Retail & E-Commerce

  • August 23, 2024

    FTC Notches Win In Amazon Prime Document Battle

    A Washington federal judge said Thursday that Amazon can't force the Federal Trade Commission to hand over internal documents in a case alleging customers were duped into signing up for Prime services, saying the materials were not relevant to the company's defenses.

  • August 23, 2024

    Vaping Co. VPR Says Rival Ashh Infringing E-Cig Tech

    Florida-based e-cigarette manufacturer VPR Brands has slapped a rival with a patent infringement lawsuit, telling a Michigan federal court that its competitor has been making and selling vapes that infringe its patented "electronic inhaler" and atomizer system.

  • August 23, 2024

    Pot Entrepreneur Seeks To Ensure Judgment On Ex-Partner

    A cannabis entrepreneur urged a Colorado federal judge Friday to bar his former business partner from making any equity transactions until after the court has the opportunity to revisit a $6.4 million judgment ruling as part of a recent Tenth Circuit remand.

  • August 23, 2024

    Albertsons-Kroger Deal Tests FTC's Stepped-Up Merger Policy

    The Federal Trade Commission's highly anticipated hearing to block Albertsons' planned $24.6 billion merger with Kroger kicks off Monday in a Portland, Oregon, courtroom in what attorneys say will be a pivotal test of the Biden administration's newly formalized merger policy.

  • August 23, 2024

    Western Union Seeks To Toss Most Claims In $8M Breach Suit

    Western Union looks to shake off the bulk of a point-of-sales device manufacturer's $8.1 million breach of contract case, telling a Colorado federal court that much of the suit arose from purchase orders to which the financial services company hadn't been party.

  • August 23, 2024

    Google Args Don't Erase 'History Is On, Jesus,' DOJ Says

    Google employees were so conscious of hiding evidence of conduct "that leads to law suits" that they reacted quickly when forgetting to let internal chats delete automatically, the Justice Department said Thursday, pushing to punish the search giant for those policies in the looming advertising technology monopolization trial.

  • August 23, 2024

    Class Wants $2.1M In Fees In Home Depot Hose Fight

    A class suing Home Depot Corp. and Reliance Worldwide Corp. asked a Georgia federal judge to award them $2.1 million in attorney fees, more than $160,000 in expenses and $35,000 for class representative service awards in connection with a settlement that was preliminarily approved in March.

  • August 23, 2024

    Ga. Worker Received Lewd Pics From Boss's Son, Suit Says

    An Atlanta-area industrial machinery manufacturer was hit with a sex discrimination lawsuit by an employee who says she was berated by her boss after reporting the boss' son for sexual harassment.

  • August 23, 2024

    Illinois Car Dealers Can't Stop Direct EV Sales

    An Illinois state appeals court threw out a suit by franchise car dealerships and trade associations aiming to block two electric vehicle makers from selling directly to customers, saying Friday that neither the Illinois Vehicle Code nor the Motor Vehicle Franchise Act require carmakers to sell through a franchise dealership.

  • August 23, 2024

    The Biggest Texas Trial Rulings Of 2024: Midyear Report

    Trial courts in Texas saw a series of high-dollar verdicts for plaintiffs in suits over patent infringement and personal injuries, but appellate courts tempered some plaintiffs' successes, backing a large retail employer in a harassment suit and tossing a verdict based on a lawyer's remarks. Here's a look at some of the biggest trial decisions in Texas in the first half of 2024.

  • August 23, 2024

    Brokerage Startup Challenges NAR Listing Rules

    A Utah-based residential brokerage startup has accused the National Association of Realtors, an affiliated Utah multiple listing service and several major brokerages including Keller Williams Realty Inc. of engaging in an antitrust conspiracy that involved the defendants blocking the startup from accessing the NAR's MLS because the startup offers cheaper commission fees.

  • August 23, 2024

    Ex-Pot Shop Worker Says Sex Harassment Drove Her From Job

    A former employee at a Los Angeles marijuana dispensary is suing her ex-employer, saying she was subjected to "persistent and horrible" sexual harassment and denied her promised pay and benefits, leading to what she describes as wrongful constructive termination.

  • August 23, 2024

    Grocery Chain Wants 'Scandalous' Claims Out Of Allergy Suit

    The estate of a professional dancer who died after eating a mislabeled cookie that contained peanuts should revise its Connecticut state court complaint against a grocery chain and several of its employees to remove "scandalous" and "immaterial" allegations, the defendants said in a new filing.

