Food & Beverage

  • December 09, 2025

    Feds Push For Dismissal Of H-2A Wage Rule Suit

    The Trump administration asked a Florida federal judge to dismiss a suit challenging a Biden-era rule that boosted wages for foreign H-2A farmworkers, saying the case is moot after a Louisiana federal judge permanently blocked the rule nationwide.

  • December 08, 2025

    Baby Food Cos., Parents Clash On Heavy Metals MDL Experts

    A California federal judge heard arguments Monday over what expert witness evidence to allow in an upcoming trial over whether lead and arsenic in baby food from Gerber, Beech-Nut, Walmart and others contributed to ADHD and autism in children, as counsel from both sides kicked off a high-profile weeklong Daubert hearing.

  • December 08, 2025

    7-Eleven To Pay $4.5M Penalty Over Fla. Gas Station Buy

    7-Eleven Inc. and its Japanese parent company will pay a historic $4.5 million penalty to settle the Federal Trade Commission's allegations that the convenience store giant bought a Florida gas station without first informing the FTC, in violation of a 2018 agreement, the agency announced Monday.

  • December 08, 2025

    USDA Appealing Chilean Grape Fumigation Decision

    The U.S. Department of Agriculture is appealing a D.C. federal judge's decision vacating a 2024 rule change that allowed Chilean table grapes to be imported into the country even if they hadn't been fumigated with methyl bromide to kill pests.

  • December 08, 2025

    Inari Loses Fed. Circ. Bid To Save Corn Seed Patent Review

    The Federal Circuit Monday rejected Inari Agriculture's mandamus petition claiming the Patent Trial and Appeal Board used an unfairly high standard when denying its request for post-grant review of a Corteva Inc. unit's patent. 

  • December 08, 2025

    7th Circ. Questions Popcorn Shop Director's Retaliation Proof

    A Seventh Circuit panel appeared doubtful Monday that a former assistant research and development director for Chicago's iconic Garrett Popcorn Shops had enough direct evidence to try to convince a jury that lodging several federal food safety complaints led to her termination.

  • December 08, 2025

    Food Biz Groups Say Texas Food Label Law Unconstitutional

    Food industry trade groups on Friday said the recent "Make Texas Healthy Again Act" is unconstitutional since the government is forcing them to spread inaccurate information about the safety of products, adding that the law undermines the domestic regulation of food safety.

  • December 08, 2025

    EU Clears Mars' $36B Deal For Pringles Maker After Probe

    European competition enforcers approved snack food and candy giant Mars Inc.'s planned $35.9 billion purchase of Cheez-It and Pringles maker Kellanova, after an in-depth review found the move would not give the combined company too much leverage over retailers.

  • December 08, 2025

    Ex-Kellogg Worker's Suit Over 401(k) Fees Tossed For Good

    Kellogg escaped a former employee's proposed class action alleging the food manufacturer lost its workers millions in retirement savings because of excessive recordkeeping fees, after a Michigan federal judge ruled Monday that the allegations failed to state a claim for violating federal benefits law. 

  • December 08, 2025

    Ex-Josh Cellars President Fights Gibson Dunn Withdrawal Bid

    The former president of the company behind the Josh Cellars wine brand disputed Gibson Dunn & Crutcher LLP's version of events around his allegedly unpaid legal bills, saying he has questions about the reasonableness of the firm's charges, which must be arbitrated per his contract with the firm.

  • December 08, 2025

    4 Firms Lead $1.51B TC Transcontinental Packaging Deal

    Private equity-backed ProAmpac on Monday unveiled plans to acquire TC Transcontinental Packaging from TC Transcontinental in a $1.51 billion deal built by four law firms.

  • December 08, 2025

    Israeli Meat Co. Owes $35M For NC Facility, Court Told

    An Israeli venture capital-backed cultivated meat company breached a payment agreement for work on its inaugural facility in North Carolina and now owes the builder over $35 million, according to a lawsuit filed in North Carolina federal court.

  • December 08, 2025

    Catching Up With Delaware's Chancery Court

    The Delaware Chancery Court delivered a busy first week of December, featuring commercial disputes, post-closing merger and acquisition battles and renewed scrutiny of fiduciary conduct ranging from oil and gas investments to healthcare acquisitions. 

