Rana Plaza: US court scraps case against 3 retailers

A judge in Delaware dismissed a lawsuit filed against three major US clothing retailers following the massive collapse of Rana Plaza complex, where over 1,100 people died in 2013.

The lawsuit was filed last year by an injured worker and a man who lost his wife during the collapse, claiming the companies -- Wal-Mart Stores, JC Penney and the Children’s Place--failed to ensure safe working conditions at the garment factory in Bangladesh.

The judge this week agreed with the defendants that the lawsuit was filed after the one-year deadline under applicable Bangladeshi law had expired.

She also agreed that the plaintiffs had failed to establish that the US companies owed a duty of care to the workers, who were directly employed by the garment factory, not the retailers.

In Canada, the Notice of Action for nearly US$ 2 billion was filed at the Ontario Superior Court on behalf of the victims on April 22, 2015 against Loblaw Inc. and its Joe fresh brand, which used to source from New Wave Style Ltd, a garment factory located within Rana Plaza.