A writ of certiorari has been filed with the U.S. Supreme Court, requesting the high court review DeCoster v. United States. The government has until Feb. 15 to respond the writ.
Appellate attorney Peter D. Keisler asks in the writ that the Supreme Court consider the case because a ruling by the 8th U.S. District …
The notion that “the food police are coming” motivated attendees at the United Fresh Produce Association’s Washington Conference earlier this month to attend a session featuring Jeffrey Steger, assistant director in the Consumer Protection Branch of the U.S. Department of Justice, and prominent attorney Doug Fellman, a partner, at Hogan Lovells US LLP. 
There have…
As Food Safety News editor Dan Flynn has reported, lawyers for Austin “Jack” DeCoster and Peter DeCoster, owners and operators of Quality Egg, have recruited some heavy hitters in their ongoing battle to avoid prison time. Despite pleading guilty to the felony of bribing a public official to approve shipment of bad eggs and the…
One option the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has pursued since at least 2010 in criminal prosecutions of corporations and officers is to bring charges that do not require proof that defendants were in a criminal state of mind. However, it’s an option that may be ending soon. FDA’s policy — seen recently in…
Here are a couple of legal concepts to get your head around before we continue: The Park Doctrine: Also known as the “Responsible Corporate Officer (RCO) Doctrine,” it allows a corporate officer, who in a position to prevent or correct a violation of the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FDCA) but who fails to do…