  • August 22, 2024

    Popular Mich. Sushi Bar Sues Hacker Who Deleted Instagram

    A popular Michigan sushi restaurant is hoping a federal lawsuit will help it track down and hold accountable the person who hacked into and deleted its Instagram account, the loss of which the company said cost it thousands of dollars and harmed its reputation.

  • August 22, 2024

    11th Circ. Nixes Hyundai's Appeal Of $16M Dealership Verdict

    The Eleventh Circuit on Wednesday rejected Hyundai Motor America's attempt to void a $16 million verdict awarded to a Florida dealership in a contract dispute over Hyundai's efforts to launch a separate dealer network for its luxury Genesis line of vehicles.

  • August 22, 2024

    Influencer-Backed Wine Glass Co. Sues Over Trade Dress

    A small startup that sells colorful wine glasses is suing other companies that sell similar glasses in Colorado federal court, calling those companies "counterfeiters" that are trying to capitalize on the startup's popularity stemming from the endorsement of a popular TikTok influencer.

  • August 22, 2024

    UK Antitrust Arm Pauses Google, Apple Probes For New Law

    United Kingdom antitrust authorities hit pause on investigations into Google and Apple policies allegedly locking app developers into their in-app payment systems, preferring to wait until new powers come online even as officials said commitments offered by Google aren't enough to address their concerns.

  • August 22, 2024

    Williams-Sonoma Infringes Fabric TMs, Michigan Co. Claims

    A supplier of moisture-resistant textiles and fabric treatments sued Williams-Sonoma Inc. in Michigan federal court Thursday, alleging the retailer is infringing three trademarks with its Pottery Barn furniture.

  • August 22, 2024

    Consumers Will Appeal Tossed Apple Web App Antitrust Case

    Consumers have told a California federal court they plan to appeal the dismissal of a case accusing Apple of violating antitrust law by preventing iPhones from running web-based apps, instead of amending the proposed class action.

  • August 22, 2024

    Consumer Rebuffs Reynolds' Bid To Nix 'Made In The USA' Case

    A woman challenging Reynolds Consumers Products LLC's aluminum foil's "Made in the U.S.A." labeling urged a New York federal court against freeing the company from her lawsuit, arguing that she had sufficiently shown how the label could harm consumers.

  • August 22, 2024

    Appeals Court Revives DC AG's Amazon Antitrust Suit

    A Washington, D.C., appeals court ruled Thursday that the D.C. attorney general can pursue an antitrust suit against Amazon, overturning a lower court order that tossed district enforcers' complaint against the e-commerce giant.

  • August 22, 2024

    Fla. Court Urged To Penalize Furniture Chain In Docs Dispute

    The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has urged a Florida federal court to levy an attorney fees penalty against a furniture chain over its failure to produce documents in an employment discrimination lawsuit, saying the company continues to skirt its obligation to produce information such as emails and financial records.

  • August 22, 2024

    Memorabilia Biz Sues Atlanta Braves For Maligning Reputation

    Auctioneer Heritage Vintage Sports has accused the Atlanta Braves in a defamation lawsuit of purposely maligning its image by leaking to the press that it did not have the right to sell certain items, including memorabilia connected to Hank Aaron.

  • August 22, 2024

    Kroger-Albertsons Wrong On Labor Law In FTC Row: NLRB

    The National Labor Relations Board used an amicus brief Wednesday to call out Kroger and Albertsons for their "mistaken" citation to labor law as a defense against Federal Trade Commission claims that the grocery giants' $25 billion megamerger threatens union bargaining leverage.

  • August 22, 2024

    Missouri Gov. Clashes With Secretary Of State Over Hemp Ban

    Missouri Gov. Mike Parson on Thursday blasted the state's secretary of state for declining to implement an emergency rulemaking that would have banned psychoactive consumable cannabis products manufactured outside the state's regulated adult-use marijuana market.

Expert Analysis

  • Planning Law Firm Content Calendars: What, When, Where

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    During the slower month of August, law firms should begin working on their 2025 content calendars, planning out a content creation and distribution framework that aligns with the firm’s objectives and maintains audience engagement throughout the year, says Jessica Kaplan at Legally Penned.

  • Series

    Playing Golf Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Golf can positively affect your personal and professional life well beyond the final putt, and it’s helped enrich my legal practice by improving my ability to build lasting relationships, study and apply the rules, face adversity with grace, and maintain my mental and physical well-being, says Adam Kelly at Venable.

