Buffalo Wild Wings just caught a legal W after a federal judge tossed out a lawsuit claiming its boneless wings are not actually wings.
On Tuesday, February 17, U.S. District Judge John Tharp Jr. dismissed a proposed class action lawsuit filed by Chicago customer Aimen Halim. Back in 2023, Halim argued he felt misled by the term “boneless wings,” claiming the menu item was closer to a chicken nugget than a traditional wing with the bone removed.
Judge Tharp did not seem convinced.
“What’s in a name? If we called a wing by any other name, would it smell as sweet?” Tharp wrote in his February 17 ruling. “The plaintiff, Aimen Halim, says no.”
The complaint accused Buffalo Wild Wings of violating consumer protection laws by allegedly deceiving customers. However, Tharp ruled the case “has no meat on its bones,” making it clear he believed the argument lacked substance.
Halim previously argued the chain should rename the item “Boneless Chicken” or “Chicken poppers.” He claimed that if he had known the boneless wings were not deboned traditional wings, he “would have paid less for them, or would have not purchased them at all.”
Still, the court leaned on what a reasonable customer would assume. Tharp pointed out that people understand that cauliflower wings are not made from chicken wings. So, he argued, customers can apply similar logic here.
“A reasonable customer would not think that BBW’s boneless wings were truly deboned chicken wings, reconstituted into some sort of Franken-wing,” Tharp wrote. He added that Halim did not “drum” up enough facts to support the claim.
Halim now has until March 20 to amend the lawsuit. Until then, Buffalo Wild Wings is keeping boneless wings right where they are on the menu.
