Legal

One of the world's leading luxury brands has filed a suit against one of the world's largest discount retailers over allegedly false claims on engagement rings. Tiffany & Co. is suing Costco Wholesale Corp. to find out how many of the supposedly counterfeit rings the big-box retailer sold, the source of the rings and, of course, for monetary damages. This suit could have the same result of a similar 2004 charge that Tiffany leveled against eBay. In that case the court said it was Tiffany's responsibility to figure out the source of the counterfeit jewelry, not eBay's.

Retailers in most states now have the option to charge a fee to consumers who pay with a credit card. The new "checkout fee," in effect since Jan. 27, is the result of a multibillion dollar settlement announced last summer between credit card issuers and millions of merchants. Visa, MasterCard and nine major banks agreed to pay $7.25 billion to settle charges that they were fixing credit card processing fees. Credit card issuers agreed as part of the deal to reduce the "swipe fees" that merchants pay to issuers when cards are used, but only for eight months.

A federal judge in Ohio refused to block Zale Corp. from using an advertising campaign that touts the superior brightness of its diamonds, over the objections of a rival jewelry chain. Sterling Jewelers Inc., a unit of Signet Jewelers, filed a lawsuit in November accusing Zale of false advertising in claiming that its Celebration Fire stones are the "most brilliant diamonds in the world." Sterling, based in Akron, Ohio, said its tests found that its own diamonds are as glittery as those sold at Zale's. 

Bluestem Brands Inc. alleged in its lawsuit that Merkle, a database marketing firm, made various errors in creating and managing a database for Bluestem's Fingerhut and Gettington.com catalogs. The errors resulted in Bluestem sending "millions of catalog mailings" to "the wrong prospective customers," according to the lawsuit filed Jan. 17 in U.S. District Court in Baltimore. The incorrect mailings cost Bluestem more than $10 million in printing, mailing and other costs, the suit said.

There are several things predicted to cost more in 2013, including many consumer products and essentials. Retailers from supermarkets to consumer electronics specialists will likely suffer as a result. In December, I wrote "12 Things That Will Be More Expensive in 2013″ for Deal News. It's the third annual installment and based on my"11 Things That Will Be More Expensive in 2011″ list, has proven to be fairly accurate. First the good news, consumers can expect to get a break in two categories in 2013: gas and gold.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. is under increasing pressure from investors and labor-rights groups to name its garment suppliers after a fire in Bangladesh killed more than 100 people at a factory that made its clothes. Proponents say public disclosure of...

Macy's bid to prevent Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia Inc. from executing a sales agreement with J.C. Penney is set to go to trial Feb. 19. The case won't be tried before a jury and there will be no need to decide damages, Judge Jeffrey K. Oing said yesterday in New York state court in Manhattan. Any potential damages in the dispute "are going to pale in comparison to the injunction," Oing said during a hearing. "That's the real big bucks there — if I stop this deal." Macy's, the second-biggest U.S. department-store chain, claims it has an exclusive right to sell Martha Stewart Living products in certain categories. 

A U.S. judge on Wednesday rejected part of Apple's lawsuit against Amazon.com's use of the term App Store, ruling Apple cannot bring a false advertising claim against the online retailer. U.S. District Judge Phyllis Hamilton in Oakland, California, granted Amazon's motion for partial summary judgment, which only challenged Apple's false advertising allegations. Apple leveled other claims against Amazon, including trademark infringement. An Apple spokeswoman declined to comment, and an Amazon representative couldn't be reached immediately.

You heard it here first: 2013 will be the year of Tory Burch. On Jan. 1, the fashion mogul's company made two big announcements, both of which will renew speculation of an impending IPO that could land the 46-year-old on the Forbes 400. The board at Tory Burch's eponymous brand and the designer's ex-husband Chris Burch have settled "all pending legal claims," per a statement, putting an end to an increasingly nasty and public battle of lawsuits and counterclaims.

A report on Tuesday by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission revealed that Dillard’s Inc. will pay $2 million to settle a class-action disability discrimination lawsuit. The department store retailer will also have to “commit to...