  • Law Firms Should Move From Reactive To Proactive Marketing

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    Most law firm marketing and business development teams operate in silos, leading to an ad hoc, reactive approach, but shifting to a culture of proactive planning — beginning with comprehensive campaigns — can help firms effectively execute their broader business strategy, says Paul Manuele at PR Manuele Consulting.

  • Remedy May Be Google's Biggest Hurdle Yet In Antitrust Case

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    There are difficulties ahead in the remedies phase of the antitrust case against Google in District of Columbia federal court, including the search engine giant's scale advantage and the fast-moving nature of the tech industry, setting the stage for the most challenging of the proceedings so far, says Jonathan Rubin at MoginRubin.

  • Opinion

    The Big Issues A BigLaw Associates' Union Could Address

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    A BigLaw associates’ union could address a number of issues that have the potential to meaningfully improve working conditions, diversity and attorney well-being — from restructured billable hour requirements to origination credit allocation, return-to-office mandates and more, says Tara Rhoades at The Sanity Plea.

  • Opinion

    It's Time For A BigLaw Associates' Union

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    As BigLaw faces a steady stream of criticism about its employment policies and practices, an associates union could effect real change — and it could start with law students organizing around opposition to recent recruiting trends, says Tara Rhoades at The Sanity Plea.

  • How Calif. Justices' Prop 22 Ruling Affects The Gig Industry

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    The California Supreme Court's recent upholding of Proposition 22 clarifies that Uber, Lyft, DoorDash and other companies in the gig industry can legally classify their drivers as independent contractors, but it falls short of concluding some important regulatory battles in the state, says Mark Spring at CDF Labor.

  • How Justices Upended The Administrative Procedure Act

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    In its recent Loper Bright, Corner Post and Jarkesy decisions, the U.S. Supreme Court fundamentally changed the Administrative Procedure Act in ways that undermine Congress and the executive branch, shift power to the judiciary, curtail public and business input, and create great uncertainty, say Alene Taber and Beth Hummer at Hanson Bridgett.

  • Vendor Rights Lessons From 2 Chapter 11 Cases

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    A Texas federal court’s recent critical vendor order in the Zachry Holdings Chapter 11 filing, as well as a settlement between Rite Aid and McKesson in New Jersey federal court last year, shows why suppliers must object to critical vendor motions that do not recognize creditors' legal rights, says David Conaway at Shumaker.

  • Lessons From Rising Fake Discount Consumer Class Actions

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    Ellen Robbins and Scott Allbright at Akerman discuss the rise of false reference price consumer class actions and outline key strategies to minimize legal risk and protect businesses.

  • Classwide Calculations May Get Price Premium Damages Wrong

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    In many consumer class actions, plaintiffs assert that they overpaid for a product because of a misrepresented or defective product feature, and that a single price premium estimate can be applied classwide — but failure to account for differences in price premiums across a putative class may lead to improper damage awards, say economists at Ankura Consulting.

  • 2nd Circ. Ruling Reaffirms Short-Swing Claims Have Standing

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    The Second Circuit's recent ruling in Packer v. Raging Capital reversing the dismissal of a shareholder's Section 16(b) derivative suit seeking to recover short-swing profits for lack of constitutional standing settles the uncertainty of the district court's decision, which could have undercut Congress' intent in crafting Section 16(b) in the first place, say attorneys at Simpson Thacher.

  • Mirror, Mirror On The Wall, Is My Counterclaim Bound To Fall?

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    A Pennsylvania federal court’s recent dismissal of the defendants’ counterclaims in Morgan v. Noss should remind attorneys to avoid the temptation to repackage a claim’s facts and law into a mirror-image counterclaim, as this approach will often result in a waste of time and resources, says Matthew Selmasska at Kaufman Dolowich.

  • Series

    Playing Dungeons & Dragons Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Playing Dungeons & Dragons – a tabletop role-playing game – helped pave the way for my legal career by providing me with foundational skills such as persuasion and team building, says Derrick Carman at Robins Kaplan.

  • Illinois BIPA Reform Offers Welcome Relief To Businesses

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    Illinois' recent amendment to its Biometric Information Privacy Act limits the number of violations and damages a plaintiff can claim — a crucial step in shielding businesses from unintended legal consequences, including litigation risk and compliance costs, say attorneys at Taft.

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