GlobeSt.com - Retail

Litigation Trends to Watch: Lawsuits Center on Silenced No More Act, Sports Betting Apps and Ernst & Young Cyberattack

Fri, 31 Jul 2026 15:45:07 EST

Employers are accused of imposing overbroad non-disclosure and non-disparagement agreements.

Buc-ee's May Not Have Sued John Oliver, but It Did Sue Another Beaver

Fri, 31 Jul 2026 14:28:47 EST

Buc-ee's filed a new trademark suit against Beavers Mini Mart days after John Oliver dared the Texas travel center chain to sue over his parody merchandise, highlighting the company's widening legal fight over lookalike animal mascots and the risks of aggressive brand enforcement.

Skechers Cannot Outrun State Tax Ruling, Appeals Court Says

Fri, 31 Jul 2026 09:48:39 EST

The footwear company must be taxed as a manufacturing corporation, the Massachusetts Appeals Court held Thursday morning, because it played an essential role in every stage of its shoes' production—despite assembly actually occurring overseas.

Vacating $1.3M Judgment, Divided Court Clarifies Ongoing Storm Rule

Thu, 30 Jul 2026 17:12:01 EST

The Supreme Court vacated a $1.3 million judgment against Walmart in the case of a woman who slipped in a store parking lot during a winter storm. The case revolves around the definition of exceptions to the Ongoing Storm Rule from Pareja v. Princeton International Properties.

Sleep Number Employees Deemed Non-Insiders, Clearing $1.8M Retention Plan

Thu, 30 Jul 2026 16:14:23 EST

A Manhattan bankruptcy judge found that vice president and director titles did not make the employees insiders, allowing the payments to be reviewed under a more flexible Bankruptcy Code standard.

Critical Mass With Law.com's Amanda Bronstad: Johnson & Johnson to Pay at Least $5.5B in Talc Settlement, Meta Begins Trial in Tennessee AG's Consumer Case

Wed, 29 Jul 2026 11:15:13 EST

This week: Johnson & Johnson on Monday agreed to settle 76,000 talcum powder lawsuits, potentially ending 15 years of litigation. Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skremetti opened trial this week, alleging Meta made false statements about child safety on Instagram. Wisner Baum's W. Crawford Appleby says firms should take a “slow and steady approach to using artificial intelligence tools.

Ashley Keller Appeals Sanctions in Acetaminophen Cases, Asks to Reassign MDL to Another Judge

Tue, 28 Jul 2026 16:29:27 EST

Ashley Keller, of Keller Postman, asked the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit to reverse U.S. Senior District Judge Denise Cote's May 8 sanctions against him, then assign the multidistrict litigation alleging prenatal use of acetaminophen causes autism or ADHD to another judge.

Pro Se Clients Might Use AI to File Lawsuits, but Can They Win Them at Trial?

Tue, 28 Jul 2026 13:32:25 EST

A trial is underway at Georgia's statewide business court as a plaintiff represents himself—with the help of AI.

CBP's 2026 Forced Labor Guidance Raises the Stakes for Retail Supply Chains

Tue, 28 Jul 2026 10:24:59 EST

Under the current U.S. framework, the domestic importer must be able to answer where each item of material, supplier and shipment moved.

Johnson & Johnson Settles 76,000 Talcum Powder Lawsuits for at Least $5.5B

Mon, 27 Jul 2026 20:33:27 EST

The settlement, which resolves 99.75% of the talcum powder litigation in federal and state courts, comes 15 years after the first suits alleged Johnson & Johnson's baby powder caused ovarian cancer.

Litigation Trends to Watch: Plaintiffs Target Big Tech, Sweepstakes Casinos and Kratom

Fri, 24 Jul 2026 00:14:57 EST

While kratom remains unregulated at the federal level, nine states have banned the drug. Rhode Island reversed course and legalized kratom this year for adults 21 and older.

Dallas Judge Tosses Barcode Patent Suit Against Albertsons

Thu, 23 Jul 2026 17:06:13 EST

A federal judge in Dallas dismissed Wolverine Barcode IP's patent infringement suit against Albertsons, finding the barcode-based mobile payment patent covered an abstract business practice rather than a patentable technological invention.

Johnson & Johnson Wins Big: Federal Judge Orders Nearly 70,000 Talc Claimants to Show Why They Shouldn't be Dismissed

Wed, 22 Jul 2026 19:42:40 EST

In Wednesday's order, U.S. Magistrate Judge Rukhsanah Singh, in the District of New Jersey, raised "deep skepticism" about the plaintiffs' specific causation experts and sought to reevaluate how to manage the "aged and complex mass tort MDL."

Critical Mass With Law.com's Amanda Bronstad: Lawsuits Hit Taylor Farms and Taco Bell Over Contaminated Lettuce, 1st Checks Sent From $4B Sex Abuse Settlement Amid Fraud Scandal

Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:58:59 EST

This week: At least five lawsuits have been filed against Taylor Farms over its lettuce contaminated with cyclospora, and Taco Bell is an additional defendant in most of the cases. More than $700 million of a massive settlement with Los Angeles County is being sent out to sex abuse claimants, even as fraud claims continue. Find out who represents Best Buy in the latest consumer class action over allegedly deceptive price discounting.

