Advertising Litigation

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Private consumer litigation in 2020 was significantly impacted by the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) which took effect on January 1, 2020.  Whether asserted as a standalone CCPA violation claim or as a predicate act for other causes of action, including under California’s Unfair Competition Law (“UCL”), the volume of CCPA litigation has not abated. …

Last week, in a substantial win for the dietary supplement industry, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the Northern District of California’s grant of summary judgment to Target, ruling that state law false advertising challenges to permissible structure/function claims are preempted by the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (“FDCA”).

Plaintiff Todd Greenberg alleged…

Because consumer reviews are so important in today’s marketplace, many companies go to great lengths to increase their number of favorable reviews. Sometimes, they go too far. We’ve written about FTC and NAD cases in which companies incentivized reviews without proper disclosures and even about cases in which companies solicited fake reviews. (Click here,…

Peloton Interactive sells exercise bikes and treadmills that can stream live and on-demand fitness classes. For a while, the company advertised that its library of classes was “ever-growing.” Although that may have been true when the company first made the claim, things changed. In response to a lawsuit related to the music used in some…

In a series of orders issued earlier this month, Judge Dale S. Fischer of the Central District of California dealt two strikes to putative class claims against ticket merchants Ticketmaster/LiveNation and StubHub that seek refunds for Major League Baseball games cancelled or “postponed” in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.  See Ajzenman, et al. v.

Last week, a federal judge in the Southern District of New York dismissed a putative class action alleging that L’Oreal’s “EverSleek Keratin Caring” hair products deceived consumers into believing the products contained keratin. United States District Court Judge George B. Daniels rejected these allegations, finding that the challenged statements were clear both on their own…

In Huskey v. Colgate-Palmolive Company, No. 4:19-cv-02710-JAR (E.D. Mo.), plaintiffs Drew Huskey and Jamie Richard (Plaintiffs) claimed that Colgate-Palmolive Company (Colgate) falsely advertised that its Speed Stick Stainguard antiperspirant products (Speed Stick) fight yellow stains and white marks on clothing.  Plaintiffs claimed that they purchased Speed Stick, but continued to experience marks and stains…

On August 20, a Northern District of California court stayed the trial of an action the FTC brought against Lending Club in 2018 pending a Supreme Court ruling on the FTC’s authority to seek monetary restitution under Section 13(b) of the FTC Act. The issue of whether the FTC has authority to seek monetary relief…