JONES DAY TALKS®: Straight Talk About False Advertising: What Every Lawyer Needs to Know
A new class-action lawsuit alleges that packaging for Anheuser-Busch’s “Rita” beverage products deceives consumers by implying that the products contain wine or distilled spirits when in fact they are flavored malt beverage...more
The US Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit held that a brewing company’s statements that a competitor’s beers were made with corn syrup were not false and misleading under the Lanham Act because the competitor listed...more
The Seventh Circuit recently resolved a false advertising lawsuit involving beer giants Anheuser-Busch, the maker of Bud Light, and Molson Coors, which makes Miller Light and Coors Light. At the center of the dispute – one of...more
The Mississippi Supreme Court ruled that a beer manufacturer’s “match and redirect” provision in an agreement with a wholesaler violated the state’s Beer Industry Fair Dealing Act (BIFDA). Anheuser-Busch’s contract said if...more
A recent decision, MillerCoors v. Anheuser-Busch Cos., LLC, No. 19-cv-218-wmc, 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 88259 (W.D. Wis. May 24, 2019), denied and granted in part a preliminary injunction enjoining a series of advertisements and...more
On May 23, the Mississippi Supreme Court published its opinion in the case of Rex Distributing Company v. Anheuser-Busch, LLC, et al. The ruling partially reverses the trial court’s decision to dismiss all of Rex’s claims...more
Food for Thought is a review of significant court decisions affecting the food, beverage, dietary supplements and personal care products industry. Although many cases in this edition focus on class certification, others...more
As anyone in real estate will tell you, location matters. Apparently, location also matters when it comes to selecting a beer. Recently, a purchaser of Leffe Beers brought a class action lawsuit in Florida federal court...more
In January 2009, an Australian company named Innvopak Systems applied to register WINEBUD as a trademark for (three guesses?) wine. Perhaps anticipating trouble, Innvopak expressly stated in its application – not once but...more
In Anheuser-Busch LLC v Innvopak Systems Pty Ltd (Case No 91194148, August 19 2015) (precedential), the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) has found that the applicant’s mark WINEBUD for wine is confusingly similar to...more
The TTAB Finds Confusion Between WINEBUD Wine and BUD Beer The Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) found that Applicant’s mark WINEBUD for wine is confusingly similar to Anheuser-Busch’s (“AB”) BUD mark. The TTAB...more
The latest wave in the ever-changing and often turbulent waters of the beer industry is the potential merger of SABMiller with Anheuser-Busch InBev. This potential combination would create a brewery with nine of the world’s...more
Plaintiffs’ class action attorneys tend to follow trends. They are a savvy breed of attorney, at once creative and lazy (or efficient, depending on one’s perspective). One attorney discovers a statute, claim, or industry, and...more
In This Issue: - RECENT SIGNIFICANT RULINGS ..Court Dismisses in Part “Natural” Claims ..Court Enters Partial Dismissal of “Handmade” Claims ..Court Dismisses Injunctive Relief Claim Allows...more
On August 14, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi issued an opinion finding that state regulations bolstered one antitrust claim and hindered another in an ongoing dispute between a northern...more
In This Issue: - Recent Significant Developments And Rulings ..Voluntary Dismissal in Frito-Lay Pretzel Case ..Court Denies Motion to Dismiss in Florida "Natural" Action ..Court Embraces Standing...more