Please tell us more.
What industry? How was the trade association held liable for the retailer's disregard of the standards?
If the retailer disregarded the standards, he *should* have lost the case. If he had followed the standards, would the lawsuit have happened in the first place?
If the retailer followed the standards, and was sued anyway, he would probably have had a much better chance of winning the suit.
However, small businesses that get sued often go bankrupt -- not because they lost the suit, but because defending it took everything away.
It might not matter whether the business wins or loses such a lawsuit -- it's a goner anyway. In our industry, the best hope for us is to avoid lawsuits in the first place, by educating ourselves, and then educating clients.
