Over the past several years, federal courts have rarely allowed slack-fill class actions to survive beyond the motion to dismiss phase. Whether the plaintiffs allege that the packaging is misleading or that the slack-fill is...more
1/19/2022
/ Breach of Warranty ,
Class Action ,
Consumer Fraud ,
False Advertising ,
Food Manufacturers ,
Misleading Impressions ,
Misrepresentation ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Product Packaging ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Slack-Fill Suits
Federal courts continue to demonstrate lacking patience for nationwide product labeling class actions premised on purported label misstatements regarding the sourcing of vanilla flavoring....more
On May 20, 2020, the Eleventh Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a proposed class action against General Mills for its alleged failure to disclose the presence of a harmful chemical in its Cheerios cereal....more
5/28/2020
/ Article III ,
Breach of Warranty ,
Class Action ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Failure To Disclose ,
Food Contamination ,
Food Manufacturers ,
Food Safety ,
General Mills ,
Injury-in-Fact ,
Monsanto ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Standing ,
Toxic Exposure ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices ,
Unjust Enrichment
Last week U.S. District Judge Phyllis J. Hamilton granted Ghirardelli’s Motion to Dismiss a proposed class action involving the chocolatier’s packaging of its white baking chips....more
On March 19, 2020, Magistrate Judge Goodman recommended certifying a Florida class of purchasers of Prevagen, a memory-enhancement product developed by Quincy Bioscience, LLC....more
When America’s war on heart disease was kicked into gear by President Eisenhower’s heart attack in 1955, dietary fat was deemed the culprit. In an effort to improve health, people sought low-fat alternatives to their favorite...more
3/31/2020
/ Beverage Manufacturers ,
Class Action ,
False Advertising ,
FDA Warning Letters ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Food Labeling ,
Injury-in-Fact ,
Nutrition Facts Labels ,
Preemption ,
Retail Market ,
Standing
This month, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) opened a criminal investigation into collusive behavior among some of the largest producers of Atlantic salmon. This inquiry follows the DOJ’s June announcement of its separate...more
11/27/2019
/ Antitrust Conspiracies ,
Antitrust Investigations ,
Antitrust Violations ,
Class Action ,
Collusion ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
European Commission ,
Food Manufacturers ,
Price-Fixing ,
Subsidiaries
If you are a typical shopper, the last thing on your mind at the checkout counter is your printed credit card receipt. As you juggle your grocery store bags, you might absentmindedly fold the receipt into your wallet, or...more
10/10/2019
/ Article III ,
Class Action ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Debit and Credit Card Transactions ,
FACTA ,
Injury-in-Fact ,
Point of Sale Terminals ,
Retail Market ,
Retailers ,
Spokeo v Robins ,
Standing
Chief Judge Tunheim recently dismissed, with leave to amend, the class complaints in In Re Pork Antitrust Litigation. The Pork case— filed in the District of Minnesota against Tyson, Hormel, JBS and other major pork...more
9/12/2019
/ Agribusiness ,
Antitrust Litigation ,
Antitrust Provisions ,
Antitrust Violations ,
Cartels ,
Class Action ,
Collusion ,
Conspiracies ,
Discovery ,
Farm Animals ,
Hormel ,
Leave to Amend ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Price-Fixing ,
Tyson Foods
The active ingredient in popular weed killers, glyphosate, has gotten bad press lately. Thousands of plaintiffs have alleged that exposure to it caused their cancers. Jurors have responded by invoking punitive damages and...more
8/16/2019
/ Article III ,
Cancer ,
Class Action ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Food Manufacturers ,
Injury-in-Fact ,
Public Health ,
Spokeo v Robins ,
Standing ,
Toxic Chemicals ,
Toxic Exposure
When it rains, it pours—and for the country’s largest protein producers, the downpour is coming in the form of high-profile antitrust lawsuits. Over the past few years, food giants like Tyson and JBS (majority owner of...more
5/24/2019
/ Agribusiness ,
Cargill ,
Class Action ,
Farm Animals ,
Food Supply ,
Foreign Suppliers ,
Mercantile Industry ,
Price-Fixing ,
Purchase Price ,
Regulatory Standards ,
Salmon ,
Suppliers ,
Supply Chain ,
Tyson Foods
Malic Acid: Newest Culprit in “Natural” Marketing Case Trend -
Hilsley v. Ocean Spray Cranberries, Inc., No. 17-cv-2335, 2018 WL 6245894 (S.D. Cal. Nov. 29, 2018) -
The Skinny: Malic acid is a common food ingredient...more
In the Third and Eleventh Circuits, Ascertainability Continues to be a Major Certification Hurdle -
In Re: Tropicana Orange Juice Mktg. & Sales Practices Litig., No. 2:11-cv-07382, 2018 WL 497071 (D.N.J. Jan. 22, 2018)....more
The saying goes, knowledge equals power. For plaintiffs asserting claims for injunctive relief on behalf of putative classes, however, the Mott’s Apple Juice case demonstrates just the opposite....more
10/30/2018
/ Article III ,
Beverage Manufacturers ,
Class Action ,
Class Certification ,
Food Labeling ,
Food Marketing ,
FRCP 23(b)(2) ,
Injunctive Relief ,
Motion for Reconsideration ,
Mott's ,
Standing ,
Summary Judgment ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices
On September 26, 2018, the Honorable Judge Robert N. Scola entered an Order denying class certification in a consumer deceptive advertising case. Plaintiffs claimed that the use of the phrase “born in brazil” on containers of...more
10/19/2018
/ Advertising ,
Ascertainable Class ,
Beverage Manufacturers ,
CAFA ,
Class Action ,
Class Certification ,
Dismissals ,
False Advertising ,
Food Labeling ,
FRCP 23 ,
Retail Market ,
Subject Matter Jurisdiction ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices
Have you ever taken a sip of your Grande Starbucks latte and thought to yourself with disgust, “I can’t believe that barista topped off my latte with milk foam!” Or polished off an eight-piece bucket of Kentucky Fried...more