10 Ridiculous Recent Food-Marketing Lawsuits
And why these class-action endeavors are on the rise. (Hint: it's not consumer protection.)
Elizabeth Nolan Brown|Mar. 3, 2017 7:55 am
Everett Collection/NewscomEverett Collection/NewscomClass-action lawsuits over food marketing practices have skyrocketed in the past decade, from around 20 at the federal level in 2008 to 118 such suits filed in 2015 and 171 last year. The single most frequent complaint relates to foodmakers' use of terms like natural or nothing artificial, with suits challenging extra space in product packaging also common, according to a new report the Institute for Legal Reform (ILR). Yet far from signaling a wave of action in the consumer interest, these suits are often a sort of legal spam, mass-filed by attorneys and firms that specialize in the practice and collect significant fees for their work while plaintiffs might make out with a few product vouchers. And not only do they deal in frivolous issues far-removed from consumer safety or justice, they also threaten to drive up product prices and drive small companies out of business.
http://reason.com/blog/2017/03/03/food-marketing-lawsuits-that-stink
