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Paul Weiss Faces Disqualification Bid in Sugar Price-Fixing Litigation

By  |  September 9, 2026
price-fixing

A group of major food manufacturers is asking a federal judge to consider removing Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison from the defense of Domino Sugar owner ASR Group in an antitrust lawsuit, alleging the law firm previously received confidential information while seeking to represent the companies now suing the sugar producer, according to Reuters.

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    Kraft Heinz, Mondelēz Global, Nestlé USA, Hershey and other plaintiffs raised the conflict allegations in a filing Tuesday in federal court in Minnesota, Reuters reported. The companies said they provided Paul Weiss with confidential litigation strategy and pricing information in 2024, when the firm was seeking to represent them in the planned sugar-industry case.

    The manufacturers are asking the court to require Paul Weiss to show why it should remain as counsel for ASR Group and its Domino Sugar business, according to Reuters. They contend the firm’s decision to represent ASR creates conflicts of interest and say Paul Weiss did not obtain their consent before taking on the defense.

    Paul Weiss has disputed the conflict allegations in court filings, Reuters reported. The firm has argued that the lawyers currently representing ASR were not involved in its 2024 discussions with the food manufacturers.

    The dispute adds a legal-ethics fight to litigation accusing major sugar producers of conspiring to manipulate prices. ASR has denied the underlying price-fixing allegations, according to Reuters.

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    One complication involves Kraft Heinz, which Reuters reported is a current Paul Weiss client. According to the plaintiffs’ filing, the law firm proposed assigning separate lawyers to handle ASR’s defense specifically against Kraft Heinz’s claims. The food manufacturers characterized that solution as unworkable.

    Related: General Mills, Mars Accuse Major Sugar Producers of Price-Fixing

    Paul Weiss General Counsel Kenneth Schneider previously told the manufacturers that the firm’s work for ASR and Domino was consistent with its ethical duties and wasn’t adverse to Kraft Heinz, according to a letter described by Reuters.

    The lawyers at Paul Weiss who originally sought to represent the food companies included William Isaacson, Reuters reported. Those attorneys left Paul Weiss last year to establish a new law firm. Paul Weiss later entered the sugar litigation on the other side after Djordje Petkoski, ASR’s lead attorney, moved to the firm from A&O Shearman in September 2025, according to Reuters.

    Reuters said Paul Weiss, Petkoski and an outside lawyer representing the firm in the conflict dispute did not immediately respond to its requests for comment.

    Mondelēz and the other plaintiffs ultimately retained Jenner & Block, which filed their lawsuit against ASR and other sugar companies in July, according to Reuters. Neither Mondelēz nor Jenner immediately responded to Reuters’ requests for comment.

    The conflict fight is unfolding in Mondelēz Global LLC et al. v. ASR Group International Inc. et al., case No. 0:26-cv-03528 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota, Reuters reported. Jenner & Block’s Brandon Fox represents the plaintiffs, while Petkoski of Paul Weiss represents ASR.

    Source: Reuters