A U.S. appeals court on Tuesday reversed a contempt order against a New York lawyer who has filed hundreds of class actions accusing companies of misleading labeling on foods, saying there was no evidence he acted in bad faith when he sued Starbucks.
The New York-based 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reversed a federal judge’s ruling holding attorney Spencer Sheehan in civil contempt after he filed a lawsuit claiming Starbucks’ labeling on its French Roast Ground 100% Arabica coffee falsely implied it had no additives. Sheehan’s arguments in bringing the lawsuit may not have been convincing, but the claims were not frivolous and Sheehan did not violate any court order, the appeals court said.
Court-initiated sanctions, like those Senior U.S. District Judge Frederick Scullin Jr. leveled against Sheehan, require a subjective finding of bad faith, the appeals court said. Starbucks was not involved in the bid for sanctions.
Neither Sheehan, who is based in Great Neck, New York, nor his attorney immediately responded to a request for comment.
Sheehan had argued on appeal that the lawsuit’s claim that the 100% label would be understood by consumers to be free of additives was supported by rulings in four other courts. He also argued that he had done the appropriate investigation before filing the claims.
Sheehan, who has garnered headlines for his lawsuits over product labeling, has said that he filed more than 500 lawsuits between January 2020 and April 2023. He has filed lawsuits claiming Kellogg’s Strawberry Pop Tarts don’t contain enough strawberries and Walmart’s fudge mint cookies don’t contain any actual fudge or mint. Both lawsuits were dismissed, court records show.
The lawsuit against Starbucks, filed on behalf of plaintiff Kristie Brownell in November 2022, alleged that Starbucks’ “100% Arabica coffee” label indicated to consumers that the coffee contained no additives, when it likely had added potassium. Starbucks moved to dismiss the lawsuit, arguing Brownell had not presented evidence of added potassium and that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration does not require the company to list potassium content on its label.
In 2023, Scullin granted the motion to dismiss, entered a contempt order and imposed a $500 sanction on Sheehan. Scullin said the lawsuit was unsupported by studies, case law or “reasonable interpretations” of the labeling, and was part of a pattern of frivolous lawsuits Sheehan filed in federal court.
The appellate panel included Circuit Judges Alison Nathan and Reena Raggi and U.S. District Judge Jesse Furman of the U.S. District Court of the Southern District of New York, sitting by designation.
The case is Kristie Brownell et al. v. Starbucks Coffee Corp, 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, case number 25-189.
