Delta Farms/Spensary suing VapeWholeSupply

1804774765(1-11).pdf (254.8 KB)

seems reddit and the affiliate programs are an important part of this. Curious who all the John/Jane Does are

Summary for people who don’t pay attention to the internet plz

this is the news article I found it from

Law360 (August 11, 2021, 4:54 PM EDT) – The parent company of cannabis manufacturers Delta Farms and Spensary hit a hemp distributor with a $2.5 million suit in a California state court, arguing that it smeared the brands’ reputation after their distribution agreement went south.

In an 11-page complaint, Delta Technologies LLC said that wholesale distributor Vape Whole Supply LLC; its founder, Shivan Kanagaraja; and a group of corporate “alter egos” including Best Industries Inc. publicly discredited hemp and cannabis brands Delta Farms Vape and Spensary’s product safety after a “breakdown in their relationship” over accounting discrepancies, such as unauthorized discounts and failed invoices.

According to Delta Technologies, the “false” statements dinged the brands’ reputations and caused the company to lose $2.5 million in profits.

“Kanagaraja made a derogatory post on the front page of the VWS website stating: ‘We no longer endorse Delta Farms or Spensary, or can vouch for the efficacy or safety of their products, unfortunately, due to unknown sourcing,’” Delta Technologies said. “This statement strongly implied the brands were somehow unsafe or ineffective and came from dubious sources.”

According to the Monday filing, Kanagaraja posted the defamatory statements on Vape Whole Supply’s website after Delta Technologies didn’t answer his calls about an amended business agreement that the manufacturer had proposed the previous week.

“Kanagaraja again perceived some slight because plaintiff’s manager did not immediately respond to his calls, and made this post in order to effectuate some retribution,” Delta Technologies said.

According to Delta Technologies, the alleged defamation remained on the site for nearly a week and damaged the reputation of Delta Farms and Spensary, reaching about 300 website visitors per day and resurfacing on public Reddit discussion forums.

Michael L. Federici, counsel for Delta Technologies, told Law360 on Wednesday that the Florida-based distributor publicly defamed his client in violation of the business agreement.

“In defaming my client, the marketer/salesperson also breached his written nondisparagement agreement,” Michael Federici said.

According to the complaint, Kanagaraja previously agreed to pay $25,000 in damages for any breach of the agreement.

“The parties agreed, given the volatility in the cannabis and cannabis-peripheral markets under the constantly changing laws and regulations in the various jurisdictions in the United States, that this was a reasonable estimate of base damages under the agreement,” Delta Technologies said.

Delta Farms, Spensary, Best Industries and Vape Whole Supply did not immediately respond to requests for comment Wednesday.

Delta Technologies is represented by Michael L. Federici of the Federici Law Firm.

Counsel information for Shivan Kanagaraja, Best Industries Inc. and Vape Whole Supply LLC was not immediately available Wednesday.

The case is Delta Technologies LLC vs. Shivan Kanagaraja et al., case number 21STCV29200, in the Superior Court for the State of California, County of Los Angeles.

Read more at: https://www.law360.com/articles/1411592/cbd-co-slaps-hemp-distributor-with-2-5m-defamation-suit?copied=1

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and this is from the filing directly

  1. In addition, Kanagarajan began giving certain customers steep discounts, and
    maintained his own affiliate network for the sale of the Brands, all without Plaintiff’s knowledge
    or consent. He would then pass these prices and commissions to Plaintiff but continue to demand
    his full commission, which cut deeply into Plaintiff’s effective profit margins on the Brands
  1. In this timeframe, in a period where Kanagarajan had failed to invoice Plaintiff for
    months, Plaintiff began receiving complaints from Kanagarajan’s affiliates demanding payment
    directly from Plaintiff. Plaintiff never agreed to participate in Kanagarajan’s affiliate program and
    has no such agreements with any of his affiliates. At that point, Plaintiff demanded an accounting.
    Plaintiff was unsure what it even owed Kanagarajan, if anything, since Kanagarajan did not provide
    the accounting that Plaintiff demanded.
  2. Rather than take responsibility for this, Kanagarajan began telling his affiliates that
    it was Spensary’s (Plaintiff’s) fault, when in reality he did not have the money to pay his affiliates
    because he had not invoiced Plaintiff as he agreed he would. Plaintiff is informed, believes, and
    based thereon alleges that these affiliates intended to take these payment issues public if they were
    not immediately paid.
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cannapussiness ethics in their purest form

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