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Panera Bread has reached an agreement with the family of an Ivy League student who tragically passed away after consuming its now-discontinued Charged Lemonade, as first reported by NBC News (CMCSA).
The lawsuit, initiated by the parents of 21-year-old Sarah Katz, represented by law firm Kline & Specter PC, marks the first of several legal actions taken against Panera Bread regarding the ultra-caffeinated drink.
In October, Katz’s parents sued the chain, accusing it of failing to adequately warn customers about the beverage’s ingredients. Hours after consuming the drink in September 2022, Katz went into cardiac arrest and was pronounced dead at the hospital.
In addition, another suit has connected the beverage to the death of a man in Florida who reportedly drank three of the Charged Lemonades after work and died while walking home. Furthermore, two additional lawsuits alleged that the drink caused severe heart complications in two healthy individuals.
“The matter was yet to be resolved,” Elizabeth Crawford, a partner at Kline & Specter PC, told the publication, though she did not disclose further details. Panera did not respond to a request for comment from Quartz.
In response to the lawsuits, Panera implemented several changes, including moving the once-self-serve drink behind the counter in January 2024. The chain also introduced noticeable signs that indicated that the Charged Lemonade contained caffeine and was not recommended for consumption by children, pregnant women, and those sensitive to caffeine.
Ultimately, the drink was discontinued in May across the country. It was originally introduced in 2022 as part of Panera’s subscription program, which at the time gave customers a free beverage every two hours.
In June, the chain said it would introduce new beverage offerings in lieu of the the punched-up Lemonade, which at one point contained 390 milligrams of caffeine per serving before being lowered to a maximum of 237 milligrams.
