Target Attempts Settlement Talks to End Pride Marketing Lawsuit

Target Corp. will try to settle a legal spat with an investor claiming backlash to the retailer’s marketing for Pride Month merchandise spurred a collapse in share value, documents show.

Judge John Badalamenti for the US District Court for the Middle District of Florida approved on Jan. 6 a request by Target and the shareholder who brought the lawsuit to begin talks toward a settlement. The move follows Target’s failure to kill the case or move it to friendlier courts.

The investor is represented by incoming White House Deputy Chief of Staff for domestic policy Stephen Miller’s America First Legal Foundation. The shareholder sued Target in 2023 over the company’s marketing for Pride Month, which celebrates LGBTQ+ inclusion.

Shares of the company tanked, the investor alleged, because the marketing sparked an uproar from conservatives that drove customers away. Target pushed back in the lawsuit, arguing the share-price drop had nothing to do with its Pride Month marketing.

Target and its lead attorney in the case didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. America First Legal Foundation didn’t immediately provide a comment.

Boyden Gray PLLC and Lawson Huck Gonzalez PLLC also represent the investor. Kirkland & Ellis LLP and Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP represent Target.

The case is Craig v. Target Corp., M.D. Fla., No. 2:23-cv-00599, motion granted 1/6/25.