its storied rocket docket status appears to have been a temporary aberration, as recent statistics reveal that the court is once again back on top as the fastest federal civil trial court in the nation, says Robert Tata at Hunton.

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