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A judge has approved a settlement between Chipotle and its customers, ending claims that the chain restaurant falsely advertised its food as “GMO free.”
Preliminary approval was granted by U.S. District Judge Haywood S. Gilliam Jr., of the Northern District of California.
He determined that the settlement was “fair, adequate, and reasonable,” per California’s requirements for settlement approval.
The judge said that the Chipotle settlement fulfilled the “higher standard of fairness” for settlements, which ensured that the class counsel did not receive a disproportionate amount of the settlement.
Judge Gilliam explained that under the terms of the settlement, Chipotle will pay $6.5 million. Class Counsel will receive around 30 percent of the funds — up to $1.95 million. According to the judge, the attorneys’ fees were reasonable based on the amount of work involved in litigating the issue and reaching a settlement deal.
Between $400,000 and $600,000 will go towards incentive fees for named plaintiffs. These payments will compensate the numerous plaintiffs for their contribution towards the class action.
Class Members can receive payments of up to $2 per meal. However, the benefits could be less than this depending on how many claims are made. The judge notes that settlement checks not cashed within 120 days of being sent out will be donated to the nonprofit Public Justice.
In determining that the Chipotle GMO class action settlement was fair and should be approved, the judge said that the settlement had not received opposition from Class Members.
The settlement will have to be evaluated in the future for final approval. Preliminary approval allows the settlement to move forward for claims, but final approval is needed before payments can be distributed.
This preliminary settlement approval follows a November 2017 motion for summary judgment made by Chipotle, which was denied in September 2018. At the same time, the court approved customers’ request for Class certification.
Customers modified the Classes per the court’s request and received Class certification for statewide Classes in California, Maryland, and New York.
The customers’ Chipotle GMO class action lawsuit took issue with a Chipotle campaign in which the company advertised that Chipotle would be changing its menu to be GMO free, which would make it the only fast food chain in the country to offer a menu free from GMO’s.
Six customers filed their Chipotle GMO false advertising class action lawsuit saying that the “G-M-Over It” campaign was misleading. Allegedly, the chain offers meat and dairy products sourced from animals that are fed genetically modified food. Additionally, the chain reportedly offers soda pop that is made from genetically modified corn syrup.
Allegedly, customers would reasonably believe that every item on Chipotle’s menu was free of GMOs. The Chipotle GMO class action lawsuit argued that Chipotle misled customers, and enticed them into purchasing Chipotle’s food under false pretenses.
Do you seek out GMO-free food? Tell us about how you make your purchasing decisions in the comments below.
Top Class Actions will post updates to this class action settlement as they become available. For the latest updates, keep checking TopClassActions.com or sign up for our free newsletter. You can also receive notifications when this article is updated by using your free Top Class Actions account and clicking the “Follow Article” button at the top of the post.
The plaintiffs are represented by Matthew B. George, Mario M. Choi, Frederic S. Fox, Laurence D. King and Donald R. Hall of Kaplan Fox & Kilsheimer LLP, and Matthew I. Menchel and Hartley M. K. West of Kobre & Kim LLP.
The Chipotle Non-GMO Class Action Lawsuit is Martin Schneider, et al. v. Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc., Case No. 4:16-cv-02200, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.
UPDATE: April 2020, the Chipotle non-gmo class action settlement is now open. Click here to file a claim.
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165 thoughts on$6.5M Chipotle Class Action Settlement Approved
I eat here a few times, a week :(, help me…