After Trump Administration Scraps ‘Buy-Now-Pay-Later' Rule, States Step In

Mon, 20 Jul 2026 11:34:14 EST

“It certainly creates challenges to industry if there's going to be a patchwork, Eric Goldberg, a partner at Davis Wright Tremaine, said. “By turning on a website, you're operating in all 50 states.

After Disqualifying Beasley Allen, Johnson & Johnson Sets Sights on Other Talc Lawyers

Fri, 17 Jul 2026 19:15:10 EST

Johnson & Johnson lawyer Kristen Fournier, at Kirkland & Ellis, wrote in a July 9 letter to U.S. Magistrate Judge Rukhsanah Singh in the talc multidistrict litigation about "concerning and newly developed facts" that surfaced during a July 6 evidentiary hearing in Florida.

Litigation Trends to Watch: Claims Surge Over Law Firm Data Breaches, Cannabis Employment Practices and Contactless Payments

Fri, 17 Jul 2026 15:06:43 EST

New suits targeting Blank Rome are part of a string of cases triggered by recent cyberattacks against law firms.

'Stunning Turn of Events': Johnson & Johnson Asks Judge to Order Potential Dismissal of All 67,000 Talc Lawsuits

Thu, 16 Jul 2026 10:01:50 EST

Johnson & Johnson, in a motion for order to show cause, insisted that lead plaintiffs' counsel in the talc multidistrict litigation withdrew their two "marquee" specific causation experts after they acknowledged other risk factors impacting women in six bellwether cases—and that most ovarian cancers are idiopathic.

Critical Mass With Law.com's Amanda Bronstad: Appeals Courts Affirm Talc Verdicts, Plaintiffs Win Acetaminophen Appeal Over Experts

Wed, 15 Jul 2026 11:25:08 EST

This week: Appeals courts in Pennsylvania and Illinois affirmed talcum powder verdicts against Johnson & Johnson. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit reversed dismissal of three plaintiffs' experts tying prenatal use of acetaminophen to autism and ADHD. Find out who represents Adidas America in a class action over U.S. government tariff-related refunds.

Appeals Court Reverses Dismissal of Experts Linking Prenatal Acetaminophen to Autism, ADHD

Tue, 14 Jul 2026 17:50:48 EST

Monday's ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit could revive nearly 600 lawsuits tying Tylenol to autism and ADHD.

Lands' End Legal Chief Abruptly Sets Sail Ahead of New CEO's Arrival

Mon, 13 Jul 2026 13:13:11 EST

No reason was given for the resignation last week of general counsel and licensing chief Peter Gray

7th Circuit Eyewear Ruling Raises Questions of Healthcare Exceptions Under BIPA

Mon, 13 Jul 2026 11:52:39 EST

The federal district court in Illinois had initially dismissed the suit.

Davis Wright Tremaine Lawyers Sanctioned for Discovery Abuses: ‘The Record of Misconduct Here is Significant'

Fri, 10 Jul 2026 16:03:43 EST

On Thursday, San Francisco's Smith Krivoshey, former class counsel in a consumer class action over kombucha beverages, sought more than $100,000 after U.S. Magistrate Judge Thomas Hixson ordered Davis Wright partner Jacob Harper and former associate Joseph Elie-Meyers to complete at least two hours of CLE courses, including one on legal ethics.

Litigation Trends to Watch: Lawsuits Center on AI Trainers, Surveillance Pricing and Last-Mile Delivery Drivers

Fri, 10 Jul 2026 14:49:17 EST

A new wave of litigation is taking shape as workers who train AI models claim they were misclassified as independent contractors.

Litigators of the Week: A $400M Win for Excluded Serta Lenders in Landmark ‘Creditor-on-Creditor Violence' Trial

Fri, 10 Jul 2026 07:29:59 EST

This week, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Christopher Lopez awarded excluded lenders $261 million in base damages plus more than $140 million in prejudgment interest, handing a win to Quinn Emanuel's Susheel Kirpalani, Zachary Russell and Ken Hershey.

Shareholder Lawsuit Blames Merchandising Missteps, Not Shrinkage, for Five Below's Financial Woes

Thu, 09 Jul 2026 17:48:44 EST

The lawsuit alleges Five Below attributed its declining financial results, which were first disclosed in June 2024, to shrinkage from in-store theft rather than its merchandising practices.

Superior Court Nixes Bid for New Talc Trial Arising From $22M 'Inconsistent Verdict'

Thu, 09 Jul 2026 11:42:52 EST

On appeal, the plaintiffs argued that simply molding the verdict to reflect the jury's decision on causation wasn't enough to cure the inconsistency.

US Appeals Court Rejects $310M Suit Against Hedge Fund Over Bed Bath & Beyond Stock Trades

Tue, 07 Jul 2026 16:04:54 EST

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit ruled that the contractual "blockers" meant to stop a hedge fund from becoming a corporate insider in Bed Bath & Beyond were viable.