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Food & Beverage
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June 05, 2024
Texas Tamale Co. Wins Partial Injunction In Trademark Case
A Texas federal magistrate judge has found that a Fort Worth tamale outfit called Texas Lone Star Tamales can't use certain phrases in its advertising but limited some language in a requested injunction.
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June 05, 2024
TTAB Rejects Gin Maker's Attempt To Narrow 'Iron Balls' Mark
The Trademark Trial and Appeal Board has refused a gin maker's bid to force a Texas brewery to limit its use of the phrase "Iron Balls" to craft microbrews instead of just "beer," saying such a change wouldn't make confusion any less likely.
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June 05, 2024
Ill. Budget Has Higher Cap On NOLs, Sports Betting Tax Hike
Illinois will extend a cap on corporate net operating loss deductions, increase its sports betting tax and reduce sales tax rebates for retailers under a $53.1 billion fiscal year 2025 budget signed Wednesday by Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker.
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June 05, 2024
Hiring Pattern Dooms Mo. Spa's Quest For Foreign Waitstaff
A lakeside Missouri resort and spa lost in its quest to hire 15 foreign waitstaff for its tourist season after a U.S. Department of Labor appeals board ruled the resort failed to show its need for the foreign staff was temporary.
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June 05, 2024
Davis Polk Guiding Dollar Tree On Potential Family Dollar Sale
Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP is representing Dollar Tree Inc. in a formal strategic review of its Family Dollar business that could lead to a sale, spinoff or other disposition, the Virginia-based retailer revealed Wednesday.
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June 05, 2024
McDonald's Loses 'Big Mac' TM Rights Over Poultry In EU
A European Union court on Wednesday stripped McDonald's of its right to use the "Big Mac" trademark on chicken sandwiches in the bloc, ruling that the fast food giant had failed to put the sign to proper use on poultry products in recent years.
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June 05, 2024
Fish Taco Chain Rubio's Files 2nd Bankruptcy In 4 Years
The California-based fish taco-focused chain Rubio's Coastal Grill filed its second Chapter 11 bankruptcy in four years on Wednesday in Delaware, saying it had between $100 million and $500 million of liabilities and plans for an asset sale.
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June 04, 2024
9th Circ. Backs Agency Denial Of Partnership's Crop Policy
The Federal Crop Insurance Corp. reasonably interpreted a policy that was canceled by an insurer after a farming partnership filed a claim seeking the full $1.9 million limit, the Ninth Circuit ruled Tuesday, affirming a decision backing the FCIC's conclusion that the operation didn't qualify for coverage.
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June 04, 2024
Shrimp Group Tries To Revive Commerce's Abandoned Duties
A shrimp producers' trade group advocated at the Federal Circuit on Tuesday for anti-dumping duty rates that the U.S. Department of Commerce has abandoned, after the agency recalculated and lowered the rates following an order from the U.S. Court of International Trade.
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June 04, 2024
Fed. Circ. Pours Doubt On Trademark Board's 'Cognac' Ruling
Federal Circuit judges on Tuesday repeatedly expressed skepticism over a split administrative board ruling that allowed a small hip-hop record label to land a trademark using the word "cognac" over objections from the cognac distilling industry.
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June 04, 2024
Regions Bank Escapes Ex-Ruby Tuesday Execs' Benefits Suit
A Tennessee federal judge threw out a lawsuit lodged by former Ruby Tuesday managers alleging Regions Bank caused them to lose out on more than $35 million by inadequately protecting their pensions and breaching its duties as trustee, saying the retirement plans in question are exempt from federal benefits law.
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June 04, 2024
SEC Inks Deal With Ex-Food Co. Execs Over Misspent Funds
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has reached a $7.8 million settlement with former executives of HF Foods over claims they siphoned millions of dollars from the company for personal use in a scheme that was eventually revealed after HF Foods went public with a blank check company.
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June 04, 2024
DOD, Supplier End Long-Running Dispute Over $8B Food Deal
The Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals has tossed all remaining claims in a long-running dispute over Supreme Foodservice GmbH's roughly $8 billion contract to provide food to U.S. troops, after the company and the Defense Logistics Agency jointly agreed to end the case.
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June 04, 2024
Franchise Co. Faces Sanctions For 'Frivolous' 7th Circ. Appeal
The Seventh Circuit has upheld a district court's order that restaurant franchise company Sun Holdings Inc. must pay insurer American Zurich a roughly $1.1 million arbitration award plus interest and attorney fees in a dispute over a workers' compensation policy, and ordered Sun Holdings to show cause for why further sanctions aren't warranted for a "frivolous appeal."
