Retail & E-Commerce

  • February 27, 2025

    Abbott Beats Ill. Customers' Similac Metals Suit

    Similac customers who say Abbott Laboratories illegally failed to warn the public about heavy metals in its infant formula cannot take those claims to trial because they haven't established damages, an Illinois federal judge said Wednesday.

  • February 27, 2025

    Starbucks, Patent Exec Reach Deal In Atty Defamation Case

    A patent-licensing company executive and Starbucks Corp. on Thursday settled a defamation suit over statements made by an attorney for Starbucks just days after the plaintiffs fired back on the company's attempt to exit the suit.

  • February 27, 2025

    Fried Frank Rips RICO Sanctions Bid As Intimidation Tactic

    Fried Frank Harris Shriver & Jacobson LLP and its client Tristar Products Inc. are pushing back on a motion for sanctions for bringing an anti-racketeering lawsuit against Telebrands Corp., arguing the bid is a "clear effort to intimidate" the plaintiffs and to impose additional cost and burden on them.

  • February 27, 2025

    DC AG Says 25 Unlicensed Pot Shops Have Been Shut Down

    The Washington, D.C., attorney general on Thursday announced that 25 unlicensed cannabis retailers have been shut down as a result of the district's efforts to enforce its cannabis regulations over the last six months.

  • February 27, 2025

    Anthropic Could Hit $62B Valuation, And More Deal Rumors

    AI startup Anthropic is close to securing funding at a $61.5 billion valuation, Bain Capital is mulling a sale of Rocket Software at a $10 billion valuation, and various additional private equity players are considering transactions across food, healthcare and finance. Here, Law360 breaks down these and other notable deal rumors from the past week.

  • February 27, 2025

    DraftKings To Pay $10M In NFT Proposed Class Settlement

    DraftKings Inc. will pay $10 million to users of the sports betting site who owned nonfungible tokens offered through its marketplace, according to a proposed settlement in the putative class action.

  • February 26, 2025

    Mercedes-Benz Drivers Win Class Cert. In Fla. Airbag MDL

    A Florida federal judge overseeing the multidistrict litigation over defective Takata airbags granted certification to several single and multistate class of Mercedes-Benz drivers on Wednesday, finding common issues connect the cases and that they can be efficiently managed in a single trial.

  • February 26, 2025

    Wash. Biz Group Fears Amazon Loss In Price-Gouging Suit

    Washington's largest business group is siding with Amazon's bid to dismiss a proposed class action alleging price-gouging during the COVID pandemic, in an amicus brief Wednesday that said consumers want to impose a flawed reading of consumer protection law that would leave businesses in limbo guessing what is fair or unfair.

  • February 26, 2025

    Lindell Says Defamation Jury Should See 118-Page Attack Doc

    My Pillow Inc. CEO Mike Lindell has urged a Colorado federal court to admit a highly critical 118-page opinion document into former Dominion Voting Systems executive Eric Coomer's upcoming defamation trial, though Coomer has called the document "hearsay within hearsay."

  • February 26, 2025

    COVID Plausible Cause For Tire Price Hikes, Judge Says

    Consumers, dealerships and other tire purchasers will need more than claims of pretextual explanations for price hikes by Bridgestone, Goodyear, Michelin and other producers after an Ohio federal judge dismissed the "unsupported conclusion" that the pandemic doesn't explain their claims of consolidated price fixing.

  • February 26, 2025

    Fuel Co. Trustee Accuses Ex-Owners Of $100M Buyout Fraud

    The founders and former majority owners of the bankrupt fuel distributor Mountain Express Oil Co. were hit with a lawsuit by the company's trustee Monday alleging that they took nearly $100 million out of the business through a bogus stock buyout that pushed it to the brink of insolvency.

  • February 26, 2025

    Joann To Wind Down Operations After Judge Approves Plan

    A Delaware bankruptcy judge on Wednesday approved renowned fabric and crafts retailer Joann Inc. to wind down its operations after a "global consensus" was reached among the debtor, lender and creditors committee, allowing the 80-year-old chain to hold going-out-of-business sales.

  • February 26, 2025

    38 AGs Push For Crackdown On Organized Retail Crime

    A bipartisan coalition of attorneys general from 38 states and territories is urging Congress to take legislative action against organized retail crime, warning in a new letter that the problem has reached unprecedented levels and is straining state enforcement resources.

