Sidley is pleased to announce that it has secured a complete victory for its client, a major pet supply store, in a long-running litigation involving “prescription diet” pet food. On January 24, 2025, Judge Jorge Alonso of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois granted summary judgment in favor of our client, dismissing all claims against it. Plaintiff alleged that our client and co-defendant, a pet food manufacturer, violated the Illinois Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act (ICFA) by requiring a veterinarian’s prescription to purchase certain pet food products.
The summary judgment ruling follows a previous victory for our client in 2022 when the court denied class certification.
The court found that plaintiff could not establish that they were deceived or harmed by the enforcement of the prescription pet food policy, which was preempted by the FDCA. The court agreed, finding that plaintiff failed to show any proximate causation between client’s actions and their decision to buy the prescription pet food. The court also rejected plaintiff’s alternative claim for unjust enrichment, which depended on the viability of their ICFA claim.
The Sidley team was led by partner and global co-leader of our Consumer Class Actions practice, Amy Lally, and included senior managing associate Julie Becker, managing associates Lauren Keane and Abigail Bachrach, and paralegal Amanda Gonzales.