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June 04, 2024
Red States Target EPA's Tribal Water Rights Rule
A group of red states has told a federal court that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has turned the Clean Water Act into what they derisively called the "Tribal Rights Act," through a rule that protects Native American rights to water resources.
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June 04, 2024
Mondelez, BCLP Must Face Negligence Claims Over 2023 Breach
An Illinois federal judge has trimmed the majority of claims in proposed data privacy class actions brought by Mondelez workers against their employer and Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner LLP stemming from a 2023 data breach, although the company and law firm couldn't shake the cases entirely.
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June 03, 2024
General Mills Facility Run By White Supremacists, Suit Says
General Mills workers sued in Georgia federal court on Sunday alleging the food giant tolerated a racist environment at its Covington plant perpetuated by a fraternity of white male supremacists who used Confederate and Ku Klux Klan-associated imagery and who treated Black workers unfairly, including by denying them promotions.
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June 03, 2024
Hooters Can't Yet Ditch Ex-Workers' Sex Harassment Claims
A California appellate court has refused to undo a lower court's decision finding that Hooters of America must continue to fight former servers' allegations that they were harassed and abused at work, ruling that Hooters hasn't met its burden of showing that it was entitled to summary adjudication.
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June 03, 2024
California Pizza Kitchen Hack Deal Is Half Baked, 9th Circ. Told
An attorney for objectors to a settlement between a class of current and former California Pizza Kitchen employees and the restaurant chain over a data breach told a Ninth Circuit panel on Monday that the district court did not properly scrutinize the deal or allegations of collusion between the parties.
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June 03, 2024
USDA Proposes Another Rule To Protect Chicken Farmers
The U.S. Department of Agriculture proposed a rule Monday to make changes to the way poultry farmers are compensated, as the agency looks to address alleged abuses by the large processing companies that also supply the chickens.
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June 03, 2024
Kroger, Albertsons Can't Get More Info On FTC Markets
An Oregon federal judge denied Kroger and Albertsons' requests for more information on the markets at issue in the Federal Trade Commission's ongoing attempt to block their merger, saying the companies' request is premature and excessively broad.
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June 03, 2024
Burford-Sysco Plaintiff Swap Stays Nixed In Price-Fixing Case
A Minnesota federal judge refused Monday to let a unit of legal investment firm Burford Capital substitute for Sysco Corp. as plaintiff in sprawling price-fixing lawsuits against pork and beef producers, agreeing with a magistrate judge's conclusions that allowing a litigation funder to dictate antitrust settlements "could have a detrimental impact."
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June 03, 2024
Treasury Aims To Salvage Corp. Transparency Act At 11th Circ.
The Corporate Transparency Act is a valid exercise of congressional authority to curb money laundering under the commerce clause and the necessary and proper clause in the Constitution, the U.S. Treasury Department told the Eleventh Circuit on Monday in a bid to restore the law's reporting requirements.
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June 03, 2024
El Pollo Loco Hit With Wage, Hostile Work Environment Claims
El Pollo Loco did not provide a former assistant manager with meal breaks or overtime or pay him the full wages he was promised, and store managers mocked him for requesting leave to tend to his ailing mother, the ex-worker alleged in a complaint filed in state court.
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June 03, 2024
Chicago Restaurant Biz Can Fix Testimony Without Sanctions
A Cook County judge on Monday refused to order the management group behind celebrated Chicago eatery Maple & Ash to produce thousands of documents that it claims are subject to attorney-client privilege as a sanction for misstating when an engagement letter was signed in sworn testimony, saying the issue was concerning but deeming the relief sought inappropriate.
Expert Analysis
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Series
ESG Around The World: The UK
Following Brexit, the U.K. has adopted a different approach to regulating environmental, social and governance factors from the European Union — an approach that focuses on climate disclosures by U.K.-regulated entities, while steering clear of the more ambitious objectives pursued by the EU, say attorneys at Dechert.
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Boeing Opinion Strikes Blow Against Overpayment Theory
The Fifth Circuit's decision in Earl v. Boeing Co. casts doubt on consumers' standing to bring claims of overpayment for products later revealed to have defects — and suggests that it's more likely that those products would have been removed from the market, driving up the price of alternatives, say attorneys at Bush Seyferth.
