Retail & E-Commerce

  • April 26, 2024

    L Catterton Buys Majority Stake In KIKO Milano At $1.5B Value

    Private equity firm L Catterton said Friday it has agreed to buy a majority stake in the Percassi family's beauty brand KIKO Milano, in a deal steered by Italian law firms Bonelli Erede Lombardi Pappalardo and Gatti Pavesi Bianchi Ludovici, respectively, along with several additional consultants and financial advisers. 

  • April 26, 2024

    UK Litigation Roundup: Here's What You Missed In London

    This past week in London has seen budget airline Ryanair file a claim against NATS PLC after the air traffic controller's system collapsed, Mastercard and Visa Europe face group claims from Christian Dior and dozens of other beauty retailers, an intellectual property clash between the publisher of The Sun and ITV, and ISC Europe sue a former director for alleged money laundering. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.

  • April 25, 2024

    Conn. Judge Sends Colo. Mass Shooting Cases To State Court

    A Connecticut federal judge sent two lawsuits against gunmaker Sturm Ruger & Co. Inc. back to state court Thursday, finding that the complaints brought by the estates of two Colorado mass shooting victims did not meet a key standard for handling the claims in federal court.

  • April 25, 2024

    Court Brushes Off Door Co.'s Bid To Hasten Duty Refund

    The U.S. Court of International Trade backed U.S. Customs and Border Protection's timeline for unwinding duties on door thresholds from Vietnam after the agency reversed a previous evasion finding, saying CBP's redetermination became final after the court's approval.

  • April 25, 2024

    Joann Fabric Wins Confirmation Of Prepackaged Ch. 11 Plan

    Joann Inc., parent company of retailer Joann Fabric and Crafts, received a Delaware judge's approval of its prepackaged Chapter 11 plan Thursday that will lighten its debt load by $505 million.

  • April 25, 2024

    Dominican Republic, Uzbekistan No Longer On IP Watch List

    The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative announced Thursday it has removed the Dominican Republic and Uzbekistan from its watch list of countries with poor track records on intellectual property protection, keeping close trade partners Mexico and Canada on the roster.

  • April 25, 2024

    NY Pot Regulator Seeks Dismissal Of Bias Suit

    New York's cannabis regulator on Wednesday asked a federal judge to toss a lawsuit litigated by a conservative legal organization that alleges that the state's social equity licensure program discriminates against white men, saying the plaintiffs lack standing.

  • April 25, 2024

    Split Take On NJ 'Fake' Sale Case Disrupts Biz-Friendly Pattern

    A recent New Jersey Supreme Court decision rejecting "fake discounts" as a source of consumer fraud was a boon for the class action defense bar, but the takes of three dissenting judges and Attorney General Matt Platkin show that the state's largely business-friendly jurisprudence on what qualifies as an ascertainable loss isn't quite settled.

  • April 25, 2024

    Ore. Tax Court Rejects Lowe's Valuation Reduction Arguments

    A Lowe's home improvement store was properly valued by comparing the sales values for occupied big box home improvement stores, the Oregon Tax Court said in a pair of rulings. 

  • April 25, 2024

    Rival Amazon Union Attys Get Warning From Federal Judge

    A Brooklyn federal judge expressed displeasure Thursday with how federal litigation between rival factions inside a nascent Staten Island, New York, union representing Amazon warehouse workers has been conducted, saying it has wasted time and raising the possibility of sanctions.

  • April 25, 2024

    Panel Backs Gas Station's Win In Drunken Driving Death Suit

    An Ohio state appeals court has upheld the dismissal of a lawsuit over the deaths of two young men in a drunken driving crash, saying the alcohol seller can't be liable under Ohio's Dram Shop Act because the purchaser wasn't the driver.

  • April 24, 2024

    Whole Foods May Have Retaliated In BLM Case, 1st Circ. Says

    Whole Foods hasn't yet proven that its firing of a worker who wore a Black Lives Matter mask to work wasn't retaliatory, the First Circuit said in an opinion unsealed Wednesday, ruling that there is a "genuine dispute" as to whether she was terminated for protected conduct.

  • April 24, 2024

    Cooley, Latham Lead Data Security Firm Rubrik's $752M IPO

    Venture-backed data security firm Rubrik Inc. on Wednesday priced a $752 million initial public offering above its range, represented by Cooley LLP while Latham & Watkins LLP advised the underwriters, joining an increasingly receptive market for technology firms.

