Cases Recently Decided—Exploding Snails, State Alcohol Beverage Laws, E. ColiTainted Meat Outbreak
According to a news source, a small claims court in California has exonerated two seafood restaurant supervisors for alleged negligence in the case of the exploding escargot. More details about the case appear in Issue 373 of this Update. In a two-page ruling, the court apparently determined, “There was absolutely no evidence whatsoever on what caused the escargot to spontaneously splatter grease upon being touched by the plaintiffs. There was no evidence that Seafood Peddler did not exercise reasonable care in the preparation or service of the escargot.” The court also opined that diners should have a “reasonable expectation” of injury “due to hot grease in orders of escargot which are prepared and served with ‘hot garlic butter.’” Pleased with the ruling, the restaurant’s owner reportedly noted that orders for escargot have surged since news about the lawsuit became public. See Marin Independent Journal, December 15, 2010.
The Third Circuit Court of Appeals has determined that certain aspects of New Jersey’s Alcohol Beverage Control Law violate the dormant Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution. Freeman v. Corzine, Nos. 08-3268, 08-3302 (3d Cir., decided February 17, 2010). According to the court, New Jersey has a “three-tier” structure for alcohol distribution and sales under which “alcoholic beverages are sold by (1) suppliers and manufacturers to (2) wholesalers, who in turn sell to (3) retailers, who then sell alcohol to consumers.” While similar systems in other states have been found legitimate, any “straightforward attempts to discriminate in favor of local producers” are ordinarily stricken as unconstitutional. This case involved a challenge to the state’s regulation of wine. The appeals court upheld the state’s fee schedule for retail and wholesale licenses, found that the direct sales and importation provisions of the law were unconstitutional, and affirmed the lower court’s ruling that New Jersey’s ban on direct shipments of wine is constitutional.
A federal court in the District of Columbia has dismissed claims filed by 12 plaintiffs who alleged injury as the result of an E. coli outbreak linked to ground meat distributed by the now-bankrupt Topps Meat Co. LLC. Abedrabbo vo. Topps Meat Co. LLC, No. 09-01838 (D.D.C., decided December 21, 2010). Because the matter involved personal injury only, the court lacked jurisdiction to consider it under the Magnuson-Moss Act, which the plaintiffs relied on to establish jurisdiction. This law contains three exceptions allowing personal injury cases to be tried under its ambit, but the claims did not meet any of them, according to the court. See Product Liability Law 360, December 22, 2010.
