Ben & Jerry's file photo promoting Free Cone Day, which this year will be celebrated on Tuesday, April 14, 2026.
by Timothy McQuiston, Vermont Business Magazine The Ben & Jerry’s Foundation today announced that the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York has granted its motion to join the Ben & Jerry’s Independent Board’s lawsuit against Unilever/Magnum as a plaintiff. This decision allows the Foundation to formally participate in the case as it seeks to enforce Unilever/Magnum’s contractual obligations and protect its independence.
In December 2025 the Foundation moved to join the case after Unilever/Magnum stopped providing approved funding under the original acquisition agreement with Unilever. The Foundation said in a statement that the court’s decision marks a meaningful step forward for both the Foundation and the Independent Board in their efforts to uphold the provisions regarding the social mission and the foundation established at the time of the company’s acquisition.
The action seeks to compel Unilever/Magnum to honor its binding obligations under the original acquisition agreement with Unilever and to cease efforts that interfere with the brand’s social mission and the independent governance of Ben and Jerry’s and the Foundation. The Foundation’s intervention is necessary to protect its independence and safeguard its mission.
“This is an important step in ensuring that the Foundation can defend its independence and continue its work,” said Liz Bankowski, President of the Ben & Jerry’s Foundation Board of Trustees. “We are pleased the court has recognized the Foundation’s right to be part of this case.”
The Ben & Jerry’s Foundation exists to support grassroots movements advancing racial justice, climate action, immigrant and workers’ rights, and LGBTQ+ dignity. It was intentionally structured to operate independently from corporate control, ensuring that community-led work could proceed free from corporate interference.
The Foundation’s inclusion in the lawsuit strengthens the effort to hold Unilever/Magnum accountable for honoring its commitments and respecting the independence of both the Independent Board and the Foundation.
“This is about more than a contract, it’s about whether a corporation can weaponize a governance structure and withhold funding when prior commitments and values become inconvenient,” Bankowski said. “Our mission to support those making “good trouble” for social justice, climate action and human rights has never been more important.”
In response, a spokesperson for TMICC told VermontBiz: “We remain fully committed to the Ben & Jerry’s model and its three-part mission – product, economic and social. That includes continuing to fund a grant-giving foundation, supported by appropriate governance to ensure it conducts its mandate with integrity in a transparent, accountable way in line with standard practice, as well as the development of a refreshed Board led by an Independent Director, with a majority of Independent Directors, to continue its important role of guiding the social mission and brand integrity, alongside the CEO.
"The recent steps to update Ben & Jerry’s corporate governance are wholly aligned with the merger agreement and standard corporate governance across the organization; nothing more than that. Suggesting our actions are anything more is just not right; they are not and never have been.
"Our focus remains where it belongs: on supporting the Ben & Jerry’s team and its three-part mission – making great ice cream and campaigning on the causes the brand cares about – and they are doing a fantastic job.”
The case remains pending in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.
Magnum, based in Amsterdam, is a spin off from Unilever and began trading on the New York Stock Exchange in December 2025. Along with the NYSE, Magnum is listed on Euronext Amsterdam and London Stock Exchange.
Unilever had for some time sought to split off its lagging ice cream division, had looked for a buyer, and eventually in March 2025 formed Magnum and then de-merged Magnum from Unilever as a separate entity in July 2025. Ben & Jerry's joined the Magnum brand, as well as Cornetto and Wall's and includes namebrands like Breyers, Talenti, Blue Bunny and Klondike.
Unilever announced in April 2000 that it would acquire Ben & Jerry's, which was then publicly traded, for $326 million in cash.
At the time, it was announced that Ben & Jerry's would retain an independent board of directors "focused on providing leadership for Ben & Jerry's social mission and brand integrity," the company said.
Company founders Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield would continue to be involved in the operations of the company. Ben & Jerry's had donated 8 percent of pre-tax profits to philanthropic causes and is known for its social activism.
"Neither of us could have anticipated, 20 years ago, that a major multinational would some day sign on, enthusiastically, to pursue and expand the social mission that continues to be an essential part of Ben & Jerry's and a driving force behind our many successes," Cohen and Greenfield said in a statement at the time.
"While we and others would have preferred to pursue our mission as an independent enterprise, we hope that, as part of Unilever, Ben & Jerry's will continue to expand its role in society," they said.
The sale of Ben & Jerry's had been contentious, with other offers, threats of shareholder suits and an attempt by Cohen and Greenfield themselves to put an acquisition group together before Unilever made their pitch.
In September 2025, Greenfield announced he had stepped down from his relationship with the ice cream maker after nearly 50 years. Greenfield said the decision was “painful,” but said that Unilever had silenced the company’s ability to speak up on global issues.
To support vital journalism, access our archives and get unique features like our award-winning profiles, Book of Lists & Business-to-Business Directory, subscribe HERE!