  • April 24, 2024

    Judge Suggests Amazon Never Denied Late-Delivery Refund

    A Washington federal judge seemed to signal Wednesday that a putative class action accusing Amazon of not delivering a package as quickly as promised might get dismissed, noting the plaintiff did not actually get denied a refund because he never requested one. 

  • April 24, 2024

    9th Circ. Says NLRB Can Enforce Starbucks Bargaining Order

    The Ninth Circuit said Wednesday that Starbucks must recognize its Seattle roastery workers' April 2022 vote to unionize, overruling the coffee giant's contention that ballots should have been cast in person and concluding a National Labor Relations Board manager had discretion to call the mail-in election because of COVID-19 case counts at the time.

  • April 24, 2024

    Feds' 'Sparse' Explanations Call For Remand, Says Rebar Co.

    An error and "sparse" justification underpinning a countervailing duty assessment required the U.S. Court of International Trade to remand the results of the fifth review of Turkish rebar tariffs, counsel told CIT Judge Gary S. Katzmann on Wednesday.

  • April 24, 2024

    US Solar Cos. Call For Duties On Cells From Southeast Asia

    Seven U.S. solar manufacturers on Wednesday called on the U.S. government to impose duties on solar cells from four Southeast Asian countries, saying a surge in production in those countries — much by Chinese-owned companies — has been undercutting the domestic market.

  • April 24, 2024

    Foxtrot, Dom's Kitchen Closures Violate WARN Act, Suit Says

    Former employees of Foxtrot Market and Dom's Kitchen & Market hit the stores' parent company with a lawsuit in Illinois federal court Thursday, alleging it failed to give workers 60 days' notice of mass layoffs as required by federal law when all 33 locations abruptly shuttered Tuesday.

  • April 24, 2024

    Forex Trader Must Pay $11.8M For Ponzi-Like Scheme

    A Michigan federal judge on Tuesday said a purported forex commodity pool operator and its agent must pay more than $11.8 million in penalties and restitution for bilking participants in a Ponzi-like scheme, after the defendants ignored a Commodity Futures Trading Commission suit.

  • April 24, 2024

    Louis Vuitton Flouted Wage And Hour Laws, Suit Says

    Louis Vuitton has been hit with a proposed wage and hour class action in Los Angeles Superior Court by a former employee, alleging the luxury fashion company failed to pay overtime, provide proper meal and break periods and manipulated time cards to show fewer hours than worked during the pay period.

  • April 24, 2024

    Groups Back Intuit's 5th Circ. Challenge To FTC Over Ads

    Business and conservative groups defended tax software giant Intuit Inc. in its Fifth Circuit constitutional challenge to the Federal Trade Commission's findings that the company engaged in deceptive advertising, saying the agency acts as both prosecutor and jury and that its administrative judges have unchecked power.

  • April 24, 2024

    FDA Can Keep Most Docs Hidden From Juul's FOIA Request

    A District of Columbia federal judge has largely sided with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in a suit by Juul Labs Inc. seeking documents related to the FDA's decision to ban its products, saying the bulk of the files fall under a privilege that protects predecision deliberations.

  • April 24, 2024

    Joe Rogan Brain Health Supplements Don't Work, Suit Claims

    A proposed class of supplement buyers is suing a brain health supplement founded and promoted by podcaster Joe Rogan in New York federal court, saying the company's own studies prove false its advertisements claiming the product is "clinically" proven to promote cognitive function.

  • April 24, 2024

    FDA Seeks Max Fines Against Shops Selling Elf Bar Vapes

    The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has issued another round of complaints and civil penalties to 22 brick-and-mortar and online sellers of illicit e-cigarettes, including the highly popular Elf Bar brand, according to an agency announcement that noted more than 100 retailers have been hit since September.

  • April 24, 2024

    Solar Panel Co. Loses Calif. Appeal Over PAGA Arbitration

    A California appellate panel sided with a lower court as it ruled in a published opinion that a carveout in a home solar panel company's employment agreement did not require a former worker to arbitrate his individual Private Attorneys General Act claims, keeping his suit in court.

Expert Analysis

  • General Counsel Need Data Literacy To Keep Up With AI

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    With the rise of accessible and powerful generative artificial intelligence solutions, it is imperative for general counsel to understand the use and application of data for myriad important activities, from evaluating the e-discovery process to monitoring compliance analytics and more, says Colin Levy at Malbek.

