SIOUX FALLS (AP) - An appeals court has revived a lawsuit filed by a small energy drink company with South Dakota origins against former food giant Sara Lee.
The Argus Leader reports a three-judge panel with the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that a district court judge in Texas wrongly dismissed claims made by Jacked Up against Sara Lee regarding the termination of their licensing agreement when Sara Lee sold its beverage division to J.M. Smucker Co.
Jacked Up founder Joseph Schmitz sued Sara Lee for breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty, fraud and fraudulent inducement. The ruling allows Jacked Up to move forward with the lawsuit.
Last year, Schmitz was jailed in Lake County in connection to the shooting death of his fiancee at the Lake Madison home they rented.