  • December 08, 2025

    Fired Worker Can't Get Justices To Mull Burden-Shifting Test

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday turned away a former restaurant worker who said she was unlawfully fired after a diabetic episode, declining her invitation to review a legal test used to determine the viability of employment bias claims.

  • December 08, 2025

    High Court Skips Christian Baker's Wedding Cake Battle

    The U.S. Supreme Court refused Monday to hear a Christian bakery owner's challenge to a California appeals court's decision that the business's policy against selling baked goods for same-sex ceremonies amounted to unlawful discrimination.

  • December 05, 2025

    NC Restaurants Hit With DOL Suit Over Pooled Tips

    Two North Carolina restaurants have, for four years, kept and pooled tips from front-of-house employees, while unlawfully distributing them to tip-ineligible, back-of-house employees in order to offset labor costs, the U.S. Department of Labor told a North Carolina federal court.

  • December 05, 2025

    COVID Loss Insurance Suit Trimmed, But Eateries Can Refile

    A North Carolina federal judge trimmed two of four claims in a COVID-related insurance coverage lawsuit filed by four restaurants against Cincinnati Insurance Co. after the insurer denied coverage for financial losses during the pandemic, but told the restaurants they could refile their complaint. 

  • December 05, 2025

    Federal Hemp Ban Enforcement Uncertain, Report Finds

    It is unclear how or whether federal agencies will enforce the federal ban on intoxicating hemp due to take effect in 11 months or apply the same hands-off approach that has governed marijuana, according to a recent report from the Congressional Research Service.

  • December 05, 2025

    Berry Grower Sues Norfolk Southern Over Drifting Weed Killer

    Toxic herbicides sprayed along sections of Norfolk Southern Railroad Co. track in Georgia are drifting into a commercial blueberry grower's adjacent property and damaging its crops, the grower said in a new federal suit. 

  • December 05, 2025

    Judge Won't Exit Agri Stats DOJ Case Over Clerk Connection

    A Minnesota federal judge refused to recuse himself from a case accusing Agri Stats of helping meat processors exchange sensitive information based on a clerk's past work on related cases, after refusing a similar request in a case over pork prices.

  • December 05, 2025

    FTC's Abandoned Pepsi Pricing Case Will Be Mostly Unsealed

    A New York federal court agreed to largely unseal the Federal Trade Commission's price discrimination complaint against PepsiCo Inc. despite protests from the beverage company and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce after enforcers dropped the case earlier this year.

  • December 05, 2025

    Nickel For Your Thoughts? Dems Want Plan For Ending Penny

    Top Democrats on banking and financial services committees are claiming the Trump administration has not formulated a sufficient plan for the transition away from the penny and are asking for a public plan by Dec. 12.

  • December 05, 2025

    Pa. Food Distributor Hit With Off-The-Clock Work Suit

    A Philadelphia-based food distribution company failed to pay employees for mandatory work done before and after their shifts, a proposed class action alleges.

  • December 04, 2025

    Calif. Judge Tosses Baby Food Experts In Heavy Metals Suits

    A California state judge Wednesday tossed experts in a suit alleging that the presence of heavy metals in Hain Celestial baby foods caused a child's brain damage, finding that a toxicologist couldn't single out exposure from different companies.

  • December 04, 2025

    Class Cert. Denied In Splenda False Ad Suit

    A California federal judge on Wednesday declined to certify a class of consumers who claim that Splenda falsely advertised that its sweetener packets were "suitable for people with diabetes," partly because the lead plaintiff is prediabetic.

Expert Analysis

  • A Look At Trump 2.0 Antitrust Enforcement So Far

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    The first six months of President Donald Trump's second administration were marked by aggressive antitrust enforcement tempered by traditional structural remedies for mergers, but other unprecedented actions, like the firing of Federal Trade Commission Democrats, will likely stoke heated discussion ahead, says Richard Dagen at Axinn.

