Legal

Wal-Mart's court fight to sell liquor at its stores in Texas looks to be back on track, but the courtroom is getting crowded. A federal appeals court is allowing a trade group representing liquor store operators to join a stalled federal lawsuit that the nation's largest retailer filed against the Texas agency that hands out permits to…

After a yearlong deadlock, there's news on the legislation of online taxes. The National Retail Federation (NRF) welcomed the release of draft online sales tax legislation by House Judiciary Committee Chairman Robert Goodlatte, R-Va., saying action is needed to break Congress’ standstill on the issue. “Retailers should be allowed to compete based on how well they serve…

The planned auction of teen retailer Aéropostale has been moved back to August 29 as a bankruptcy judge weighs what could be a company-ending decision. Aéropostale and Sycamore Partners, the private equity firm that was at one time one of the retailer's largest backers, don’t agree on its future. Sycamore is pushing for liquidation, while Aéropostale…

Fashion retailer Zara got hit with a lawsuit for allegedly cheating American shoppers out of billions of dollars. The retailer, known for its trendy but reasonably priced clothing for women and men, was accused of unlawful pricing. Attorney Mark Geragos represents the plaintiffs. He accused Zara of "bait and switch and cover-up pricing." He said many products…

Target plans to spend $20 million to build single-occupant restrooms to appease shoppers uncomfortable with its stated policy that allows transgender customers and employees to use the restroom of their choice. That statement spurred a public debate on the issue and several protests, including a boycott by the American Family Association. Target hasn't changed its policy,…

American Apparel has called Los Angeles home for 27 years, but that may be coming to an end in 2019. The clothing retailer’s downtown L.A. headquarters’ lease is up in 2019 — one year before California’s minimum wage is set to rise to $15 per hour. States on the East Coast, like North Carolina and Tennessee,…

Jet.com pitches itself as a lower-priced alternative to Amazon.com, partly by not tacking on sales taxes in most states. But tax experts say Jet’s sale to retail giant Wal-Mart Stores Inc. could jeopardize that price advantage by forcing it to collect taxes nationwide. A 1992 Supreme Court ruling allows retailers to avoid collecting sales taxes in states…

A U.S. bankruptcy judge refused on Tuesday to allow Sports Authority to pay up to $2.85 million in bonuses to four executives for overseeing the winding down of the national sporting goods chain. Sports Authority filed for bankruptcy in March with hopes of keeping some of its 464 stores open, but battles among lenders and…

Whole Foods Market may be full of healthy stuff, but it can't trademark "world's healthiest." The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office rejected Whole Foods’ bid for a trademark on "World's Healthiest Grocery Store," calling it "merely descriptive." That's the same reason the office used years ago in rejecting a previous application by Whole Foods for "America's…

File this one under the bizarre files. Sports Authority wants to pay its top executives millions of dollars in bonuses while the retailer is going out of business. Once an operator of 460 athletic gear outlets, Sports Authority filed for bankruptcy protection and began going-out-of-business sales in an effort to pay its debts. As the liquidation…