Legal

It has become standard practice in the retail business for cashiers to request the ZIP code of customers paying with a credit card. But while most consumers readily supply this information, it isn't required to check out. In fact, giving the impression it is required may be illegal. At least that's what one law firm is arguing in a class-action complaint filed against Urban Outfitters and its sister company, Anthropologie, in federal court late last month. The law firm, Perry Charnoff PLLC, claims that Urban Outfitters is in violation of

A group of 17 North American retailers, including Wal-Mart, J.C. Penney, Gap, Target and Macy’s, on Wednesday announced a five-year safety pact aimed at improving conditions in garment factories in Bangladesh. It calls for inspecting all factories that supply their garments within a year, and an agreement to set up basic safety standards within three months.

In a decision that could reshape how books are sold on the internet, a federal judge ruled that Apple Inc. conspired to raise the retail prices of e-books in violation of antitrust law, and called for a trial on damages. The decision by U.S. District Judge Denise Cote in Manhattan is a victory for the U.S. government and various states, which the judge said are entitled to injunctive relief. Apple had been accused of colluding with five publishers to boost e-book prices beginning in late 2009, as the company was preparing to launch its popular iPad tablet.

Most major retailer trade associations have applauded the U.S. Treasury Department’s decision to provide an additional year before the mandatory employer and insurer reporting

A lawsuit has been filed against lululemon athletica, accusing it of defrauding shareholders by hiding defects in yoga pants whose sheerness led to a costly product recall, as well as concealing talks that led to the sudden departure of its chief executive, Christine Day. The lawsuit was filed by shareholder Houssam Alkhoury in Manhattan District Court. It names Day and company founder/chairman Dennis Chip Wilson and seeks class-action status for shareholders between March 21, when full-year results were announced, and June 10. 

A former Tiffany & Co. executive was charged with stealing jewelry from the company and selling it for $1.3 million. Ingrid Lederhaas-Okun, 46, a former Tiffany vice president, was arrested yesterday at her home in Darien, Conn., and charged with wire fraud and interstate transportation of stolen property, according to a statement from the office of U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara in Manhattan. Prosecutors claim that from January 2011 to February 2013, Lederhaas-Okun checked out 165 pieces of jewelry, including diamond bracelets, platinum and gold earrings, and platinum and diamond pendants, then sold them to an unnamed jewelry reseller in Manhattan. 

Hobby Lobby and a sister company will not be subject to $1.3 million in daily fines beginning Monday for failing to provide access to certain forms of birth control through its employees' health care plans, a judge ruled Friday. U.S. District Judge Joe Heaton set a hearing for July 19 to address claims by the owners of Hobby Lobby and the Mardel Christian bookstore chains that their religious beliefs are so deeply rooted that having to provide every form of birth control would violate their conscience.

Here's a sampling of the reaction that we received regarding last issue's Editor's Note, which focused on the highly controversial Marketplace Fairness Act (i.e., the online sales tax law) that's currently being debated in Congress. To view all the letters we received, as well as the full-length versions of the letters printed below, go to RetailOnlineIntegration.com and search under the "The Magazine" tab.

Macy's will pay $175,000 in civil penalties to the U.S. government in an agreement with the Department of Justice (DOJ) settling claims of mistreatment of immigrant workers. In addition to paying the $175,000 fine, Macy's will also revise its employment eligibility reverification policies and procedures, as well as provide training to its human resources personnel across the country on the anti-discrimination provision of the Immigration and Naturalization Act (INA). In addition, Macy's will create a $100,000 fund to compensate any individuals who suffered lost wages or loss of seniority as a result of its practices.

A lawsuit filed against Family Dollar by Pipefitters Local No. 636 alleging that Family Dollar violated federal securities laws has