NEW YORK (Legal Newsline) – Having sued the parent company of Ben & Jerry’s over the ice cream icon's boycott of Israel, the law firm Robbins Geller has now moved to lead the potential class action.
Robbins Geller filed suit June 15 in New York federal court against Unilever, a British multinational consumer goods company that owns Ben & Jerry’s. Its original client was the City of St. Clair Shores Police and Fire Retirement System of Michigan, but its Aug. 15 motion to be appointed lead counsel asks that the Westchester Teamsters Pension Fund and Teamsters Local 456 Annuity Fund be lead plaintiffs.
The Teamsters Funds lost almost $160,000 as a result of Unilever’s stock price drop, the motion says. Robbins Geller’s accomplishments in securities class actions are listed in support of it being named lead counsel.
“The firm’s securities department includes numerous trial attorneys and many former federal and state prosecutors, and utilizes an extensive group of in-house experts to aid in the prosecution of complex securities issues,” the motion says.
The lawsuit alleges leadership at the company misled investors by not disclosing the truths regarding Ben & Jerry's, which Unilever bought for $326 million in 2000.
The proposed class action seeks to represent everyone who bought a Unilever American Depositary Receipt between Sept. 2, 2020, and July 21, 2021.
In July 2020, Ben & Jerry's board passed a resolution to boycott Israel - apparently a part of the boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) movement against Israel. That decision took effect July 19, 2021.
Anti-BDS legislation has been passed in 35 states, the suit says.
"The consequences for a company violating Anti-BDS Legislation range from the company being barred from contracting with the state to having the state divest its investments in the boycotting company, thereby driving down the price of the company’s stock and, in the case of the company’s bonds, driving up the company’s borrowing costs," the suit says.
"Unilever thus had ample reason to conceal the B&J Board resolution and thereafter to mischaracterize it once Unilever’s hand-selected CEO finally 'operationalized' it."