Food & Beverage

  • January 07, 2025

    4th Circ. Says Farm Bill Does Not Preempt Va. Hemp Law

    The Fourth Circuit affirmed Tuesday that the federal farm bill legalizing hemp nationwide did not preempt Virginia's new law reining in intoxicating products containing THC derived from hemp.

  • January 07, 2025

    Mont. Bill Floats Mine, Data Center Property Tax Changes

    Montana would lower the property tax rate imposed on metal mines, certain agricultural land and railroads but raise the rate on data center property as part of a bill introduced in the state Senate.

  • January 07, 2025

    Fla. Crash Victims Can't Get Insurer Payout In Revised Suits

    A Florida state appellate panel has blocked three vehicle crash victims' attempts to collect $16 million from an insurer, saying that the company wasn't properly joined as a party by the time settlements were reached and that final judgments were issued in two separate lawsuits over the same incident.

  • January 07, 2025

    Coffee Co. Says Exporter Owes $18M For Missing Shipments

    A "green" coffee retailer told a Florida federal judge on Tuesday that it can prove it is owed more than $18 million for prepaid coffee shipments that were never received from a Nicaraguan green coffee bean exporter.

  • January 07, 2025

    US Foods Slapped With Class Wage Suit By Ex-Seattle Worker

    US Foods has been hit with a proposed class action by a former employee in Seattle who claims the food service retailer systematically shorts workers on breaks, overtime pay, sick leave and expense reimbursements, according to a new lawsuit in Washington federal court.

  • January 07, 2025

    Starbucks Says It Can Target Inventor In Mobile Ordering Feud

    Starbucks has urged the Eastern District of Texas to keep alive its counterclaims against a patent-licensing executive who claims the coffee chain infringed a patent covering a mobile ordering system, accusing him of creating an "extensive thimblerig" of shell entities to avoid paying the cost of his "meritless" cases.

  • January 07, 2025

    Wash. Panel Won't Boot Subway Wage Dispute To Arbitration

    A Washington state appeals court declined to send to arbitration a former worker's suit accusing a Subway franchisee of failing to provide employees with meal breaks, despite a dissent finding that the worker's wage claims fall under an arbitration pact.

  • January 07, 2025

    Calif. Panel Says Individual PAGA Claims Belong In Arbitration

    An arbitration pact that the operator of a restaurant chain in California gave to a worker pushes his Private Attorneys General Act individual claims into arbitration, a state appeals panel ruled, partly flipping a trial court's decision.

  • January 06, 2025

    Wash. Labor Dept. Escapes Union's Farm Wage Challenge

    A Washington federal judge on Monday cut the state's employment agency loose from a union challenge to policies that have allegedly depressed farmworker wages, saying the U.S. Department of Labor is the only proper defendant in the litigation.

  • January 06, 2025

    'Pizza Puff' Maker Fights Little Caesars' Injunction Stay Bid

    An Illinois federal judge shouldn't wait to enforce his order blocking Little Caesars from marketing its latest pizza muffin appetizer as "pizza puffs" because the chain won't convince the Seventh Circuit the term is generic, the company behind the trademarked fried pizza product argued Monday.

  • January 06, 2025

    Artist Tells Justices To Protect His 'Stupid Banana'

    While a California artist acknowledged to the U.S. Supreme Court that his work of art was just "a stupid banana taped to a wall," he still thinks it deserves copyright protection after an appeals court ruled that it wasn't "strikingly similar" to a more famous banana taped to a wall that debuted at Art Basel Miami over a decade later.

  • January 06, 2025

    Farm Owners, Rail Co. Spar Over Toxic Spill Trial Evidence

    Mississippi landowners fired back at a Canadian National Railway unit's attempt to block a train derailment report containing its admissions of fault from an upcoming trial in Mississippi federal court, saying the company's claims that the report is incomplete "ring hollow."

  • January 06, 2025

    Ga. Developer Says Insurer Shorted Roof Repair Coverage

    The owner of a north Georgia commercial property has sued its insurer, accusing it of intentionally failing to complete a claims adjustment and only partially paying the cost to repair a roof that was damaged during a storm.

  • January 06, 2025

    Prepared Foods Co. Accused Of Duping CEO With Stock Plan

    The former CEO of the American arm of a U.K.-based food manufacturer says the company deluded him with misleading promises about stock options during the recruitment process to get him to join and then refused to pony up the shares when he left.