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Tips For Litigating Against Pro Se Parties In Complex Disputes
Litigating against self-represented parties in complex cases can pose unique challenges for attorneys, but for the most part, it requires the same skills that are useful in other cases — from documenting everything to understanding one’s ethical duties, says Bryan Ketroser at Alto Litigation.
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Compliance Primer: Foreign Investment In US Real Property
The rise in foreign investment in U.S. real property, especially agricultural land, has led to increased national security concerns, meaning it’s important to understand reporting requirements under the Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act and state-level statutes, and to monitor legislative proposals that could create more stringent reporting and review processes, say attorneys at K&L Gates.
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New Initiatives Will Advance Corporate Biodiversity Reporting
Two important recent developments — the launch of the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures' framework on nature and biodiversity reporting, and Nature Action 100's announcement of the 100 companies it plans to engage on biodiversity issues — will help bring biodiversity disclosures into the mainstream, say David Woodcock and Maria Banda at Gibson Dunn.
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Class Action Defense: Don't Give Up On Bristol-Myers Squibb
Federal appellate court decisions in the six years since the U.S. Supreme Court decided Bristol-Myers Squibb show that it's anyone's ballgame in class action jurisdictional arguments, so defendants are encouraged to consider carefully whether, where and when arguing lack of specific personal jurisdiction may be advantageous, say attorneys at K&L Gates.
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Pro Bono Work Is Powerful Self-Help For Attorneys
Oct. 22-28 is Pro Bono Week, serving as a useful reminder that offering free legal help to the public can help attorneys expand their legal toolbox, forge community relationships and create human connections, despite the challenges of this kind of work, says Orlando Lopez at Culhane Meadows.
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High Court Bakery Driver Case Could Limit Worker Arbitration
Employers that require arbitration of worker claims under the Federal Arbitration Act should closely follow Bissonnette v. LePage Bakeries as it goes before the U.S. Supreme Court, which could thoroughly expand the definition of “transportation workers” who are exempt from compulsory arbitration and force companies to field more employee disputes in court, says Nick Morisani at Phelps Dunbar.
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State Regs Sow Discord Between Cannabis, Hemp Industries
Connecticut, Maryland and Washington are the latest states choosing to require intoxicating hemp products to comply with the states' recreational marijuana laws, resulting in a widening rift between cannabis and hemp as Congress works on crafting new hemp legislation within the upcoming 2023 Farm Bill, say attorneys at Wilson Elser.
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Series
Playing In A Rock Cover Band Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Performing in a classic rock cover band has driven me to hone several skills — including focus, organization and networking — that have benefited my professional development, demonstrating that taking time to follow your muse outside of work can be a boon to your career, says Michael Gambro at Cadwalader.
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How Cos. Can Prioritize Accessibility Amid Increase In Suits
The U.S. Department of Justice's notice of proposed rulemaking on digital accessibility and recent legal proceedings regarding tester plaintiff standing in accessibility cases show websites and mobile apps are a growing focus, so businesses must proactively ensure digital content complies with the Americans with Disabilities Act, say attorneys at Hinckley Allen.
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Series
The Pop Culture Docket: Judge Espinosa On 'Lincoln Lawyer'
The murder trials in Netflix’s “The Lincoln Lawyer” illustrate the stark contrast between the ethical high ground that fosters and maintains the criminal justice system's integrity, and the ethical abyss that can undermine it, with an important reminder for all legal practitioners, say Judge Adam Espinosa and Andrew Howard at the Colorado 2nd Judicial District Court.
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Lessons On Arbitration Carveouts From Diddy-Diageo Suit
After Sean "Diddy" Combs brought a racial discrimination suit in New York state court against Diageo, the company has been unable to compel arbitration under its distribution agreement with Combs, underscoring the importance of narrowly tailoring arbitration carveouts for injunctive relief, says Rosanne Felicello at Felicello Law.
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Calif. GHG Disclosure Law Will Affect Companies Worldwide
California's Climate Corporate Data Accountability Act, which will require comprehensive greenhouse gas emissions disclosures from large companies operating in the state, will mean compliance challenges for a wide range of industries, nationally and globally, as the law's requirements will ultimately trickle out and down, say attorneys at Brownstein Hyatt.
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NY Rulings Show Tough Odds For 'Made With' Class Actions
Two recent dismissals of proposed class actions — over alleged misrepresentations of food product ingredients — in New York federal courts suggest a growing skepticism of challenges to "made with"-type claims, but companies that decide to make such claims should still consider options to mitigate litigation risk, say Ashley Simonsen and Kaixin Fan at Covington.