  • Litigation Inspiration: How To Respond After A Loss

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    Every litigator loses a case now and then, and the sting of that loss can become a medicine that strengthens or a poison that corrodes, depending on how the attorney responds, says Bennett Rawicki at Hilgers Graben.

  • Tips For Cos. From California Climate Reporting FAQ

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    New guidance from the California Air Resources Board on how businesses must implement the state's sweeping climate reporting requirements should help companies assess their exposure, understand their disclosure obligations and begin documenting good-faith compliance efforts, says Thierry Montoya at Frost Brown.

  • FDA's Hasty Policymaking Approach Faces APA Challenges

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    Though the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has abandoned its usual notice-and-comment process for implementing new regulatory initiatives, two recent district court decisions make clear that these programs are still susceptible to Administrative Procedure Act challenges, says Rachel Turow at Skadden.

  • The Metamorphosis Of The Major Questions Doctrine

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    The so-called major questions doctrine arose as a counterweight to Chevron deference over the past few decades, but invocations of the doctrine have persisted in the year since Chevron was overturned, suggesting it still has a role to play in reining in agency overreach, say attorneys at Crowell & Moring.

  • What 9th Circ. Cracker Barrel Ruling Means For FLSA Cert.

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    The Ninth Circuit's decision in Harrington v. Cracker Barrel suggests a settling of two procedural trends in Fair Labor Standards Act jurisprudence — when to issue notice and where nationwide collectives can be filed — rather than deepening circuit splits, says Rebecca Ojserkis at Cohen Milstein.

  • Defense Lessons From Freshworks' Win In Post-IPO Case

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    A California federal court’s recent decision to grant Freshworks’ summary judgment bid in a proposed investor class action helpfully clarifies two important points for defendants facing postoffering securities claims under Section 11 of the Securities Act, say attorneys at Paul Weiss.

  • Series

    Playing Mah-Jongg Makes Me A Better Mediator

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    Mah-jongg rewards patience, pattern recognition, adaptability and keen observation, all skills that are invaluable to my role as a mediator, and to all mediating parties, says Marina Corodemus.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Navigating Client Trauma

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    Law schools don't train students to handle repeated exposure to clients' traumatic experiences, but for litigators practicing in areas like civil rights and personal injury, success depends on the ability to view cases clinically and to recognize when you may need to seek help, says Katie Bennett at Robins Kaplan.

  • Challenging A Class Representative's Adequacy And Typicality

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    Recent cases highlight that a named plaintiff cannot certify a putative class action unless they can meet all the applicable requirements of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, so defendants should consider challenging a plaintiff's ability to meet typicality and adequacy requirements early and often, say attorneys at Womble Bond.

  • Opinion

    4 Former Justices Would Likely Frown On Litigation Funding

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    As courts increasingly confront cases involving hidden litigation finance contracts, the jurisprudence of four former U.S. Supreme Court justices establishes a constitutional framework that risks erosion by undisclosed financial interests, says Roland Eisenhuth at the American Property Casualty Insurance Association.

  • How Attys Can Use AI To Surface Narratives In E-Discovery

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    E-discovery has reached a turning point where document review is no longer just about procedural tasks like identifying relevance and redacting privilege — rather, generative artificial intelligence tools now allow attorneys to draw connections, extract meaning and tell a coherent story, says Rose Jones at Hilgers Graben.

  • Series

    Playing The Violin Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Playing violin in a string quartet reminds me that flexibility, ambition, strong listening skills, thoughtful leadership and intentional collaboration are all keys to a successful legal practice, says Julie Park at MoFo.

  • DOJ Enforcement Trends To Watch In 2nd Half Of 2025

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    Recent investigations, settlements and a declination to prosecute suggest that controlling the flow of goods into and out of the country, and redressing what the administration sees as reverse discrimination, are likely to be at the forefront of the U.S. Department of Justice's enforcement agenda the rest of this year, say attorneys at Baker Botts.

  • Federal Regs Order May Spell Harsher FDCA Enforcement

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    A recent executive order aimed at reducing criminal prosecutions of those who unknowingly violate complex federal regulations may actually lead to more aggressive felony indictments under the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, but companies and executives can mitigate risks by following several key principals, say attorneys at McGuireWoods.

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