Ninth Circuit Reviews Easterday Case

LINCOLN, Neb. (DTN) -- The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit is expected to hear oral arguments at summer's end in Cody Easterday's lawsuit against Tyson Fresh Meats, alleging the company breached a contract by not paying him for selling his beef in Japan.

Easterday, a former eastern Washington rancher, is serving an 11-year prison sentence in Los Angeles after pleading guilty to one count of wire fraud, perpetuating a $233 million scheme of billing Tyson for raising cattle that didn't exist.

Easterday's lawsuit alleged Tyson never paid for the use of his name and likeness as part of a joint venture that involved the marketing and selling of premium beef from his ranch. Easterday has alleged Tyson owes him about $100 million.

Easterday has alleged he had a handshake agreement with Tyson to sell his beef using his image and likeness in Japan, packaged as "Cody's Beef."

The Ninth Circuit said it plans to hear oral arguments in Portland, Oregon, in August or September 2024, unless the two sides reach a settlement.

Both Tyson and Easterday filed briefs with the Ninth Circuit this spring as the court determines whether a ruling by the U.S. District Court for the District of Eastern Washington in October 2023 was legal.

Attorneys for Tyson asked the court to affirm the district court's ruling that threw out Easterday's lawsuit.

"In a nutshell, Mr. Easterday asserts that a largely inscrutable email exchange in May 2020 -- of which he repeatedly only quotes a snippet -- was actually an acknowledgement of an oral agreement six or seven years earlier (it's a mystery exactly when) by which he would personally receive half of the profits from the cattle deals between the corporate entities because his name and likeness were on labels in Japan," Tyson said in its reply brief.

"There are numerous problems with that proposition, including insufficient allegations of a meeting of the minds, lack of essential terms, sheer implausibility given written agreements between the corporate entities, and significant untimeliness and unclean hands. The district court's dismissal of the complaint should be affirmed."

In response to Tyson's court filing, Easterday's attorneys argue the oral agreement is a legal contract that Tyson breached and was part of a written agreement between the parties.

"In 2013, Tyson made oral promises to Mr. Easterday to form a branding joint venture to use his name and photograph on 'Cody's Beef' labels, had him perform and now misdirects this court to the wrong promises to disavow them," Easterday said in a brief.

"This is consistent with Tyson's judicially recognized practice of actionable subterfuge by taking 'advantage of its lack of written agreement in its dealings with all of its suppliers, so that it could make representations that were false and then disavow them later.'"

Tyson argues that the only agreements it had with Easterday were to procure cattle. Easterday's attorneys argue the agreements, however, do not grant Tyson permission to use Easterday's name and photograph.

"This is not surprising since Easterday Ranches lacked the authority to do so," Easterday said in the brief.

"Only Mr. Easterday, in his personal capacity, can do that. Thus, a separate agreement must have existed granting Tyson permission to use Mr. Easterday's name and photograph. Otherwise, Tyson is liable for misappropriation."

On Aug. 28, 2023, the district court dismissed another lawsuit filed by Easterday against Tyson alleging the company committed several antitrust violations and violated the Packers and Stockyards Act during a 10-year business relationship.

In the months following pleading guilty to wire fraud, Easterday raised tens of millions of dollars through asset sales to make restitution to Tyson.

The Easterday Ranches saga drew national attention when a company connected to the Church of Jesus Christ Latter-day Saints was the winning bidder for the Easterday assets. The second-highest bidder was an investment company tied to Microsoft founder Bill Gates.

According to court documents in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Eastern Washington, Farmland Reserve, owned by the church, was awarded the winning bid of $209 million for the Easterday assets.

Easterday operated an extensive family farm operation in eastern Washington involved in cattle feeding as well as 22,500 acres of potatoes, onions, corn and wheat in the Columbia Basin.

Read more on DTN:

"Easterday Appeals Tyson Ruling," https://www.dtnpf.com/…

Todd Neeley can be reached at todd.neeley@dtn.com

(c) Copyright 2024 DTN, LLC. All rights reserved.