Retail & E-Commerce

  • March 25, 2024

    Texas Co. Hit With COVID Products Ban, $37.6M Fine To FTC

    A federal judge has ordered a Houston-area man and his company to pay the FTC nearly $37.6 million, writing that he "took advantage of consumers' desperation" during the COVID-19 pandemic and "consistently misled" customers about his ability to deliver personal protective equipment. 

  • March 25, 2024

    Pool Co. Objects To Rival Counsel's Exit After $15M Verdict

    A swimming pool equipment supply company that won a $15 million verdict against a competitor in North Carolina federal court is now attempting to block the rival's counsel from leaving the case, saying the company may use the loss of its attorneys as justification for delaying final judgment.

  • March 25, 2024

    3rd Circ. Won't Rethink AbbVie Privilege Ruling

    The Third Circuit refused Monday to reconsider a ruling that found AbbVie was unable to show a lower court went against precedent or made errors when ordering the drugmaker to turn over attorney communications from a patent case allegedly meant to delay an AndroGel rival.

  • March 25, 2024

    Catching Up With Delaware's Chancery Court

    Last week in Delaware's Court of Chancery, litigants battled as Truth Social went public, Carl Icahn and Tripadvisor hit a roadblock, and more shareholders wailed about "invasive" bylaws. Oil drilling and pharmaceutical mergers sparked new lawsuits, and a sewing machine trademark owner sued to end a contract.

  • March 25, 2024

    MNC Capital Ups Vista Outdoor Takeover Bid To $3B

    Dallas, Texas-based investment firm MNC Capital Partners on Monday upped its proposed takeover bid of Vista Outdoor Inc. by approximately $1 billion after the company rejected its initial offer, now offering roughly $3 billion to purchase the sporting and outdoor products company.

  • March 25, 2024

    7th Circ. Affirms Co. Can't Get $3.5M Software Deduction

    A healthcare company that helps nursing homes buy equipment is not entitled to $3.5 million in tax deductions meant for domestic software production, the Seventh Circuit ruled, saying the company failed to meet the threshold for the break because it didn't actually provide software to customers.

  • March 25, 2024

    Tech Giants Face 1st Probe Under EU Digital Markets Rules

    Alphabet, Apple and Meta are being investigated by the European Union over whether they comply with the Digital Markets Act, the first probes launched under regulations aimed at reining in the power of Big Tech, the bloc's executive arm said Monday.

  • March 22, 2024

    Edible Arrangements' Prior Deal Forecloses IP Row With Rival

    A Georgia federal judge ended Edible Arrangements' trademark suit accusing 1-800-Flowers.com of bidding on and buying keywords related to Edible's products for search engine advertisements, finding the parties' prior settlement releasing 1-800-Flowers from similar conduct challenged by Edible in Connecticut federal court years ago barred its current action.

  • March 22, 2024

    Cheerleading Giant Varsity Spirit Must Face Antitrust Suit

    A Texas federal court has refused to toss a suit accusing Varsity Spirit of working with competitive cheerleading governance bodies to boycott potential rivals and maintain its dominance over the sport.

  • March 22, 2024

    Google Can Arbitrate Collusion Claims While Apple Beats Suit

    For the second time, a California federal judge has forced into arbitration antitrust claims brought by a Golden State crane operator training school accusing Google of paying off Apple to not develop its own search engine while dismissing the rest of the claims against both tech behemoths.

  • March 22, 2024

    Inventor Urges High Court To Look At Fed. Circ. 1-Line Orders

    A businesswoman behind a small printing company is the latest litigant to head to the U.S. Supreme Court with complaints about the Federal Circuit's practice of issuing one-sentence Rule 36 orders.

  • March 22, 2024

    Lutron Cleared On Shade Trade Dress Claims

    A New York federal judge has thrown out trade dress claims that GeigTech brought against home lighting fixtures company Lutron, writing that "there is no evidence that Lutron wanted members of the consuming public to think that it was selling J. Geiger shades."

  • March 22, 2024

    Amazon, Apple Say Antitrust Attys Can't Ditch 'Fatal' Class Rep

    Amazon and Apple say plaintiffs' counsel in a proposed antitrust suit should be stuck with their class representative, who apparently ghosted his attorneys, arguing the lawyers should have to live with a plaintiff whose purchasing habits undercut the suit's very premise.

