Liquid Death Lawsuit: The “0g Sugar” Allulose Class Action
Questions about this case?
AI Legal Assistant · free · answers in seconds · general information, not legal advice
The Liquid Death lawsuit in the news is a proposed class action filed August 24, 2026 in federal court in San Francisco. It claims the brand's Sparkling Energy drinks are labeled “0g Sugar” while allulose — which the lawsuit says is a sugar — is the second ingredient on the can. As of October 2026 there is no settlement, no fund and no claim form. If you bought the drinks, you do not need to do anything right now.
Editorially Reviewed — Content reviewed for accuracy using published legal research, government data, and verified court records. See our methodology
Reviewed by Leonard Goldberg, Editor · Last updated
What the Lawsuit Says
Plaintiff James Williamson sued Supplying Demand, Inc., the Los Angeles company that sells Liquid Death. The lawsuit alleges that Liquid Death Sparkling Energy cans — flavors named in the complaint include Murder Mystery, Scary Strawberry, Orange Horror and Tropical Terror, plus variety packs — carry “0g Sugar” and “Zero Sugar” claims even though allulose is listed second, right after carbonated water. Trade press reports the drinks contain about 2 grams of allulose.
The legal theory: federal rules allow a “sugar free” claim only below 0.5 grams of sugar per serving, and the plaintiff argues allulose, a monosaccharide, counts as sugar. The complaint leans on a July 2026 Seventh Circuit decision in Franco v. Chobani, in which the FDA told the court allulose falls within its definition of total sugars. It also claims shoppers paid a price premium, citing a 12-pack on Amazon at $21.99, and cites a survey in which only 15% of people knew allulose is a sugar. Liquid Death has not been found liable for anything; these are allegations.
Case Details
Williamson v. Supplying Demand, Inc., No. 3:26-cv-08839, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. On September 2, 2026 the case was reassigned to Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley. Some news reports list the number as 4:26-cv-08839; the court's own stamp reads 3:26-cv-08839. The 45-page complaint pleads California's Unfair Competition Law, False Advertising Law and Consumers Legal Remedies Act, breach of express warranty and unjust enrichment, and asks for a jury trial, class certification, an injunction, damages and restitution. It pleads that more than $5,000,000 is in controversy — a jurisdictional threshold, not a settlement figure.
On September 30, 2026 the court ordered a second case, No. 26-cv-09703, related to this one. Food Dive separately reported a Liquid Death suit filed in the Southern District of New York; we could not confirm that case independently as of October 2026.
Status: Early Stage, No Settlement
Follow this case
There's no claim deadline yet. We'll email you if a settlement opens a claim period.
Who Would Be in the Class
The complaint proposes a nationwide class of people who bought Liquid Death Sparkling Energy drinks in the United States within the past four years, plus a California subclass. Liquid Death's still and sparkling waters are not the products at issue; the case targets the energy line labeled “0g Sugar.”
Proposed classes are only proposals until a judge certifies them. You do not sign up to be included. If a class is certified or a settlement is reached, a court-approved administrator publishes notice and explains how to claim. A receipt or an order history from Amazon or a retailer is worth keeping in case proof is ever needed.
Will There Be Money?
How cases like this one end
Our copy of the federal courts’ own case database covers 24,037 other fraud casesclosed in U.S. federal district courts between 2015 and 2025, 27.4% of them filed as class actions:
- 17.3% ended in a settlement recorded by the court. Another 22.5% were dismissed voluntarily, which often follows a private settlement — so the real settlement share sits between 17.3% and 39.8%.
- 10.4% were decided on a motion before any trial.
- 1 in 111 reached a trial (0.9%), after a median of 30 months.
- Median time from filing to the end of the case: 7 months.
- Only 735 of them (3.1%) record a money award at all; the median of those is $663,000.
These are base rates for this type of case (consumer fraud, other fraud) — not a prediction about this lawsuit, and not legal advice. Source: Federal Judicial Center, Integrated Database (civil), analysed by Settlement Insight. Cases heard in state courts are not included.
