Legal

Borders has asked a bankruptcy judge to overrule landlords’ objections to the proposed sale of the bookstore chain’s assets and promised to provide more information about leases by next week.

A group of landlords have filed objections in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Manhattan, disputing the process by which Borders Group is attempting to auction itself out of bankruptcy. According to the nearly 20 landlords that filed objections, the plan offers no information regarding which leases would be assumed by potential buyers of Borders’ assets.

Amazon filed a petition for a referendum with the California Attorney General's Office, the Associated Press is reporting. The referendum will ask voters to overturn a new California law that forces online retailers to collect sales tax.

Macy’s agreed to pay a $750,000 fine for failing to report that it sold children’s clothes with drawstrings at the neck, a strangulation hazard, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission said.

Target has agreed to pay $160,000 to settle a disability discrimination lawsuit stemming from the retailer’s treatment of an employee at a Foothill Ranch, Calif. store, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission said.

A California court denied Apple's motion for a preliminary injunction on Amazon.com's use of the term "Appstore" in a trademark infringement case. Apple hasn't established that its "App Store" mark is famous, in the sense of being "prominent" and "renowned," and there is also evidence that the term "app store" is used by other companies as a descriptive term for a place to obtain software applications for mobile devices, District Judge Phyllis J. Hamilton of the U.S. District Court of the Northern District of California said in an 18-page order.

AFMS, a parcel consulting firm, filed an amended complaint against defendants UPS and FedEx, stating violations of Sherman Acts 1 and 2. AFMS claims that UPS and FedEx have violated federal antitrust laws. Furthermore, it alleges the parcel carriers are engaged in monopolistic and collusive actions. The lawsuit is the result of UPS and FedEx’s 2010 policies to not participate in bids or rate negotiations that involve third-party negotiators (3PNs) like AFMS.

Several shareholder-rights law firms said they were examining the private equity takeover of BJ's Wholesale Club to see if the company acted in the best interest of investors by accepting a $2.8 billion offer.

Borders Group has a $450 million starting bid for a bankruptcy court auction of its assets later this month. Direct Brands was selected as the stalking horse bidder. It's offered $215 million in cash, $220 million in assumed debt and $15 million to help wind up the nation's second-largest bookseller's Chapter 11 proceedings.

eBay said most of its sellers would be exempt from a new California law requiring out-of-state retailers to collect sales tax in the state if they deal with California businesses.