A U.S. federal judge in Chicago on Tuesday dismissed a proposed class action that alleged Buffalo Wild Wings misled customers by selling menu items marketed as "boneless wings" that, the plaintiff said, are essentially chicken nuggets rather than deboned wing meat.
The lawsuit was filed in 2023 by Aimen Halim. In his ruling, Judge John Tharp Jr. concluded that Halim's complaint did not include sufficient factual allegations to support the claims he advanced.
Tharp used pointed language to explain his decision, writing that Halim's complaint "has no meat on its bones." The judge added that, despite Halim's efforts, the plaintiff did not "drum" up enough factual allegations to state a claim.
Halim's lawsuit alleged that the chain's marketing and advertising of "boneless wings" is false and therefore deceives consumers in violation of the Illinois Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act, among other claims. The plaintiff characterized the disputed menu item as essentially a chicken nugget, and said he was misled into purchasing it.
In dismissing the complaint, Tharp explained that reasonable consumers are not likely to be misled into believing that boneless wings are actually made of wing meat. He noted that if Halim's theory were accepted, consumers would similarly be expected to think that cauliflower wings contain wing meat - which, the judge observed, they do not.
Although the judge granted the restaurant chain's request to dismiss the case, he did not permanently close the door. Tharp gave Halim until March 20 to file an amended complaint that could include any additional factual allegations that might allow the case to proceed.
Key context and legal posture
- The suit was brought in 2023 and was a proposed class action.
- The central legal claim cited the Illinois Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act.
- The judge dismissed the complaint for failure to plead sufficient factual detail but allowed leave to amend by March 20.