Coca-Cola Likely To Face Vitaminwater Class-Action, But Not For Money

A Coca-Cola logo on a truck at a distribution center in Alexandria, Virginia October 16, 2012. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

A U.S. federal judge has recommended that Coca-Cola Co face a class-action lawsuit accusing it of misleading consumers by overstating the health benefits of its Vitaminwater drink.

In a decision made public on Thursday, U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert Levy in Brooklyn, New Yorknonetheless said consumers could not sue as a group for money damages, a "central" part of their case, but rather to try to change how Coca-Cola labels and markets the product.