Retail & E-Commerce

  • February 18, 2025

    Stanley Black & Decker Says Tumbler Maker Violated TM Deal

    Stanley Black & Decker sued the maker of the popular "Stanley" tumbler, claiming in its federal complaint filed Tuesday that Pacific Market International LLC ignored obligations under a trademark agreement to use the brand name in a restricted manner and may have earned billions of sales through infringing activities.

  • February 18, 2025

    Calif. Bill Takes Aim At Online Hemp, Cannabis Sales

    California state Senator Scott Wiener has introduced a bill to restrict the online sale of unlicensed hemp and cannabis products in the state, saying the illicit market is hampering the state's licensed, legal market for products.

  • February 18, 2025

    Pot Co. Alliance Adds Class Claims To DC Dispensaries Suits

    A group of medical cannabis companies is adding class claims to suits it has filed against companies it alleges are acting as illegal recreational dispensaries in anticipation of consolidation of the suits.

  • February 18, 2025

    NY Broadens Tax Break Guidelines For Development Projects

    New York state broadened guidelines for determining whether some economic development projects may be eligible for property and sales tax exemptions based on the level of a project's on-site child care services under clarifying legislation signed by Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul.

  • February 18, 2025

    Jones Day Leads Sherwin-Williams On $1.15B Brazil Paint Buy

    Jones Day is guiding Cleveland-based Sherwin-Williams Co. on a new deal to buy the Brazilian architectural paints business of BASF Group, advised by Linklaters and Machado Meyer, for $1.15 billion in cash.

  • February 18, 2025

    Baker Botts Partner Says Inventor's Atty Is Threatening Her

    A Baker Botts LLP lawyer being sued over her comments in a news article about a patent suit against Starbucks Corp. accused opposing counsel of threatening her in an email exchange over the details of a deposition.

  • February 18, 2025

    Connecticut Art Business Seller Says Buyer Owes $2.3M

    A Wisconsin-based retailer that purchased an art marketing and distribution company from a family trust in 2019 has failed to make a $2.3 million payout based on its 2020 performance, according to a lawsuit in Connecticut state court.

  • February 18, 2025

    RBI Takes Control Of Burger King China, Seeks Local Partner

    Restaurant Brands International Inc. said Tuesday it has bought out two equity shareholders in Burger King China to amass nearly 100% of the business but will now search for a local partner to become Burger King China's controlling shareholder. 

  • February 18, 2025

    Pot Retailers Want Mass. City To Refund 'Impact Fees'

    Three cannabis retailers in the Boston suburb of Newton are seeking a refund of approximately $2 million in what they say were "clearly and unequivocally unlawful" fees paid to do business there, according to a lawsuit filed in state court.

  • February 14, 2025

    Judge Slams The Brakes On Peloton Bike Recall Claims

    A New York federal judge threw out, for now, a proposed investor action alleging Peloton overstated the safety of its bikes before 2.2 million products were recalled over a bike seat defect, ruling that the shareholders haven't adequately alleged the exercise company made any misleading statements.

  • February 14, 2025

    Uber Starts Antitrust Food Fight With DoorDash

    DoorDash Inc. has devised an unlawful scheme to stifle competition with its main rival, Uber Eats, by forcing restaurants to exclusively work with DoorDash to manage their in-house deliveries, which hikes costs for restaurants and customers, Uber Technologies Inc. alleges in a lawsuit filed Friday in Golden State court.

  • February 14, 2025

    Joy Dish Soap Deal Caused $12M Loss, Manufacturer Claims

    Alleging $12 million in losses, Michigan-based manufacturer N.V. Labs Inc., which does business as the Reforma Group, has sued Connecticut private equity firm Piney Lake Capital Management LP on allegations it dirtied a deal to produce Joy dish soap through a subsidiary after buying the brand from Procter & Gamble.

  • February 14, 2025

    'Not For Sale': OpenAI Rebuffs Musk's $97.4B Takeover Bid

    The board of directors for OpenAI voted unanimously on Friday to reject a $97.4 billion offer from Elon Musk and a consortium of investors to buy the artificial intelligence platform, with the board chair saying in a statement, "OpenAI is not for sale."

