A high-profile Canadian law firm has filed suit against the makers of PoliGrip and Fixodent, alleging that the companies failed to warn consumers sufficiently about the zinc contained in both products.

The suit, filed by Tony Merchant of Saskatchewan, is the latest consequence of a 2008 article in the magazine Neurology linking denture cream and serious nerve damage.

In a press release, Merchant acknowledged that the "companies have placed warnings and recognize the dangers." Still, Merchant says, those warnings failed to warn consumers adequately of the risks inherent in excessive zinc consumption.

PoliGrip manufacturer GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) has moved aggressively in the past year to address the zinc issue. Last October, the company began outfitting PoliGrip packages with warnings that excessive zinc intake can cause "serious health effects," and advised customers to talk with their doctors.

Proctor and Gamble, which makes Fixodent, provided similar warnings.

Privately owned Danish toymaker Lego has lost a court battle to have its snap-together plastic bricks registered as an exclusive trademark in the European Union.

Lego had argued that studs on top of the bricks made them highly distinctive and, thus, eligible for trademark rights. The Luxembourg-based European Union Court of Justice (ECJ) upheld a 2008 ruling by the General Court, which dismissed Lego's challenge to the decision by trademark agency OHIM.

"Undertakings may not use trademark law in order to perpetuate, indefinitely, exclusive rights relating to technical solutions," it said.

OHIM had repealed an earlier decision to grant trademark rights for Lego bricks after objections from Canadian toymaker Mega Brands Inc.

Lego, whose name originates from the Danish words for "play well", is Europe's biggest toy manufacturer and competes with Mattel and Hasbro.

Peter Kjaer, the head of Lego's intellectual property section, said. "It is naturally a matter of concern to us that use of the brick by others can dilute the trademark. But the worst aspect is that consumers will be misled."

Green Party nominees labeled "sham candidates" said in Arizona court that they are not running for office to siphon votes from Democrats.

Christopher Campbell, Anthony Goshorn and Thomas Meadows testified Monday that Republicans planted the idea that they run for office as Green Party candidates but that taking votes from Democrats was never their motive.

The Green and Democratic parties say at least 11 of the Green Party's nominees were recruited by Republicans to entice votes from liberals who might otherwise support the Democratic candidate.

Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Dean Fink says he'll try to rule on Tuesday.

A federal judge last week denied a separate Green Party request that the candidates be kicked from the November ballot.

An appeals court has admonished a federal judge in Wisconsin for claiming a convicted drug dealer's love for his family is akin to Adolf Hitler's love for his dog.

The U.S. 7th Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago on Monday ordered that the defendant, Jose Figueroa, be re-sentenced.

The court said comments during sentencing from Judge Rudolph Randa of eastern Wisconsin were odd.

Randa sentenced Figueroa to 20 years in prison for leading a drug conspiracy.

Leniency requests were made for Figueroa on grounds he loves his family. Randa dismissed those requests, saying: "Hitler was admired by his family ... loved his dog. Yet he killed 6 million Jews."

The judge also told Figueroa he would have been executed in some countries for such drug crimes.

The European Court of Human Rights says the Dutch government wrongly forced a magazine to turn over information identifying protected sources.

The case stems from a 2002 incident in which prosecutors forced Autoweek to surrender a CD containing images of an illegal street race whose participants had been promised anonymity.

In an unanimous ruling Tuesday, the Strasbourg-based court's 17 judges said Dutch public prosecutors should have sought an independent opinion on whether their criminal investigation overrode the public interest in a free press.

Several news organizations including The Associated Press submitted arguments to the court supporting Autoweek's owner, Sanoma Uitgevers BV.

Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough has renewed its lease for 7,500 square feet of office space in Winston-Salem, according to an announcement.

The law firm is located in the 380 Knollwood Street building owned by Highwoods Properties. Nelson Mullins is based in South Carolina with more than 400 employees in a dozen offices in the Southeast.

Terms of the lease deal were not disclosed. Highwoods was represented by Greg Wilson of CB Richard Ellis in the negotiations.