Liquid Death Lawsuit Timeline
- 1
July 2026 — Chobani Ruling
The Seventh Circuit revives claims against Chobani and holds that allulose is a sugar under the FDA's total-sugars rule. The FDA filed an amicus brief saying the same.
- 2
August 24, 2026 — Class Action Filed
Williamson sues Supplying Demand, Inc. in the Northern District of California over “0g Sugar” Sparkling Energy cans. Other allulose suits against several brands follow the same week.
- 3
September 2, 2026 — New Judge
After the plaintiff declined a magistrate judge, the case is reassigned to Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley.
- 4
September 14, 2026 — Service Waived
Liquid Death's company returns a waiver of service, the routine step that starts the clock for its response.
- 5
September 30, 2026 — Second Case Related
The court relates case No. 26-cv-09703 to the Williamson action, so both are handled together.
- 6
December 16, 2026 — Case Conference Set
Initial case management conference. As of October 2026: no ruling on the merits, no class, no settlement.
Three Things to Watch For
A brand this well known, with no claim form yet, attracts fake “refund” offers:
“Claim your Liquid Death refund” sites
There is no settlement and no official claim website as of October 2026. A page asking for your card number or bank login to “verify your purchase” is collecting data, not filing a claim.
Free-case social media giveaways
Liquid Death runs a loud social media presence, which makes fake accounts offering “free 12-packs for class members” easy to fall for. Courts do not pay class members in product through Instagram DMs.
“Sign up now or lose your share” ads
You do not need to join a proposed class action. If a class is certified, you are included unless you opt out. Ads using deadlines that do not exist are lead generators for law firms, not court notices.
Liquid Death Lawsuit — Questions People Ask
What is the Liquid Death lawsuit about?
A proposed class action alleges that Liquid Death Sparkling Energy drinks are falsely labeled “0g Sugar” and “Zero Sugar” because their second ingredient, allulose, is a sugar under FDA rules. The company has not been found liable.
Is there a Liquid Death settlement or claim form?
No. As of October 2026 the case is at the start, with an initial conference set for December 16, 2026. There is no settlement, fund, claim form or deadline. Check our list of open class action settlements for cases that are actually paying.
Which Liquid Death products are involved?
The Sparkling Energy line — the complaint names Murder Mystery, Scary Strawberry, Orange Horror and Tropical Terror, plus variety packs, and says the list is not exhaustive. Canned mountain water and sparkling water are not the target.
Is allulose actually a sugar?
Chemically it is a monosaccharide. The FDA said in 2020 it would not enforce counting allulose as sugar on the label, but that guidance protects companies from FDA action, not from consumer lawsuits. In July 2026 the Seventh Circuit held allulose counts as sugar in the Chobani case. Whether that reasoning applies here is for the California court.
Do I need to do anything if I bought the drinks?
No. Nothing is open to file. If you have an Amazon order history or receipts, keep them; they may help if a settlement ever requires proof.
Are there other Liquid Death lawsuits?
A second case, No. 26-cv-09703, was related to the Williamson case on September 30, 2026. Food Dive also reported a suit in New York that we could not confirm. Death Wish Coffee sued Liquid Death in 2025 over trademarks; that was a business dispute with no consumer payout.
Has this happened with other drinks?
Yes. In the same week, WK Kellogg, KIND, the maker of David bars and Liquid I.V. were sued over allulose labels. For an older energy-drink label case, see the Celsius lawsuit.
How long could this take?
Consumer-label class actions usually spend months on a motion to dismiss before any talk of settlement. A realistic view is that nothing will be payable for a long time, if ever. Our timeline simulator shows typical stages.
Separate from this case: were you injured in the last 2 years?
Class-action payouts are fixed amounts through an administrator. A personal injury claim is a different case — and often worth far more. Free estimate, no obligation.