Over the past few weeks, we’ve posted about a few cases involving pricing claims, including a post discussing a lawsuit over a grocer’s BOGO offers, a post discussing a lawsuit over major retailer’s frequent sales, and a post discussing an NAD challenge over claims that a smaller retailer made about its sales. If those didn’t
Advertising Lessons from the Survival Industry
My Patriot Supply (or “MPS”) and 4Patriots both make long-term survival food kits and related products. If a natural disaster strikes, if AI-powered bots wreak havoc on humanity, or if you just want to binge-watch your favorite shows and tune out the rest of the world, these companies have your back. But they don’t have each other’s backs.
Last year, MPS challenged various claims that 4Patriots made about its food kits at the NAD, and this year, 4Patriots filed its own challenge against MPS. Although much of what’s in NAD’s decisions may not be relevant to companies outside of this niche market, the most recent decision address at least three issues that regularly come up across a broad range of industries.
Made in USA
The MPS website included various claims that products were “Made in USA” alongside patriotic imagery. Because 4Patriots sells similar products, it knows that some of the ingredients in the MPS kits are likely to be imported. NAD summarized the requirements for “Made in USA” claims – which we’ve also summarized here – and recommended that MPS qualify its claims with a clear and conspicuous disclosure explaining that some of the ingredients in its kits are imported.
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Lawsuit Accuses Old Navy of Creating False Sense of Urgency
Last week, two Washington consumers filed a proposed class action lawsuit accusing Old Navy of spamming them with emails that included false or misleading information about the duration of sales. For example, the complaint alleges that:
- Some emails advertised that products were on sale “today only” or “this week only.” The next day (or the
Safeway Faces Class Action Over BOGO Offers
Buy One, Get One – or “BOGO” offers – are popular with consumers and almost ubiquitous in grocery stores and other retailers across the country. Although retailers have a lot of flexibility in how to structure those offers, they need to ensure that the offers aren’t structured in a manner that overstates the amount of
California Bans PFAS “Forever Chemicals” in Clothing, Textiles, and Cosmetics
California joined the growing list of states to ban products containing per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (“PFAS”) when, on September 29th, Governor Newsom signed into law legislation prohibiting the so-called “forever chemicals” in apparel, textiles, and cosmetics. The ban goes into effect beginning in 2025, and applies to the sale, manufacture and distribution of new cosmetics
H&M Sued Over Sustainability Claims
Sustainability continues to be a hot topic in the fashion industry, both in ads and in lawsuits related to those ads. Last month, a plaintiff filed a proposed class action against H&M arguing that the company makes various false claims about the sustainability of its products. The lawsuit seems to be prompted by a June
Man Sues Bass Pro Over Lifetime Guarantee on Socks
As heat waves spread across the country, many men are looking for opportunities to go without socks. (To those men, I might suggest a good pair of no-show socks but, like with other grooming tips, that’s beyond the scope of this post.) The point is that, despite the heat, one Missouri man wants more
Upcoming Price Gouging and Employee/HR Data Privacy Webinars
How To Protect Employee/HR Data and Comply with Data Privacy Laws
Wednesday, July 20
As workforces become increasingly mobile and remote work is more the norm, employers face the challenge of balancing the protection of their employees’ personal data and privacy against the need to collect and process personal data to recruit, support and monitor
Court Dismisses Lawsuit Against Allbirds Over Green Claims
Last year, we posted about a lawsuit against Allbirds alleging (among other things) that the company’s environmental claims – including claims about its “sustainable” practices, the “low carbon footprint” of its shoes, and its other “environmentally friendly” initiatives – are false and misleading. This week, the US District Court for the Southern District of New
FTC Settles with Company Over Failure to Post Negative Reviews
Companies often ask us whether they can highlight positive reviews without mentioning negative ones. The good news is that there are ways to do that, but when the conversation veers from highlighting positive reviews to suppressing negative ones, things get trickier. This afternoon, the FTC announced its first case involving a company’s failure to post