Lawyers Who Sued Tobacco Companies Now Suing Food Companies

The last decade has seen a substantial uptick in suits against food sellers maintaining that the claims about food products are false or deceptive. Co-blogger Steve Gardner is one of the leading lawyers representing consumers who bring those claims. He recently blogged here about sellers' claims that their products are "natural." Now, this article by Stephanie Strom asserts that there's a new wave of food claims filed by lawyers who were prime movers in the litigation against the tobacco industry. As the article puts it, "[w]hile there has been a barrage of litigation against the industry in recent years, the tobacco lawyers are moving particularly aggressively. [For instance, t]hey are asking a federal court in California to halt ConAgra’s sales of Pam cooking spray, Swiss Miss cocoa products and some Hunt’s canned tomatoes."