Food & Beverage

  • December 11, 2025

    Split Pa. Panel Blocks Police Reports On Liquor Licensee

    A trial court was wrong to deny a Philadelphia establishment's appeal for renewal of its liquor license, since nearly a dozen police reports the court considered should have been excluded as hearsay, a split appellate panel said Thursday.

  • December 11, 2025

    Agri Stats Says DOJ Wants To 'Leapfrog' Pork Pricing Claims

    Agri Stats urged a Minnesota federal court to reject the Justice Department's bid to "leapfrog" a set of private antitrust cases involving pork prices by using a scheduled May trial for its information sharing claims against the data firm instead.

  • December 11, 2025

    Josh Cellars President Denied Early Win In $4M Royalty Feud

    The former president of the company that produces Josh Cellars wines has been denied an early win in a $4 million trademark royalties lawsuit because a judge said she cannot resolve whether the parties orally amended an LLC agreement or whether a clause requiring written alterations is controlling.

  • December 11, 2025

    Ga. Justices Leave $500K Atty Fee Lien In Place

    The Georgia Supreme Court decided it won't review a lower appellate court's ruling that upheld a nearly $500,000 lien awarded to a team of Atlanta personal injury lawyers who said they were bilked by a former client.

  • December 11, 2025

    EDTX Jury Finds TV Ad Tech Patent Invalid In Win For Taiv

    A Texas federal jury on Thursday cleared Canadian smart TV box company Taiv Inc. of infringement allegations by MyChoice LLC over a television advertising technology patent, and also found the patent was invalid.

  • December 10, 2025

    Del. Court Keeps Alive Board Liability Claims In Blue Bell Suit

    Citing questions surrounding a five-year failure to press director and officer claims to liability releases during litigation over tainted ice cream, a Delaware vice chancellor on Wednesday rejected judgment on the pleadings favoring the releases, marking the latest twist of the eight-year Blue Bell Creameries damages saga.

  • December 10, 2025

    Starbucks DEI Goals Are 'Race-Based Quotas,' Fla. AG Claims

    Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier is accusing coffee giant Starbucks Corp. of violating state civil rights protections in its efforts to promote an inclusive workforce, claiming in a state lawsuit Wednesday that the company's diversity, equity and inclusion policies "cross the line into illegal, race-based quotas."

  • December 10, 2025

    Amazon Shoppers In Price-Hike Suit Say Retailer Deleted Docs

    Amazon shoppers accusing the e-commerce giant of price-gouging during the COVID-19 pandemic urged a Seattle federal judge to sanction the company for allegedly destroying an "untold number of documents" crucial to their proposed consumer class action.

  • December 10, 2025

    6th Circ. Chides US For Lacking Merits In Distilling Ban Case

    A Sixth Circuit judge criticized the U.S. Department of Justice on Wednesday for refusing to address the merits of a suit challenging the constitutionality of the U.S. tax code's ban on home distilling, saying the government cannot decide what the appellate court reviews.

  • December 10, 2025

    Sens. Pitch Hemp Regulation Bill Following Passage Of Ban

    U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., reintroduced a bill Wednesday that would regulate products with hemp-derived cannabinoids, with an emphasis on age gating, manufacturing standards, and testing and labeling requirements.

  • December 10, 2025

    Dreyer's Misleads Fruit Bar Buyers About 'Processed' Treats

    Dreyer's falsely claims that its Outshine fruit bars are nutritionally equivalent to eating real fruit, despite containing large amounts of added sugar and artificial ingredients, which means the products are "engineered, processed desserts, not simple frozen fruit," a proposed class action filed Tuesday in California federal court alleges.

  • December 10, 2025

    Supreme Court Urged To Deny Alaska's Fishing Regs Petition

    The U.S. and tribal associations are asking the Supreme Court to deny the state of Alaska's petition that seeks to reverse a Ninth Circuit order that barred it from opening part of the Kuskokwim River to all fishers, arguing that any intervention in the dispute should come from Congress.

  • December 09, 2025

    Smucker Pet Food Buyers Near Cert. In PFAS Disclosure Fight

    A California federal judge said Tuesday he's inclined to certify a class of consumers who allege The J.M. Smucker Co. failed to disclose risks of so-called PFAS forever chemicals in pet-food packaging contaminating kibble, telling counsel during a hearing that many issues Smucker raises "are better addressed on the merits."

