TRENTON, N.J. (Legal Newsline) – Class action lawyers have hit Nestle with a lawsuit over the empty space in theater candy.
Lawyers at Clarkson Law Firm in Los Angeles and Shepherd Finkelman in New Jersey filed the case May 15 in Trenton federal court against Nestle and Ferrara Candy Company, alleging violation of the consumer protection laws of seven states.
“Nestle pioneered a scheme to deceptively sell candy in oversized, opaque boxes that do not reasonably inform consumers that they are half empty,” the complaint says. “Defendants’ ‘slack-fill’ scam dupes unsuspecting consumers across America to pay for empty space at premium prices.”
Listed among the products that have an allegedly deceiving amount of slack-fill in their packaging are Raisinettes, Butterfinger Bites and Gobstoppers. The complaint features two pictures of the packages side by side, with one side cut to show how much empty space is in it.
A class action has been certified in California over the same allegations, the suit says. This latest lawsuit lists nine lead plaintiffs from seven states – New Jersey, New York, Florida, Michigan, Illinois, North Carolina and Texas.
U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey case number 3:20-cv-05871