A father from Quebec, Canada has filed a class-action lawsuit against McDonald's for illegally advertising to children — and a judge has allowed it to go ahead.
Antonio Bramante claims that he visits a McDonald's restaurant at once every two weeks with at least one of his three children, and has spent hundreds of dollars on Happy Meals under pressure from them, according to court documents.
Bramante complains that the toys that accompany Happy Meals are often linked with the launch of popular films and come as part of a series, which prompts children to ask for more Happy Meals in order to complete their set.
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Bramante adds that Happy Meal toys are displayed at children's eye level inside the restaurants.
"Mr Bramante claims that McDonald's is deliberately doing this to the detriment of vulnerable consumers, their children and their families," the court documents read.
Advertising to children under the age of 13 is illegal in Quebec, where the consumer protection laws are among the strictest in Canada.
"In today's world, parents have to choose their battles. And what's the easiest thing to give into? It's to feed your children," says Joey Zukran, the Montreal-based lawyer who filed the class action on Bramante's behalf, according to BBC News.
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"McDonald's has a legal obligation to respect that law and they're not, in Quebec at least."
Zukran added that anyone who purchased a McDonald's Happy Meal in Quebec from November 2013 can ask to join the class action.
The fast food chain, which has around 300 restaurants in Quebec, denies any wrongdoing, however.
"McDonald's Canada has received the ruling and plans to examine it carefully," McDonald's said in a statement given to BBC News.
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"We are aware of our obligations under Quebec's advertising laws and reiterate that we do not believe this class action has merit."
Quebec does have three exceptions to its advertising laws regarding children: ads in children's magazines, for promoting a children's entertainment event, and for advertising via store windows, displays, containers, packaging and labels.
A representative for McDonald's told La Presse that the chain was covered by these exceptions, saying: "It's not illegal to sell or advertise Happy Meals."
However, Zukran is ready to argue that McDonald's is not covered by any of the exceptions.
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"It's really what we see as a gentle nudge in encouraging more positive choices," McDonald's head of global nutrition, Julia Braun, told Business Insider at the time.
"As a mom I hear comments all the time that are like, 'you don't eat McDonald's,' or, 'you don't give McDonald's to your kids, right?'" Braun said. "And I'm shocked."
The change was part of McDonald's major effort to modernize how people perceive the fast food chain.
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