$100M Lawsuit Against Little Caesars Dismissed

DEARBORN, MI — A $100 million lawsuit against Little Caesar’s Pizza filed by a Dearborn man in May has been dismissed. Mohamad Bazzi twice ordered halal pizza from a Schaefer Road Little Caesars in Dearborn, but claimed to have been served and accidentally eaten pepperoni made with pork, a food prohibited by Islamic law.

Little Caesars was granted “summary disposition” or dismissal of the case by a Wayne County Circuit Court judge Thursday, according to a Detroit Free Press report. An attorney for Bazzi said they made appeal the decision.

In May, a Little Caesar’s spokesperson told Patch that the case would not likely withstand judicial review. “Little Caesars cherishes our customers from all religions and cultures, and the communities we serve are very important to us,” said Jill Proctor. “While we can’t comment on pending litigation, we take this claim very seriously. At this time, we believe it is without merit.”

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Majed Moughni, the attorney for Bazzi, filed a second suit against the pizza maker on behalf of two other clients. The Free Press reported Thursday that case will move forward.

As in the Bazzi case, Ali Bazzi and Michelle Meade claim that they ate pizza advertised as being halal — made with beef pepperoni instead of pork. The couple is seeking more than $100 million in damages.

The lawsuit is also seeking class action status, saying thousands of people were sold falsely labeled pizzas, according to a WDIV-TV report. Specifically, the new lawsuit alleges:

• Breach of conduct
• Negligent misrepresentation
• Unjust enrichment
• Fraud
• Intentional infliction of emotional distress
• Assault and battery
• Negligence
• Respondeat superior

Despite the dismissal of Mohamad Bazzi’s case, Moughni said that it was a victory of sorts. He told the Free Press that the Schaefer Road Little Caesars has removed the halal sign from its window.

in the past week, it was discovered via calls from customers that Little Caesars is no longer selling halal pepperoni and that the halal pepperoni signs at the Schaefer Road location had been removed.

Photo by Mike Mozart via Flickr Commons