  • March 22, 2024

    Floral Co. Pays Feds $2M To End Migrant Exploitation Action

    A Washington floral wreath and garland manufacturer will pay $1.9 million to close a U.S. Department of Labor probe into allegations that it underpaid and withheld safe housing and transportation from hundreds of temporary migrant workers.

  • March 22, 2024

    Google Loses New Trial Bid After Epic Games' Antitrust Win

    A California federal judge denied Google LLC's bid for a new trial and teed up for a May hearing on a possible court-ordered injunction against the tech giant, following Epic Games' jury win on antitrust claims related to Google Play Store and Android apps.

  • March 22, 2024

    5th Circ. Axes EPA's PFAS Enforcement Against Plastic Co.

    The Fifth Circuit threw out two enforcement actions against a Texas plastic-container manufacturer that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency accused of creating perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances in its manufacturing process, saying the agency exceeded its statutory authority.

  • March 22, 2024

    Firearms Co. Agrees To Dissolve Amid Conn. 'Ghost Gun' Suit

    One of four firearms companies that the Connecticut attorney general sued in 2023 over the online sale of "ghost gun" parts has stopped operating and agreed to dissolve, according to a stipulated judgment that would release Florida-based Steel Fox Firearms Inc. from the litigation.

  • March 22, 2024

    US Antitrust Enforcers Keep Big Tech Cases Coming

    A backlash against powerful tech companies is reaching a fever pitch in the U.S., as enforcers with the U.S. Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission now have pending lawsuits accusing Apple, Amazon, Google and Meta of monopolizing key digital markets.

  • March 22, 2024

    5th Circ. Asked For Do-Over In Hurricane Coverage Feud

    The owners of a New Orleans apartment complex urged the Fifth Circuit to rethink ordering them to arbitrate Hurricane Ida damage claims under New York law, arguing New York's choice-of-law clause would ordinarily be unenforceable under Louisiana law if it weren't couched within the arbitration provision.

  • March 22, 2024

    Dollar General Can't Nix $1.48M Slip-And-Fall Verdict

    A Florida appeals panel on Friday affirmed a $1.48 million slip-and-fall verdict against Dollar General, saying the company "falls far short" of showing that there was no evidence it was aware of water on the floor after bringing a pair of carts in from the rain.

  • March 22, 2024

    Pot Co. Investor Gets Colo. Contract Breach Suit Revived

    A Colorado appeals court has revived an investor's suit alleging that the head of a six-company cannabis enterprise failed to pay out as agreed, finding the trial court was wrong to find the investor did not have a legally protected interest in the enterprise.

  • March 22, 2024

    Trade Court Clears Feds' Voluntary Solar Cell Duty Reduction

    The U.S. Court of International Trade has cleared the U.S. Department of Commerce's decision to voluntarily reduce countervailing duties on Chinese solar cells, accepting trade officials' new method of calculating importers' ocean freight costs.

  • March 22, 2024

    Supermarket Chain Can't Flush Class Suit Over Wipes

    A federal judge on Friday declined to toss a Massachusetts man's proposed class action against Stop & Shop that accused the supermarket chain of falsely marketing its store-brand cleansing wipes as "flushable."

  • March 22, 2024

    Chancery Denies Midcase Appeal In TripAdvisor Dispute

    The Delaware judge who gave TripAdvisor Inc. the go-ahead to convert its corporate home to Nevada while upholding most of a shareholder lawsuit challenging the proposed move has refused to certify a midcase appeal of his ruling, despite what he called "disproportionate media attention" about companies fleeing Delaware.

  • March 22, 2024

    Walmart OT Suit 'Just Barely' Gets Collective Cert.

    Workers claiming that Walmart and a related entity misclassified them as salaried employees exempt from overtime "just barely" met the requirements to move forward as a collective, a Colorado federal judge ruled Friday.

Expert Analysis

  • Legislative And Litigation Trends In Environmental Advertising

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    Companies that tout their products' environmental benefits can significantly reduce the risk that they will face allegations of greenwashing by staying up to date on related Federal Trade Commission guidance, state requirements and litigation trends, say Raqiyyah Pippins and Kelsie Sicinski at Arnold & Porter.

  • What's On The Horizon In Attorney General Enforcement

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    A look at recent attorney general actions, especially in the areas of antitrust and artificial intelligence, can help inform businesses on what they should expect in terms of enforcement trends as 10 attorney general races play out in 2024, say attorneys at Cozen O'Connor.