  • February 26, 2025

    Party City Approved To Sell IP, Assets For $20.6M In Ch. 11

    A Texas bankruptcy judge on Wednesday blessed retailer Party City's bid to sell its brand name and other intellectual property to an affiliate of pop culture merchandiser Ad Populum for $20.6 million, rejecting a challenge to the deal by franchise owners that claimed the buyer was ill-equipped to take on contracts with their stores.

  • February 26, 2025

    Dollar Tree Reaches Deal To Exit Manager's FMLA Suit

    Dollar Tree struck a deal to resolve a former manager's lawsuit accusing the company of interfering with her rights under the Family and Medical Leave Act when she asked to take time off to care for her disabled son, a filing in Pennsylvania federal court said.

  • February 25, 2025

    Retailer Pushes To Ax 2,400 Web Tracking Arbitration Claims

    Children's clothing retailer Janie & Jack LLC is attempting to stave off more than 2,400 arbitration claims filed by individuals over the company's allegedly unlawful website tracking practices, telling a California federal court that the website visitors are "weaponizing" an arbitration agreement that doesn't even apply to them. 

  • February 25, 2025

    Walgreens Inks $595M Deal To End COVID-19 Testing Suit

    Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc. has agreed to pay $595 million to a lab testing and diagnostics company to put to rest a dispute over COVID-19 tests, according to a Monday filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

  • February 25, 2025

    GreenSky Loan Class Action Certified In Calif. Court

    A California federal judge has granted class certification to consumers suing GreenSky Inc. over alleged unlawful loan transaction fees, finding that expert analysis showed merchants likely passed these fees onto borrowers, but also granted summary judgment to the lending company on claims related to performance fees over the lack of evidence that consumers had to pay them.

  • February 25, 2025

    9th Circ. Won't Revive Consumers' Qualcomm Antitrust Suit

    The Ninth Circuit Tuesday declined to revive cellphone buyers' antitrust suit against Qualcomm, backing a California district court's rejection of the consumers' claim that Qualcomm's policy of refusing to sell chips to cellular manufacturers that did not license its patents ran afoul of California antitrust law.

  • February 25, 2025

    WestRock Blamed For Toxic Vapors In Worker's Injury Suit

    The WestRock packaging company has been hit with a negligence suit in Washington federal court by a worker who claims exposure to fumes from a chemical spill while doing repairs at a Pacific Northwest paper mill caused him to suffer a collapsed lung and later be diagnosed with a tumor.

  • February 25, 2025

    GoDaddy, Tech Co. Quietly Agree To Kill Antitrust Suit

    The world's largest domain registrar, GoDaddy, has come to terms with the company behind an antitrust suit claiming that it blackballed the tech company from its platform, according to documents filed recently in Virginia federal court.

  • February 25, 2025

    Meta Says 9th Circ. Shouldn't Touch Antitrust Cert. Denial

    The Ninth Circuit should refuse to take up the appeal of a proposed class that was denied certification due to its novel theory that Meta Platforms Inc. would have been forced to pay users for the use of their data if it hadn't lied about how it was using it, the social media behemoth has told the court.

  • February 25, 2025

    Kroger Seeks More Sanctions For Prolific Consumer Atty

    Kroger is urging an Illinois federal judge to sanction prolific consumer advocate lawyer Spencer Sheehan for filing a meritless suit over the effectiveness of its lidocaine patches, citing his "history of filing frivolous lawsuits across the nation" and a "troubling pattern of recklessness and abuse of the federal judiciary" for which he has been sanctioned three other times.

  • February 25, 2025

    Petrochemical Cos. Want Judge Out Of Plastic Recycling Row

    Petrochemical companies called on a Missouri federal judge to recuse himself from a proposed class action accusing them of misleading customers about the recyclability of plastic, saying his wife has a direct interest in the case as a Kansas City city council member.

  • February 25, 2025

    FTC Wins Discovery Spat In Amazon Prime Subscription Suit

    A Washington federal judge won't force the Federal Trade Commission to share with Amazon discussions during past rulemaking about the scope of a federal law protecting online shoppers from deceptive billing, concluding for a second time that such information is irrelevant to whether the company's Prime subscription practices are illegal.

