Business & Tech
Appeals Court Reverses Decision on Wegmans Lawsuit
The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said developers can pursue litigation against groups that tried to block the development of the grocery store.
A federal appeals court is allowing the developers of the Waugh Chapel Towne Centre project to sue a labor union for its attempts to stop Wegmans from opening.
The 4th Circuit Court of Appeals said Waugh Chapel South LLC can pursue its $25 million suit, which alleged that the unions used "sham litigation" to try and block the supermarket. The store ultimately opened last October.
News of the court's ruling was first reported by The Daily Record and also published by the Associated Press.
A previous judge said the labor unions' legal filings were constitutionally protected, but the appeals court said the First Amendment does not necessarily protect potential illegal activity.
The United Food and Commercial Workers Union locals 27 and 400 made 14 legal filings between 2008 and 2011, but prevailed in just one.
Wegmans is a non-union grocer.
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