  • February 14, 2025

    SmileDirectClub Trustee Gets OK To Hire Orrick

    The Chapter 7 trustee liquidating SmileDirectClub can hire Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP as special litigation counsel, a Texas bankruptcy judge said Friday, concluding that Orrick met U.S. Bankruptcy Code requirements, despite him not being notified earlier of Orrick's previous work for the trustee.

  • February 14, 2025

    Supreme Court Asked To Rule On Fee Award After TM Mistrial

    A cosmetics distributor that was sued for trademark infringement and lost has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to determine whether attorney fees and costs awarded to the prevailing party should have been trimmed to account for a default judgment that was reversed and a mistrial attributed to the plaintiff's counsel.

  • February 14, 2025

    Judge Says Class Waited Too Long For Home Depot Fee Suit

    A Georgia federal judge has granted Home Depot an early win over a proposed class action alleging overcharges on tool rentals, ruling that the plaintiffs waived their claims by failing to provide written notice of disputed charges within the contract's 25-day deadline.

  • February 14, 2025

    EPA, Energy Dept. Rush To Fulfill Trump's Appliance Order

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Department of Energy said they're acting to comply with President Donald Trump's order — delivered via social media post — that they should undo Biden-era appliance efficiency standards.

  • February 14, 2025

    'Trump Too Small' Rejection Dooms Other Trump-Related TMs

    The Trademark Trial and Appeal Board has rejected four applications from a New York man who wanted to register trademarks that referred to U.S. President Donald Trump in a negative context, saying that the U.S. Supreme Court's decision last year affirming the board's refusal to register "Trump Too Small" in another case foreclosed his First Amendment arguments.

  • February 14, 2025

    State Lawmakers Eye Tighter Restrictions On Hemp Products

    Legislators in multiple states have introduced legislation aimed at regulating or restricting the manufacture and sale of products containing intoxicating cannabinoids derived or synthesized from federally lawful hemp.

  • February 14, 2025

    Farm Asks Judge To 'Please' Add $5M Interest To $32M Verdict

    A cannabis farm is asking a Michigan federal judge to "please, please" award $5 million in prejudgment interest on a $31.8 million verdict reached last month in a contract dispute with Curaleaf units, saying the companies have refused to cooperate in post-judgment talks to resolve the issue.

  • February 14, 2025

    Michigan Pot Co. Can't Intervene In Rival's Licensing Suit

    A Michigan federal judge won't let a Pontiac cannabis company intervene in a competitor's suit aiming to stop the city from issuing cannabis licenses.

  • February 14, 2025

    Illinois Vs. The Internet: IP Suits Over Online Sales Stir Debate

    Brands have unleashed a torrent of lawsuits across the U.S. that group dozens of online sellers into a single complaint for allegedly peddling counterfeit products, with Chicago emerging as the preferred venue for the litigation and inspiring a local federal judge to declare it has become "Illinois vs. The Internet."

  • February 14, 2025

    Womble Bond Adds BakerHostetler Business Partner In Irvine

    Womble Bond Dickinson has hired a former BakerHostetler partner, who joined the firm's business litigation practice group as a partner in Irvine, California.

  • February 13, 2025

    Kimberly-Clark, P&G Dodge Tampon Fraud Claims, For Now

    A California federal judge on Thursday dismissed a woman's fraud claims accusing Kimberly-Clark and Procter & Gamble of touting their Tampax and Kotex tampons as safe despite containing toxic levels of lead, saying that the putative class actions she filed lacked details on tests she asserted discovered the lead.

  • February 13, 2025

    Wash. Justices Wary Of Pay Transparency Law Stances

    Washington's highest court grilled attorneys on both sides of a debate over state pay transparency law on Thursday, with some justices suggesting the employer's stance put too much onus on workers while another expressed doubt the protections should extend to people who apply for jobs they have no chance to get.

Expert Analysis

  • 2nd Circ. American Girl Ruling Alters Test Purchase Norms

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    The Second Circuit's recent ruling in American Girl v. Zembrka overturns years of precedent that required completed test purchase shipments to establish jurisdiction in infringement cases, but litigators shouldn't abandon the strategy entirely, say Robert Wasnofski and Sara Gates at Dentons.

  • State Of The States' AI Legal Ethics Landscape

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    Over the past year, several state bar associations, as well as the American Bar Association, have released guidance on the ethical use of artificial intelligence in legal practice, all of which share overarching themes and some nuanced differences, say Eric Pacifici and Kevin Henderson at SMB Law Group.

