Legal

Harry & David, the gift-box retailer that's sold fruit by mail since the 1930s, won tentative court approval of its recovery plan, enabling the company to exit bankruptcy before the holiday season. U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Mary Walrath said that she will be “happy to sign” the final order confirming the plan. Senior noteholders will get control of the company in exchange for canceling more than $200 million in debt.

Kim Navarra really loves Abercrombie & Fitch. She loves it so much that her closets are filled to the brim with clothes from the retailer. Too bad she's banned from shopping there.

The Chinese city of Kunming has stopped 22 fake Apple stores from illegally using the company's iconic trademark after Apple lodged a complaint with officials. Kunming authorities found 20 unauthorized Apple resellers, 11 of which are being investigated. Two other stores were discovered for related violations.

State officials in Tennessee are raising questions whether Amazon.com should start collecting sales taxes from state customers. The company is building three distribution centers in the state and some legislators believe Amazon should begin collecting sales taxes there.

The British Retail Consortium has set out the demands along with calls for a supportive and expedient planning process to repair any damage caused by the violence and the formation of effective local partnerships to kick-start those communities blighted by the troubles.

As the Dodgers operate under bankruptcy protection, its merchandise vendor has asked the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for protection from the team. With Dodger Stadium merchandise revenue down 25 percent this season, Facility Merchandising Inc. could face a "business-threatening event" if the court doesn't intervene on its behalf, the company attorneys wrote in a court filing.

Self-proclaimed "Spam King" Sanford Wallace turned himself in to the FBI for allegedly compromising half-a-million Facebook accounts and flooding their owners with junk email. Wallace returns to face 11 counts of fraud, intentional damage to protected computers and — potentially the charges with the longest-term impact — criminal contempt for violating more than a decade's worth of court orders to stay off social networking sites and stop sending junk email, spyware and phishing scams to consumers.

Amazon is using the foot traffic generated by conventional stores to fuel an effort to maintain its price advantage over them. Meanwhile, brick-and-mortar retailers are defending California's sales tax law.

Apple has gone on the offensive against a number of defendants, including 50 John Does and unnamed businesses, in a new trademark infringement suit. The lawsuit filed in New York remains under a court seal, so the specifics of the complaint aren't known.

If you work for Amazon, the tax obsession means you need permission to visit certain states, and might not be able to send certain emails when you get there. In some instances, you won't even be able to identify yourself as working for Amazon.com. Amazon employees have been shown a color coded map of "bad states," according to the Wall Street Journal, and been made to consult with company lawyers before visiting any.