JC Penney Board Dodges Suit Blaming Woes on Oversight Failures

JC Penney Co. and its board have beaten an investor lawsuit accusing them of failing to ensure that the struggling retail giant complied with a $50 million court settlement.

The 2016 settlement resolved a class action claiming JC Penney violated California consumer laws by falsely advertising that its “sale” prices reflected large discounts from “original” prices it never actually charged.

About 10 weeks after the deal was finalized, the Los Angeles city attorney filed an enforcement action making similar claims, as did a Kansas consumer who brought a proposed state court class action.

The enforcement suit is ongoing. The department ...