Sue Like A Lady: Skinnygirl Margarita Class Action Moves Forward

July 30th, 2012. By AbiK

That Skinnygirl class action lawsuit—the one about the much lusted-after ready-to-drink Skinnygirl Margarita—is moving ahead. The class action alleges false and misleading claims over the inclusion of sodium benzoate—a chemical preservative—as an ingredient while Skinnygirl manufacturer, Beam Inc. (which acquired Skinnygirl Cocktails from founder Bethenny Frankel) advertised the cocktail as “all natural”.

According to Skinnygirl class action (Case 1:11-cv-05149-NLH-KMW filed in U.S. District Court, District of NJ) court documents, plaintiffs Maureen Stewart and Kelly Lamicella took umbrage with Skinnygirl’s assertion that it’s a “healthy alternative to other commercial margarita products currently available”.

To some, there would seem to be a bit of incongruency—that someone concerned about “healthy alternatives” would have no issue slinging back what’s essentially a shot of tequila hiding out in some agave nectar, lime juice and triple sec. It does sort of beg the question of what’s worse on the system?—an onslaught of tequila or some sodium benzoate? Ask me in the morning, right?

To be fair, there have been reports indicating that sodium benzoate can become a carcinogen if mixed with some other substances, including vitamin C, which of course would be found in lime juice (and that necessary wedge of lime on the glass rim). And, Whole Foods did drop Skinnygirl Margarita from its stores after finding out sodium benzoate was present in the drink.

But the heart of the issue in the Skinnygirl class action—regardless of health or not—is: does the company falsely advertise its product? Does Skinnygirl Margarita contain all-natural ingredients as advertised, or not?

Beam sought to have the case dismissed based on the the plaintiffs’ allegation of unjust enrichment because the Skinnygirl Margaritas were purchased via a third party—i.e., a liquor store in NJ—not directly from Beam.

A claim of unjust enrichment is typically made when a company allegedly benefits (usually financially) from a false advertising claim. Alleged unjust enrichment is a claim in the current Hebrew National false advertising class action lawsuit—the plaintiffs claim Hebrew National benefitted unjustly by falsely calling their hot dogs “kosher” because the company could then charge a premium price over non-kosher hot dogs.

For the Skinnygirl lawsuit, District Judge Noel Hillman didn’t buy Beam’s motion to dismiss, so the class action’s moving ahead…

Tags: Beam Inc, Bethenny Frankel, Skinnygirl Class Action Lawsuit, Skinnygirl Margarita

This was posted on Monday, July 30th, 2012 at 6:23 pm and is filed under Celebrity, Class Action, Consumer Fraud . Feel free to respond, or trackback. Read our comments policy.