Food & Beverage

  • September 12, 2024

    Tesco Cannot Rehire Workers To Cut Pay, Top UK Court Rules

    Retail giant Tesco's decision to fire and rehire warehouse workers to remove what it described as a "permanent" pay supplement was a violation of their employment contracts, the U.K. Supreme Court ruled Thursday.

  • September 11, 2024

    Litigation Spending To Rise As Cases Grow More Aggressive

    A substantial number of large companies are expecting to increase their litigation spending by double digits next year in the face of more complex and hard-fought cases — and they are more open to bringing in new legal talent to navigate the matters, according to a report released Thursday. 

  • September 11, 2024

    Sprout Foods Can't Get 9th Circ. Redo In Baby Food Label Suit

    A split Ninth Circuit panel declined Tuesday to rethink its decision that federal law doesn't preempt a couple's California state law claim over allegedly misleading nutrition labels on Sprout Foods baby food labels.

  • September 11, 2024

    Conn. Pizza Chain Sued By Ex-Operations Chief For Age Bias

    The former director of operations for Frank Pepe's, a Connecticut-based pizza chain, sued the company Tuesday in federal court for allegedly firing him because of his age, race and gender.

  • September 11, 2024

    Top Calif. Biz Bills Sitting On Gov. Newsom's Desk

    Among the hundreds of bills awaiting California Governor Gavin Newsom's signature are a number that would create new guidelines for Golden State employers, healthcare industry players, as well as artificial intelligence labeling, textile recycling and increasing criminal penalties for corporate malfeasance by tens of millions of dollars.

  • September 11, 2024

    Mars Can't Claim For Contaminated Ice Cream, Supplier Says

    A food supplier has denied owing confectionery giant Mars Wrigley £1.1 million ($1.4 million) after ice cream became contaminated with an allegedly hazardous pesticide, claiming it didn't need to check for the substance.

  • September 11, 2024

    IP Boutique Hires Murgitroyd Pro For Life Sciences Team

    Haseltine Lake Kempner LLP has hired a new partner from rival Murgitroyd & Co. for its chemistry and life sciences team as the firm looks to expand its patent capabilities in the northern English city of Leeds.

  • September 11, 2024

    Agricultural Co. Can't Nix Rival's IP Rights Over Mandarins

    A European Union court said Wednesday that a French company can keep its plant breeding rights over Nadorcott mandarins, chucking its rival's claim that the variety is not novel.

  • September 11, 2024

    BurgerFi Flips Into Ch. 11, Burned By Rising Costs

    BurgerFi International Inc., the fast casual chain that also has Anthony's Coal Fired Pizza & Wings restaurants under its umbrella, filed for Chapter 11 protection in Delaware on Wednesday, listing up to $500 million in debt and being deluged by increasing operational costs.

  • September 10, 2024

    Whole Foods, Hain Denied Full 5th Circ. Review In Baby Food Case

    The Fifth Circuit on Monday shut down a bid from grocery store chain Whole Foods and international food company Hain Celestial Group for a rehearing of a panel's decision remanding to state court a suit alleging Hain's baby food caused the mental and physical decline of a toddler.

  • September 10, 2024

    UK Court OKs Nix Of Partners' Tax Deduction For Amortization

    A lower court was correct in ruling that a trio of U.K. entities that formed a limited liability partnership cannot take a tax deduction for the amortization of intangible assets they contributed to the LLP against their share of the profits, the Upper Tribunal ruled.

  • September 10, 2024

    Prime Hydration Beats Most Beverage PFAS Claims, For Now

    A California federal judge on Monday declined to end a putative class action accusing Prime Hydration of misleadingly marketing its Grape Sports Drink as healthy when it contains so-called "forever chemicals," although she tossed most of the lawsuit's claims with leave to amend.

  • September 10, 2024

    Reynolds Wrap Co. Gets OK For $725K Retirement Fee Deal

    An Illinois federal judge has granted final approval to a $725,000 settlement between a food packaging company that makes Reynolds brand products and participants in an employee 401(k) plan who alleged the company paid too much for recordkeeping fees.

  • September 10, 2024

    Keurig To Pay SEC $1.5M Over K-Cup Recyclability Claims

    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Tuesday ordered Keurig Dr. Pepper to pay a $1.5 million penalty and refrain from filing inaccurate information in its annual reports to settle allegations that it inaccurately claimed that its K-Cup coffee and tea pods were effectively recyclable.

  • September 10, 2024

    Distillery Tries To Lasso Booze Trademark, Suit Says

    Dynasty Spirits told a Colorado federal court Monday that Lasso Whiskey is infringing on its Lasso Motel trademark.

  • September 10, 2024

    Amazon Must Trim 'Halo' TM For EU Market

    Amazon Technologies could not convince the EU's intellectual property office to let it register trademarks for "halo" unscathed, with the office backing a Californian health technology company's bid to trim key protections for medical monitoring devices and health assessment services.

