Background
Plaintiff Mark Trammell purchased Wiley Wallaby Very Berry Licorice from a Target store in Encinitas, California, in May two thousand twenty-three. The product packaging stated it was naturally flavored and free of artificial colors and flavors. Trammell alleged that laboratory testing revealed the product contained DL malic acid, an artificial flavor derived from petroleum, rather than natural L malic acid. He filed a putative class action alleging violations of the California Consumers Legal Remedies Act, unjust enrichment, and breach of express warranty. The district court dismissed the complaint with prejudice, ruling that the plaintiff failed to plead fraud with sufficient particularity under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure nine B and failed to allege a plausible claim of consumer fraud under California law.
The court’s reasoning
The panel held that the district court erred in concluding the complaint failed to satisfy the heightened pleading standard of Rule nine B. The allegations identified the defendant, the specific representations made on the label, the time and place of purchase, and the mechanism of the deception. The complaint also provided sufficient assurance of a factual basis by detailing the specific laboratory, the date of testing, the qualifications of the lab, and the industry standard methodology used to detect artificial malic acid. Furthermore, the panel found that under the reasonable consumer standard governing the California Consumers Legal Remedies Act, a reasonable consumer would likely be deceived by a product claiming to be free of artificial flavors when it allegedly contained artificial flavoring.
What it means going forward
The decision allows consumer fraud class actions involving food labeling to proceed if the complaint provides specific details about the deceptive statement, the timing and location of the purchase, and the factual basis for the claim, such as laboratory testing results.
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