By Dean Seal

Ben & Jerry's has accused its parent company Unilever of ousting the ice cream maker's chief executive for defending the brand's social-activism efforts.

The company said in a court filing on Tuesday that Unilever has breached the terms of their merger agreement by removing David Stever as CEO of Ben & Jerry's without approval from its independent board.

Unilever ousted Stever because of his commitment to the brand's social mission and willingness to work with its independent board, not because of any genuine concerns about his job performance, Ben & Jerry's said in the filing.

The London-based Unilever reprimanded Stever in his annual performance last January for "repeatedly acquiesce[ing] to the demands of the Independent Social Mission board" at Ben & Jerry's, according to the filing.

The company further accuses Unilever of preventing it from issuing a post commemorating Black History Month and from making another post supporting Columbia University graduate Mahmoud Khalil, the U.S. legal permanent resident who was detained for helping lead pro-Palestinian demonstrations last year.

The latest filing marks an escalation in the legal battle between Ben & Jerry's and Unilever after the brand sued the consumer-goods giant last fall for allegedly silencing its attempts to speak out in support of Palestinians.

Ben & Jerry's claims Unilever is trying to dismantle the independent board even though it was empowered to make decisions about the brand's social mission by the unusual deal Unilever struck to acquire the brand in 2000. The rights of the board were reaffirmed two years ago as part of a settlement from a previous lawsuit.

After this article was published, a spokesperson for Unilever said the company has tried repeatedly to engage with the independent board of Ben & Jerry's to discuss the CEO's employment.

"We are disappointed that the confidentiality of an employee career conversation has been made public," the spokesperson said. "We hope that the B&J Independent Board will engage as per the original, agreed process."

Write to Dean Seal at dean.seal@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

March 20, 2025 12:27 ET (16:27 GMT)

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