Expert Analysis

  • E-Discovery Quarterly: Rulings On Custodian Selection

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    Several recent rulings make clear that the proportionality of additional proposed custodians will depend on whether the custodians have unique relevant documents, and producing parties should consider whether information already in the record will show that they have relevant documents that otherwise might not be produced, say attorneys at Sidley.

  • When Judging Product Label Claims, Follow The Asterisk

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    A recurring question in false advertising class actions is whether misleading or ambiguous statements on a product's front label can be cured by information on the back label — but recent decisions from the Ninth Circuit suggest that a front-label asterisk can help alert consumers to seek further clarification, say attorneys at Hunton.

  • Complying With Seasonal Product Labeling Requirements

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    Though the holiday season is in the rearview, many seasonal alcohol products remain in the market, and producers should ensure that their labels comply with the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau's additional requirements for such products, say attorneys at McDermott.

  • 2 Cases May Enlighten UK Funds' Securities Litigation Path

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    Following recent nine-figure settlements in securities class actions against Apple and Under Armour, U.K. pension funds may increasingly lead U.S. shareholder derivative suits, advocating for transparency, better risk management and stronger governance practices, say lawyers at Labaton Keller.

  • Series

    Exercising On My Peloton Bike Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    While I originally came to the Peloton bike for exercise, one cycling instructor’s teachings have come to serve as a road map for practicing law thoughtfully and mindfully, which has opened opportunities for growth and change in my career, says Andrea Kirshenbaum at Littler.

  • How To Manage During A Trade Dispute With USMCA Partners

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    Companies can try to minimize the potential impacts of future tariffs on Mexican and Canadian goods, and uncertainty about future trade relations, by evaluating supply chains, considering how they may be modified, and engaging with the new administration over exemptions and the upcoming review of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

  • 3 Factors Affecting Retail M&A Deals In 2025

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    Retailers considering mergers and acquisitions this year face an evolving antitrust environment, including a new administration under President-elect Donald Trump, revised merger guidelines and a precedent set last year by a canceled $8.5 billion handbag merger, say attorneys at DLA Piper.

  • Exploring Venue Strategy For Trump-Era Regulatory Litigation

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    Litigation will likely play a prominent role in shaping policy outcomes during the second Trump administration, and stakeholders have several tools at their disposal to steer regulatory litigation toward more favorable venues, say attorneys at Covington.

  • Searching For Insight On Requested Google Chrome Remedy

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    The potential for Google to divest its Chrome browser — a remedy requested by the Justice Department following a D.C. federal court’s finding the company is a monopolist — has drawn both criticism and endorsement, but legal precedent likely supports the former, say attorneys at Ballard Spahr.

  • Lessons Learned From 2024's Top ADA Decisions

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    Last year's major litigation related to the Americans with Disabilities Act highlights that when dealing with accommodation requests, employers must communicate clearly, appreciate context and remain flexible in addressing needs, say attorneys at Dechert.

  • Series

    Playing Esports Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Competing in a global esports tournament at Wimbledon last year not only fulfilled my childhood dream, but also sharpened skills that are essential to my day job, including strategic thinking, confidence and networking, says AJ Schuyler at Jackson Lewis.

  • Fed. Circ. In December: A Patent Prosecution History Lesson

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    Despite relying on two rock-solid principles of patent law, DDR lost its Federal Circuit case against Priceline.com, highlighting how a change in the scope of the invention from the provisional to the nonprovisional application can affect the court's analysis of how a skilled artisan would understand claim terms after reading the prosecution history, say attorneys at Knobbe Martens.

  • Retailers Must Adapt As Courts Shift On False Price Claims

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    The increasing frequency with which courts are denying motions to dismiss false reference price claims signals that these lawsuits are not going away anytime soon, so retailers must be prepared for a more complex and prolonged defense process, say attorneys at Akerman.

  • An Associate's Guide To Career Development In 2025

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    As the new year begins, associates at all levels should consider establishing career metrics, fostering key relationships and employing other specific strategies to help move through the complexities of the legal profession with confidence and emerge as trailblazers, say EJ Stern and Amanda George at Fractional Law Firm.

  • Reviewing 2024's Crucial Patent Law Developments

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    As 2024 draws to a close, significant rulings and policies aimed at modernizing long-standing legal practices or addressing emerging challenges have reached patent law, says Michael Ellenberger at Rothwell Figg.

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