Steptoe Wins Injunction in Battle Over Wafting Burger Fumes
There may be no free lunch for a hamburger restaurant near Steptoe & Johnson in Washington, D.C.
A superior court judge has granted Steptoe’s request and ordered Rogue States, a Burger Company to develop a plan to stop its fumes from wafting into the law firm’s air handlers. Judge John Mott of Washington, D.C., granted the preliminary injunction request on Wednesday and gave the restaurant 30 days to comply, according to The BLT: The Blog of Legal Times. He also set an Oct. 4 trial date.
Steptoe’s March 10 lawsuit claims the restaurant fumes are causing health problems for law firm employees, including nausea, headaches, dizziness, drowsiness and distraction. Steptoe wants Rogue States to reroute the exhaust to the roof; the restaurant says its landlord should have to foot the bill for any rerouting, since it was the landlord that insisted on installing an exhaust “scrubber” that apparently didn’t work, The BLT says.
Steptoe’s general counsel issued a statement to The BLT saying its goal was for Rogue States and its landlord to reroute the exhaust system, and closing the restaurant was never its intent. “Our employees are entitled to a work environment that is free of odor that many find offensive, and we regret that we have had to resort to litigation at all to obtain relief when a quite straightforward solution should have been available,” the statement said.
