Several U.S. pork producers have asked for a Minnesota federal judge to step aside from their pending antitrust case after raising numerous accusations of a conflict of interest against a law clerk.
In a motion filed Monday night, the food companies asked for the recusal of U.S. District Judge John Tunheim “in light of recently disclosed facts,” alleging one of the court’s clerks worked for three separate entities suing protein producers in other cases, that the clerk has a pending job offer from one of the law firms that filed a similar suit and the clerk announced on social media that one of their former employers was suing one of the defendants, which “explicitly identified” the case.
“The law is clear,” the motion states. “Recusal is required if a judge’s impartiality might reasonably be questioned by the average person on the streets who knows the relevant facts.”
The recusal request, made by Clemson Foods, Seaboard Foods, Tyson Foods, Triumph Foods and Smithfield Foods, comes on the heels of Tunheim’s denial of summary judgment against some of the companies. Hormel Foods was the only firm to receive summary judgment.
A spokesperson for the U.S. District Court declined to comment on the pending case.
The lawsuit, one of several launched in 2018 against meatpacking plants, was filed on behalf of a dozen consumers who alleged the pork companies broke antitrust laws, unfair competition laws and unjust enrichment common laws.
In their recusal request, the companies state they first had an “inkling” of any apparent conflict after a hearing in November, when they say the clerk approached the plaintiff’s attorneys following the proceedings, hugged them and engaged in a “prolonged friendly conversation.”
The companies said they “promptly” inquired the court about the clerk’s involvement in prior cases involving one of the defendants, Indiana-based Agri Stats Inc., and did not receive a response until April 15, when they received a sealed, three-page letter. The contents of the letter are redacted in court filings.
