Reephdweller
05-20-2003, 01:29 PM
CHICAGO - A Cook County judge has named 24 groups to divide a $10 million McDonald's settlement intended to make amends to customers who unwittingly ate the fries cooked in beef-flavored oil during the 1990s, when the burger chain had said it used only pure vegetable oil.
Lawsuits filed in Illinois, California, New Jersey, Texas and Washington charged the restaurant chain with deceiving people who don't eat meat for personal or religious reasons.
The ruling Monday by Circuit Judge Richard Siebel followed months of legal wrangling since McDonald's agreed to the settlement last year. The judge's ruling resolves a dispute over which organizations would share in the awards.
Oak Brook, Ill.-based McDonald's offered 60 percent of the settlement to vegetarian groups, 20 percent to Hindu and Sikh groups, 10 percent to children's nutrition and hunger-relief efforts and 10 percent to promoting understanding of Kosher practices.
But some vegetarian groups protested recipients chosen by McDonald's and other plaintiffs' lawyers, saying some were anti-vegetarian or otherwise inappropriate.
Siebel last month rejected three of the 26 proposed groups because attorneys in the case had family members or other personal involvement. On Monday, he added the Hillel Jewish campus organization to the list of participants and said the group would receive $300,000.
McDonald's attorney Peter Hecker said all the groups on the company's settlement list are responsible and intend to educate the public about vegetarianism.
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Lawsuits filed in Illinois, California, New Jersey, Texas and Washington charged the restaurant chain with deceiving people who don't eat meat for personal or religious reasons.
The ruling Monday by Circuit Judge Richard Siebel followed months of legal wrangling since McDonald's agreed to the settlement last year. The judge's ruling resolves a dispute over which organizations would share in the awards.
Oak Brook, Ill.-based McDonald's offered 60 percent of the settlement to vegetarian groups, 20 percent to Hindu and Sikh groups, 10 percent to children's nutrition and hunger-relief efforts and 10 percent to promoting understanding of Kosher practices.
But some vegetarian groups protested recipients chosen by McDonald's and other plaintiffs' lawyers, saying some were anti-vegetarian or otherwise inappropriate.
Siebel last month rejected three of the 26 proposed groups because attorneys in the case had family members or other personal involvement. On Monday, he added the Hillel Jewish campus organization to the list of participants and said the group would receive $300,000.
McDonald's attorney Peter Hecker said all the groups on the company's settlement list are responsible and intend to educate the public about vegetarianism.
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