  • December 09, 2025

    Chipotle Bowl Delivered By DoorDash Had 'Rodent,' Suit Says

    A New York woman has sued Chipotle, DoorDash and one of the food delivery company's "dashers," alleging in a complaint filed in New York state court that she "bit into a rodent" concealed in a burrito bowl she had delivered from the fast-casual restaurant chain.

  • December 09, 2025

    Tyson Seeks Del. Toss Of Suit For Poultry Growing Docs

    An attorney for a Tyson Foods Inc. stockholder told a Delaware magistrate in Chancery on Monday that records and sources spanning years support allegations of mismanagement and animal abuse and cruelty in poultry production, justifying wider document access.

  • December 09, 2025

    Starbucks Loses Bid For Second Look At 'Triple Shot' Ruling

    Starbucks can't get a Seattle federal judge to revise his order allowing a proposed investor class action over its "Triple Shot" reinvention plan to proceed, with the judge saying a recent Ninth Circuit decision on an investor suit over an ad slogan does not change his position.

  • December 09, 2025

    McDonald's Narrows Fired Worker's Sex Harassment Suit

    An ex-McDonald's worker failed to show she was fired for complaining that a co-worker sexually harassed her, an Illinois federal judge ruled, cutting claims from a proposed class action that the fast food giant often retaliated against workers who reported on-the-job sexual harassment.

  • December 09, 2025

    TTAB Rejection Of 'Kahwa' TM Reversed By Fed. Circ.

    The Federal Circuit on Tuesday reversed the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's rejection of a trademark registration for cafes called "Kahwa," saying just because it refers to a Central Asian green tea drink doesn't mean it's too generic to register as a trademark.

  • 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.

Expert Analysis

  • 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.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Practicing Self-Care

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    Law schools don’t teach the mental, physical and emotional health maintenance tools necessary to deal with the profession's many demands, but practicing self-care is an important key to success that can help to improve focus, manage stress and reduce burnout, says Rachel Leonard​​​​​​​ at MG+M.

  • ABA Opinion Makes It A Bit Easier To Drop A 'Hot Potato'

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    The American Bar Association's recent ethics opinion clarifies when attorneys may terminate clients without good cause, though courts may still disqualify a lawyer who drops a client like a hot potato, so sending a closeout letter is always a best practice, say attorneys at Thompson Hine.

  • Latest Influencer Marketing Class Actions Pinpoint 5 Themes

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    Several recent deceptive marketing class actions against both brands and influencers attempt to transform arguably routine business practices into a new focus area for consumer complaints, suggesting a coordinated approach to test what could become an increasingly popular area of litigation, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • How Trump's Trade Policies Are Shaping Foreign Investment

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    Five months into the Trump administration, investors are beginning to see the concrete effects of the president’s America First Investment Policy as it presents new opportunities for clearing transactions more quickly, while sustaining risk aversion related to Chinese trade and potentially creating different political risks, say attorneys at Covington.

  • Series

    My Opera And Baseball Careers Make Me A Better Lawyer

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    Though participating in opera and the world of professional baseball often pulls me away from the office, my avocations improve my legal career by helping me perform under scrutiny, prioritize team success, and maintain joy and perspective at work, says Adam Unger at Herrick Feinstein.

  • 4 Consumer Class Action Trends To Watch In 2nd Half Of 2025

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    The first half of 2025 has seen a surge of consumer class action trends related to online tools, websites and marketing messages, creating a new legal risk landscape for companies of all sizes, says Scott Shaffer at Olshan Frome.

  • 8 Ways Lawyers Can Protect The Rule Of Law In Their Work

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    Whether they are concerned with judicial independence, regulatory predictability or client confidence, lawyers can take specific meaningful actions on their own when traditional structures are too slow or too compromised to respond, says Angeli Patel at the Berkeley Center of Law and Business.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Communicating With Clients

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    Law school curricula often overlook client communication procedures, and those who actively teach this crucial facet of the practice can create exceptional client satisfaction and success, says Patrick Hanson at Wiggam Law.

  • One Year On, Davidson Holds Lessons On 'Health Halo' Claims

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    A year after the Ninth Circuit's Davidson v. Sprout Foods decision — which raised the bar for so-called health halo claims — food and beverage companies can draw insights from its finding, subsequently expanded on by other courts, that plaintiffs must be specific when alleging fraud in healthfulness marketing, say attorneys at Sidley.

  • Bill Leaves Renewable Cos. In Dark On Farmland Reporting

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    A U.S. Senate bill to update disclosure requirements for foreign control of U.S. farmland does not provide much-needed guidance on how to report renewable energy development on agricultural property, leaving significant compliance risks for project developers, say attorneys at Hodgson Russ.

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