  • January 06, 2025

    FDA Issues Guidance On Lead Levels In Some Baby Foods

    The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Monday issued nonbinding guidance for the baby food industry on action levels for lead in processed food for babies and young children.

  • January 06, 2025

    Texas Restaurant Illegally Claims Tip Credit, Server Says

    A Houston-area restaurant should not be allowed to claim a tip credit that permits it to pay servers less than the minimum wage because it failed to inform workers that they have to foot the bill for their uniforms, according to a proposed collective action filed in Texas federal court.

  • January 06, 2025

    Paul Hastings, Cravath Steer Pork Giant Smithfield's IPO Filing

    Pork producer Smithfield Foods Inc. on Monday submitted the year's first filing for an initial public offering, part of a spinoff from China's WH Group Ltd., represented by Paul Hastings LLP and underwriters' counsel Cravath Swaine & Moore LLP.

  • January 06, 2025

    2nd Circ. Says Argent Can't Force ESOP Suit To Arbitration

    The Second Circuit knocked down Argent Trust Co.'s bid to arbitrate a case alleging the wealth management company sold inflated shares to a barbecue chain's employee stock ownership plan, after ruling in a similar case that identical arbitration contract language wasn't enforceable.

  • January 06, 2025

    US Wants More Time To Counter Altria's $106M Tax Refund Bid

    Tobacco giant Altria's complaint seeking a $106 million tax refund related to its interests in beverage company Anheuser-Busch requires more research to counter in the event a Virginia federal court decides it can move forward, the U.S. government said in requesting time for potential discovery.

  • January 03, 2025

    Panera Stiffed Catering Staff Out Of OT Pay, PAGA Suit Says

    Panera cheated some employees out of overtime wages and reimbursement for the use of their cars and cellphones working with catering clients, and also manipulated records to inaccurately log break times in violation of California labor laws, according to a representative action lodged Thursday in California state court. 

  • January 03, 2025

    Calif. Tribes Sue Casino Card Rooms Under New Law

    Seven California tribes are taking advantage of a new state law that prohibits games in card rooms to sue a slew of private casinos, accusing them of brazenly profiting from illegal gambling.

  • January 03, 2025

    FTC Dems Eye Merger Review, Noncompete Legacy

    Federal Trade Commission Democrats started the new year with legacy on the brain, urging the soon-to-be Republican majority in a pair of statements to preserve their more "stringent approach" to merger review and their currently blocked ban on employment noncompete agreements, despite heavy criticism both received from their GOP peers.

  • January 03, 2025

    Honeygrow Accused Of Taxing Bottled Water At Pa. Location

    Philadelphia-based restaurant chain Honeygrow unjustly profited from charging 6% sales tax for bottled water at one of its locations in violation of Pennsylvania law, a new class action lawsuit filed in state court alleged.

  • January 03, 2025

    Food Delivery App Inks $80M Deal To End SPAC Merger Suit

    Investors suing mobile food delivery and ride-hailing services operator Grab Holdings Ltd. have asked a New York federal judge to preliminarily approve an $80 million deal to settle claims that several sections of a proxy statement Grab filed with a special purpose acquisition company were false and misleading.

  • January 03, 2025

    Orchard Settles 'Criminal Enterprise' Defamation Suit

    The former part-owner of a Michigan orchard and the orchard's holding company have settled claims that the ex-partner defamed the company and caused a loss of business by logging into its Google business account and calling it a "criminal enterprise."

Expert Analysis

  • Series

    Solving Puzzles Makes Me A Better Lawyer

    Author Photo

    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

    Author Photo

    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

    Author Photo

    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

    Author Photo

    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

    Author Photo

    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

    Author Photo

    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

    Author Photo

    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

    Author Photo

    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

    Author Photo

    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

    Author Photo

    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.

  • After Chevron

    Author Photo

    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 37 different rulemaking and litigation areas.

  • Series

    After Chevron: Expect Few Changes In ITC Rulemaking

    Author Photo

    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

    Author Photo

    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

    Author Photo

    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

    Author Photo

    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.

Want to publish in Law360?


Submit an idea

Have a news tip?


Contact us here
Can't find the article you're looking for? Click here to search the Food & Beverage archive.
Hello! I'm Law360's automated support bot.

How can I help you today?

For example, you can type:
  • I forgot my password
  • I took a free trial but didn't get a verification email
  • How do I sign up for a newsletter?
Ask a question!