New England Coffee Co. ‘Hazelnut Crème’ Fraud Claims Revived

Reily Foods Co. and its subsidiary New England Coffee Co. must face a disappointed consumer’s claim that it misled her because its “Hazelnut Crème” coffee lacks hazelnut.

Kathy Dumont, who seeks to represent a nationwide class, satisfied a heightened standard for pleading fraud claims, a split U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit ruled Aug. 8. She provided enough detail about her reliance on the label, Judge William J. Kayatta Jr. said. It reversed the lower court and reinstated the suit.

The case doesn’t turn on when or where Dumont purchased the product, the appeals court said. “Rather, it ...