SAN FRANCISCO – An Oakland man and New York state woman have filed a class-action suit against a Virginia business alleging that its rice products have deceptive packaging.
Eric Lankenau-Ray and Carmen Vargas filed a complaint on behalf of all others similarly situated on May 17 in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California against Mars Inc. citing violation of California's Consumer Legal Remedies Act, Unfair Competition Law, negligent misrepresentation and other counts.
According to the complaint, the plaintiffs allege that they purchased the defendant's rice products but found out that the packaged product was almost 50 percent empty. They allege that had they known about the slack-fill, they would not have purchased the product. The plaintiffs hold Mars Inc. responsible because the defendant allegedly falsely advertised its products to consumers.
The plaintiffs request a trial by jury and seek all damages plus interest, compensatory damages and all form of monetary relief, all legal fees and any other relief as this court deems just. They are represented by Abbas Kazerounian and Andrei Armas of Kazerouni Law Group APC in Costa Mesa and Joshua B. Swigart of Hyde & Swigart in San Diego.
U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California Case number 4:16-cv-02660