  • 2nd Circ. Ruling Will Guide Social Media Account Ownership

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    The Second Circuit’s recent decision in JLM Couture v. Gutman — which held that ownership of social media accounts must be resolved using traditional property law analysis — will guide employers and employees alike in future cases, and underscores the importance of express agreements in establishing ownership of social media accounts, says Joshua Glasgow at Phillips Lytle.

  • Del. Segway Dismissal Suggests Execs Not Liable For Biz Risk

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    While the debate continues within the Delaware Chancery Court over whether Caremark liability applies to matters of pure business risk, the court's recent rejection of Segway’s suit against the ex-president who oversaw financial difficulties suggests the court is uninterested in undermining the deference the business judgment rule grants corporate fiduciaries, say attorneys at Dechert.

  • Exporters Should Approach Self-Disclosure With Caution

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    A January Bureau of Industry and Security memorandum created an abbreviated process for disclosing export control violations that lack aggravating factors, but deciding which disclosure method to utilize remains a complex strategic undertaking to which companies must give careful consideration, say attorneys at Covington.

  • Series

    Coaching High School Wrestling Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Coaching my son’s high school wrestling team has been great fun, but it’s also demonstrated how a legal career can benefit from certain experiences, such as embracing the unknown, studying the rules and engaging with new people, says Richard Davis at Maynard Nexsen.

  • Freight Forwarders And Common Carriers: Know Your Cargo

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    Freight forwarders and other nonprincipal parties involved in global cargo movement should follow the guidance in the multi-agency know-your-cargo compliance note to avoid enforcement actions should they fail to spot evasive tactics used in supply chains to circumvent U.S. sanctions and export controls, say attorneys at Venable.

  • SG's Office Is Case Study To Help Close Legal Gender Gap

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    As women continue to be underrepresented in the upper echelons of the legal profession, law firms could learn from the example set by the Office of the Solicitor General, where culture and workplace policies have helped foster greater gender equality, say attorneys at Ocean Tomo.

  • A Refresher On Alcohol Sponsorships Before The Super Bowl

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    As millions of people will see in Super Bowl commercials Sunday, celebrity sponsorships continue to be a valuable tool for alcohol beverage marketers — and those looking to better target audiences must understand how regulation of the alcohol industry affects these deals, say attorneys at McDermott.

  • Opinion

    Food Safety Bill Needed To Protect Kids From Heavy Metals

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    The recent announcement by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that hundreds of children may have been exposed to unsafe lead levels in applesauce highlights the continuing failure by Congress to pass legislation that would require baby food manufacturers to ensure safer levels of heavy metals in their products, says Vineet Dubey at Custodio & Dubey.

  • What Brands Must Know For Calif. Recycle Label Compliance

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    A brand that stamps nonrecyclable packaging with the chasing arrows symbol could face liability under California's new law on labeling recyclable material, so brand owners should keep an eye on the state's pending survey process to identify which materials meet the criteria before requirements go into effect, say attorneys at ArentFox Schiff.

  • Del. Dispatch: Clarification On Fiduciary Duties Of Controllers

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    The Delaware Chancery Court’s January opinion in a Sears Hometown and Outlet Stores' stockholder dispute — holding that a controlling stockholder owes the company and minority shareholders some fiduciary duties when selling shares or voting to change the status quo — suggests instances where investors opposing board decisions should tread carefully, say attorneys at Fried Frank.

  • Reimagining Law Firm Culture To Break The Cycle Of Burnout

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    While attorney burnout remains a perennial issue in the legal profession, shifting post-pandemic expectations mean that law firms must adapt their office cultures to retain talent, say Kevin Henderson and Eric Pacifici at SMB Law Group.

  • Amazon's €32M Data Protection Fine Acts As Employer Caveat

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    The recent decision by French data privacy regulator CNIL to fine Amazon for excessive surveillance of its workers opens up a raft of potential employment law, data protection and breach of contract issues, and offers a clear warning that companies need coherent justification for monitoring employees, say Robert Smedley and William Richmond-Coggan at Freeths.

  • Expediting Psychedelics Approvals In The EU, UK, Australia

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    Accelerated pathways for regulatory approvals for psychedelic drugs in the European Union, U.K. and Australia is indispensable to facilitate a seamless advancement of treatments from the research environment to the consumer, say Kimberly Chew at Husch Blackwell, and Ana Dukic and Sabrina Ramkellawan at AxialBridge.

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