  • Review Shipping Terms In Light Of These 3 Global Challenges

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    Given tensions in the Middle East, labor unrest at U.S. ports and the ongoing consequences of climate change, parties involved in maritime shipping must understand the relevant contract provisions and laws that may be implicated during supply chain disruptions in order to mitigate risks, say attorneys at Crowell & Moring.

  • Cos. Face Increasing Risk From Environmental Citizen Suits

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    Environmental citizen suits stepping in to fill the regulatory vacuum concerning consumer goods waste may soon become more common, and the evolving procedural landscape and changes to environmental law may contribute to companies' increased exposure, say J. Michael Showalter and Bradley Rochlen at ArentFox Schiff.

  • 8 Childhood Lessons That Can Help You Be A Better Attorney

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    A new school year is underway, marking a fitting time for attorneys to reflect on some fundamental life lessons from early childhood that offer a framework for problems that no legal textbook can solve, say Chris Gismondi and Chris Campbell at DLA Piper.

  • 2nd Circ. Provides NY Pathway For Fighting Foreign Infringers

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    A recent decision from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit provides a road map for expeditiously obtaining personal jurisdiction in New York against foreign trademark infringers based on a single purchase of counterfeit goods, meaning the Second Circuit could now be the preferred venue for combating foreign infringement, says Jeffrey Ratinoff at Spencer Fane.

  • Challenge To Ill. Card Fee Law Explores Compliance Hurdles

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    A recent federal lawsuit challenging an Illinois law that will soon forbid electronic payment networks from charging fees for processing the tax and tip portions of card transactions, fleshes out the glaring compliance challenges and exposure risks financial institutions must be ready to face next summer, says Martin Kiernan at Amundsen Davis.

  • Recent Securities Cases Highlight Risks In AI Disclosures

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    Increasing public disclosure about the use and risks of artificial intelligence, and related litigation asserting that such disclosures are false or misleading, suggest that issuers need to exercise great care with respect to how they describe the benefits of AI, say Richard Zelichov and Danny Tobey at DLA Piper.

  • Opinion

    This Election, We Need To Talk About Court Process

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    In recent decades, the U.S. Supreme Court has markedly transformed judicial processes — from summary judgment standards to notice pleadings — which has, in turn, affected individuals’ substantive rights, and we need to consider how the upcoming presidential election may continue this pattern, says Reuben Guttman at Guttman Buschner.

  • Series

    Playing Diplomacy Makes Us Better Lawyers

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    Similar to the practice of law, the rules of Diplomacy — a strategic board game set in pre-World War I Europe — are neither concise nor without ambiguity, and weekly gameplay with our colleagues has revealed the game's practical applications to our work as attorneys, say Jason Osborn and Ben Bevilacqua at Winston & Strawn.

  • New Law May Move Calif. Toward Fashion Sustainability

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    California’s recently signed Responsible Textile Recovery Act seeks to increase sustainability innovation in the fashion industry, but it could also create compliance hurdles for brands, especially smaller fashion houses that do not have ample resources, say Warren Koshofer and Maggie Franz at Michelman & Robinson.

  • Antitrust In Retail: Why FTC Is Studying 'Surveillance Pricing'

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    The Federal Trade Commission's decision to study targeted "surveillance pricing" should provide greater clarity into the nature of the data aggregation industry, but also raises several issues, including whether these practices are in fact illegal under any established interpretations of U.S. antitrust law, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

  • Mental Health First Aid: A Brief Primer For Attorneys

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    Amid a growing body of research finding that attorneys face higher rates of mental illness than the general population, firms should consider setting up mental health first aid training programs to help lawyers assess mental health challenges in their colleagues and intervene with compassion, say psychologists Shawn Healy and Tracey Meyers.

  • Series

    Collecting Art Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    The therapeutic aspects of appreciating and collecting art improve my legal practice by enhancing my observation skills, empathy, creativity and cultural awareness, says attorney Michael McCready.

  • The Trade And Tax Issues Behind US-Canada Digital Tax Clash

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    The new Canadian digital services tax recently went into effect despite objections from the U.S., a controversy that represents an unusual mix of trade and tax policy, and many companies have been pondering how it will affect their e-commerce businesses, says Damon Pike at BDO.

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