Before class certification hearings occur in the Southern District of Florida, defendants may not challenge plaintiff's class allegations via Rule 12(f) motions to strike but may challenge plaintiff's standing via motions to dismiss. In Bohlke v. Shearer's Foods, LLC, plaintiff sought to represent a Florida class and alternative nationwide class of purchasers of five flavors of defendant's rice chips. Plaintiff alleged that defendant's "all natural" labels were false ... Keep Reading »
Food & Beverage Class Action Articles
The latest class action developments and trends in the food and beverage industry, including news, key cases, and strategies.
District Court Decertifies Class Where Damages Model Did Not Satisfy Supreme Court’s Requirements as Set Forth in Comcast Corp. v. Behrend
The United States District Court for the Northern District of California recently granted a defendant’s motion to decertify a class because plaintiff’s damages model was not consistent with his theory of liability as required by the Supreme Court in Comcast Corp. v. Behrend. Plaintiff alleged that defendant’s false and misleading labeling of almond milk products violated California law, bringing claims under California’s Unfair Competition Law, False Advertising Law, and ... Keep Reading »
Seventh Circuit Rejects Another Settlement With Disproportionate Attorney Fees Compared to Class Member Benefits
The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals rejected a class action settlement because class counsel would have received generous attorney fees for conferring only meager benefits to the class. Writing for the Court, just as he did a few months earlier in Eubank v. Pella Corp., 753 F.3d 718 (7th Cir. 2014), Judge Posner described this settlement as “a selfish deal between class counsel and defendant” that “disserves the class.” Plaintiffs sued NBTY and Rexall Sundown for ... Keep Reading »
Ninth and Tenth Circuits Address Removal Under CAFA’s “Mass Action” and “State Action” Provisions
In Corber v. Xanodyne Pharmaceuticals, the Ninth Circuit – on rehearing en banc – examined the applicability of the “mass action” provision of CAFA, which provides federal jurisdiction for any civil action in which monetary relief claims of 100 or more persons are “proposed to be tried jointly.” Pursuant to California Code of Civil Procedure 404.1, plaintiffs moved for coordination of their cases alleging injuries relating to ingestion of a drug ingredient. Defendants ... Keep Reading »
Northern District of California Grants Certification of Antitrust Class in 15 of 16 Jurisdictions Pursuant to Dukes and Comcast; Declines to Certify One Class Due to Lack of Class Representative
In a recent case in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, plaintiffs brought a putative class action against various defendants involved in milk production, alleging they violated the antitrust laws of fifteen states and Washington, D.C. by engaging in a conspiracy to limit the production and increase the price of raw milk. Plaintiffs sought class certification in each of the sixteen jurisdictions; the Northern District granted the ... Keep Reading »
District Court Rejects Nationwide Class, But Certifies California-Only Consumer Class After Conducting Rigorous Analysis of Damages Models Under Comcast
In Werdebaugh v. Blue Diamond Growers, the plaintiff brought suit in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California to certify a nationwide class of consumers who purchased Blue Diamond almond milk products containing allegedly false and deceptive labels. He alleged violations of California’s Unfair Competition Law, False Advertising Law, and Consumers Legal Remedies Act. The plaintiff moved for certification of a class seeking injunctive ... Keep Reading »
Hershey Wins Pre-Certification Summary Judgment In California Labeling Class Action
The Northern District of California granted partial summary judgment in favor of The Hershey Company in a putative class action where the plaintiff alleged Hershey’s representations about certain of its products were unlawful and/or misleading. Plaintiff took issue with Hershey’s representations about antioxidants, nutrients, sugar, serving size, among others on its advertisements, packaging and website upon which the named Plaintiff alleged he relied when he purchased ... Keep Reading »
California District Court Finds Plaintiff’s Proposed Damages Models Insufficient Under Comcast; Denies Certification Under Rule 23(b)(3) But Certifies 23(b)(2) Class
The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California certified a Rule 23(b)(2) class for injunctive and declaratory relief but denied plaintiff’s motion for class certification under Rule 23(b)(3) because plaintiff failed to present a sufficient damages model as required byComcast v. Behrend, 133 S. Ct. 1426, 1430 (2013). Plaintiff’s putative class action complaint alleged that product labels on 51 varieties of Twinings tea, and statements contained on the ... Keep Reading »
California District Court Holds That Named Plaintiff’s Lack Of Credibility On Key Issue Renders Him An Inadequate Class Representative; Denies Certification
The U.S. District Court for the Central District of California denied class certification in a product mislabeling case after holding that named plaintiff lacked credibility on a material issue and, therefore, could not be an adequate class representative under Rule 23(a)(4). Plaintiff’s putative class action complaint alleged that manufacturer Boiron violated, among other laws, the California Unfair Competition Law and the Consumers Legal Remedies Act by misrepresenting ... Keep Reading »
Putative Class Members Cannot Establish Damages in Dietary Supplement Case
In Moore v. GNC Holdings, Inc., Southern District of Florida Judge Dimetrouleas ordered partial summary judgment in favor of GNC and against the class as to plaintiffs’ damages claims under Florida’s Deceptive & Unfair Trade Practices Act (FDUTPA). While this order does not dispense with all of the claims, it does eliminate any potential monetary award to the class, and limits plaintiffs to injunctive relief. More specifically, despite the court’s finding that ... Keep Reading »