  • September 10, 2024

    Britain's Renold Buys Canadian Conveyor Biz For $31.4M

    British power transmission products maker Renold PLC said Tuesday that it has acquired the North American conveyor chain maker MAC Chain Co. Ltd. for $31.4 million, giving it a foothold in the Western U.S. and Canadian forestry markets.

  • September 10, 2024

    Cult Gaia Importer Beats Champagne Bid To Bar Dress Sales

    A Dutch importer of Cult Gaia dresses has seen off a bid from a body representing the Champagne region's interests to bar it from selling "champagne" colored dresses after a court ruled it was clear it had no connection to the sparkling wine.

  • September 10, 2024

    Cypriot Cheesemakers Lose Challenge To 'Grilloumi' TM

    A group of Cypriot halloumi producers has lost its attempt to overturn a decision that allowed a Swedish cheesemaker to register its "Grilloumi" and "Grilloumaki" trademarks in the U.K., as a London court ruled the marks are sufficiently different.

  • September 10, 2024

    UK Watchdog Probes Carlsberg's £3.3B Britvic Takeover

    The Competition and Markets Authority said on Tuesday that it is investigating whether the planned £3.3 billion ($4.3 billion) takeover by Danish brewer Carlsberg AS of Britvic PLC, a British soft drinks producer, could damage competition in U.K. markets.

  • September 09, 2024

    Pa. Supreme Court Snapshot: Benefits, Cannabis, Taxes

    The Pennsylvania Supreme Court's September schedule will have the justices pondering when to cancel tax exemptions for hospitals, if stormwater fees are taxes in disguise, and the potential resurrection of requiring medical marijuana products to be tested and approved by two separate laboratories.

  • September 09, 2024

    Lindt Can't Escape Suit Over Heavy Metals In Dark Chocolate

    Candymaker Lindt & Sprüngli can't escape claims that its dark chocolate contained dangerous levels of lead and cadmium, a Brooklyn federal judge has ruled, saying the consumers' claims that they paid a premium for allegedly defective products counts as an injury.

  • September 09, 2024

    6th Circ. Affirms Ax Of '100% Raw' Honey-Labeling Fight

    The Sixth Circuit has affirmed a decision tossing consumers' proposed class action over Strange Honey Farm LLC's "100% raw Tennessee honey" labels, finding that while the appellate court has jurisdiction to hear the consumers' appeal, the lower court rightly dismissed the "conclusory" allegations without leave to amend.

  • September 09, 2024

    Fed. Circ. Backs PTAB Ruling In Food Wrapping Feud

    The Federal Circuit has refused to revive claims in a trio of Converter Manufacturing LLC food wrapping patents, handing a win to patent challenger Tekni-Plex Inc. in the legal dispute.

  • September 09, 2024

    7-Eleven Says No To Talks With Couche-Tard After $40B Denial

    After rejecting a nearly $40 billion buyout offer from Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc. last week, the parent company of 7-Eleven told the Canadian retailer Monday that it hasn't yet brought forth an offer that warrants "substantial discussions." 

Expert Analysis

  • Series

    After Chevron: USDA Rules May Be Up In The Air

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    The Supreme Court's end of Chevron deference may cause more lawsuits against U.S. Department of Agriculture regulations, like the one redefining "unfair trade practices" under the Packers and Stockyards Act, or a new policy classifying salmonella as an adulterant in certain poultry products, says Bob Hibbert at Wiley.

  • Opinion

    States Should Loosen Law Firm Ownership Restrictions

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    Despite growing buzz, normalized nonlawyer ownership of law firms is a distant prospect, so the legal community should focus first on liberalizing state restrictions on attorney and firm purchases of practices, which would bolster succession planning and improve access to justice, says Michael Di Gennaro at The Law Practice Exchange.

  • Series

    Solving Puzzles Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Tackling daily puzzles — like Wordle, KenKen and Connections — has bolstered my intellectual property litigation practice by helping me to exercise different mental skills, acknowledge minor but important details, and build and reinforce good habits, says Roy Wepner at Kaplan Breyer.

  • Texas Ethics Opinion Flags Hazards Of Unauthorized Practice

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    The Texas Professional Ethics Committee's recently issued proposed opinion finding that in-house counsel providing legal services to the company's clients constitutes the unauthorized practice of law is a valuable clarification given that a UPL violation — a misdemeanor in most states — carries high stakes, say Hilary Gerzhoy and Julienne Pasichow at HWG.

  • Navigating The New Rise Of Greenwashing Litigation

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    As greenwashing lawsuits continue to gain momentum with a shift in focus to carbon-neutrality claims, businesses must exercise caution and ensure transparency in their environmental marketing practices, taking cues from recent legal challenges in the airline industry, say attorneys at Baker McKenzie.

  • 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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    Since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the Chevron deference standard in June, this Expert Analysis series has featured attorneys discussing the potential impact across 36 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.

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