  • Opinion

    Civil Litigation Against Gun Businesses Can Reduce Violence

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    With mass shootings skyrocketing, and gun control legislation blocked by powerful interest groups, civil litigation can help obtain justice for victims by targeting parties responsible beyond the immediate perpetrator — including gun manufacturers, dealers and retailers, says Tom D'Amore at D'Amore Law Group.

  • Retailers: Beware Legislator And Regulator Junk Fee Focus

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    In light of the Biden administration’s recent focus on restricting so-called junk fee surcharges across industries, attorneys at Benesch discuss what retailers should know about several evolving developments, including a new California law, a proposed Federal Trade Commission rule, an expanding litigation landscape, and more.

  • Rite Aid's Reasons For Ch. 11 Go Beyond Opioid Suits

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    Despite opioid-related lawsuits being the perceived reason that pushed Rite Aid into bankruptcy, the company's recent Chapter 11 filing reveals its tenuous position in the pharmaceutical retail market, and only time will tell whether bankruptcy will right-size the company, says Daniel Gielchinsky at DGIM Law.

  • Navigating Discovery Of Generative AI Information

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    As generative artificial intelligence tools become increasingly ubiquitous, companies must make sure to preserve generative AI data when there is reasonable expectation of litigation, and to include transcripts in litigation hold notices, as they may be relevant to discovery requests, say Nick Peterson and Corey Hauser at Wiley.

  • Finding Focus: Strategies For Attorneys With ADHD

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    Given the prevalence of ADHD among attorneys, it is imperative that the legal community gain a better understanding of how ADHD affects well-being, and that resources and strategies exist for attorneys with this disability to manage their symptoms and achieve success, say Casey Dixon at Dixon Life Coaching and Krista Larson at Stinson.

  • Considerations For Navigating Mixed-Use Developments

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    As mixed-use developments continue to rise in popularity, developers considering this approach to urban planning must be aware of key considerations ranging from title and zoning laws to proper engagement with stakeholders, says Mehdi Sinaki at Michelman & Robinson.

  • What Can Be Learned From 3M's Iran Sanctions Settlement

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    3M’s recent agreement to pay $9.6 million to resolve potential liability for violation of Iran sanctions provides insight on the complexity of U.S. sanctions compliance, the duration of enforcement actions by the Office of Foreign Assets Control, and the benefits and potential drawbacks of voluntary disclosure, says Thaddeus McBride at Bass Berry.

  • Safe-Harbor Period Change Could Hinder TCPA Compliance

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    A proposed rule change under consideration by the Federal Communications Commission would require businesses to honor do-not-call requests within 24 hours of receipt for calls and texts that are subject to the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, and companies have already called it unreasonable, say Aaron Weiss and Danny Enjamio at Carlton Fields.

  • Cos. Must Address Growing Chatbot Class Action Risk

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    Following a new wave of chatbot-related consumer data privacy litigation and expanding compliance obligations created by state legislatures, businesses using such technology face a high-risk environment for wiretapping allegations, with inconsistent court rulings to date and uncertain legal holdings ahead, say attorneys at Pierce Atwood.

  • Regulatory Shift May Offer Lifeline To NY's Cannabis Industry

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    Recent developments may help to open up the regulatory log jam and increase the number of licensed dispensaries in New York state, and can eventually allow the licensed cannabis market to win out over unlicensed dispensaries, say attorneys at Davis+Gilbert.

  • Co. Directors Must Beware Dangers Of Reverse Factoring

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    New accounting requirements governing the disclosure of so-called reverse-factoring programs have revealed billions of dollars worth of hidden liabilities on companies’ ledgers, and directors of corporate boards should review their companies’ books for this hidden danger, say Garland Kelley at Looper Goodwine, Amin Al-Sarraf at Locke Lord and Jill Basinger at Discovery Land.

  • Attorneys, Law Schools Must Adapt To New Era Of Evidence

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    Technological advancements mean more direct evidence is being created than ever before, and attorneys as well as law schools must modify their methods to account for new challenges in how this evidence is collected and used to try cases, says Reuben Guttman at Guttman Buschner.

  • Analyzing The Legal Ripples Of The EPA's PFAS Regulation

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    As the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency makes major moves on its pledge to regulate per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, the developing body of PFAS regulation will lead to an increase in litigation, and personal injury and product liability claims, say attorneys at Gordon & Rees.

  • Series

    ESG Around The World: The UK

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    Following Brexit, the U.K. has adopted a different approach to regulating environmental, social and governance factors from the European Union — an approach that focuses on climate disclosures by U.K.-regulated entities, while steering clear of the more ambitious objectives pursued by the EU, say attorneys at Dechert.

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