In January, we reported that the Texas Attorney General had filed a lawsuit against Google alleging that the company engaged iHeartMedia DJs to provide endorsements for its Pixel 4 phone, even though they had never used it. This week, the FTC and several state attorneys general announced settlements with Google and iHeartMedia over the same

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Hurried Woman Sues Over Cook Time Instructions
Time is money, and when you’re hungry for mac-and-cheese, a few seconds can be worth millions of dollars. Or at least that’s what a Florida woman suggests in her class action lawsuit against Kraft Heinz over a claim on single-serve cups of Velveeta Shells & Cheese stating that the product can be “ready in 3…
NAD Worries Consumers May Take Megan Thee Stallion Too Seriously
Imagine that Megan Thee Stallion told you that by investing as little as $1 in Bitcoin, with her knowledge and your hustle, “you’ll have your own empire in no time.” Would you think that $1 is all you need to amass a fortune? No, I wouldn’t either. What if Megan was stacking shiny bars of…
Coca-Cola Scores Second Win over Green Claims in One Month
This month, the DC Superior Court dismissed a lawsuit brought by Earth Island Institute against Coca-Cola, alleging that the company falsely represents itself as “a sustainable and environmentally friendly company, despite being one of the largest contributors of plastic pollution in the world.” The court held that many of the challenged statements are aspirational and…
Thirsty World Cup Fans Serve Up Reminder About Sponsorship Agreements
This week, the World Cup kicked off amidst cheers and chants from the fans who had made their way to Qatar to watch the games. Although most fans chanted in support of their teams, Ecuadorean fans in one section of Al Bayt Stadium had a different message: “Queremos cerveza, queremos cerveza.” They want…
Coca-Cola Beats False Advertising Suit Over Aspirational Claims
Last year, we posted about Earth Island Institute’s lawsuit against Coca-Cola, alleging that the company falsely represents itself as “a sustainable and environmentally friendly company, despite being one of the largest contributors of plastic pollution in the world.” While many lawsuits involving green claims focus on claims about past or present results (which can usually…
DC Lawsuit Against the Commanders Signals Expansion of Consumer Protection Laws
Last week, Attorney General Karl Racine announced a new lawsuit against the Washington Commanders, team owner Dan Snyder, the NFL, and NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell for “colluding to deceive DC residents about an investigation into toxic workplace culture and allegations of sexual assault to maintain a strong fanbase and increase profits.”
The lawsuit claims that…
NAD Decision on Debt Claims Holds Lessons Across all Industries
This week, NAD announced a decision involving various claims made by Accredited Debt Relief and its marketing agency. Although parts of the decision will likely only be of interest to companies who operate in the debt settlement space, the decision also holds some important lessons for companies that operate outside of that space. We’ll focus…
Breaking Up with Celebrities
We all know a person that can be unpredictable and erratic. It can be fun to hang out with that person occasionally, because you’ll likely have funny stories to share with your friends the next morning, but you probably wouldn’t want to be married to them, because those same stories are less funny when you…
FTC Explores New Rule to Combat Fake Reviews
The FTC has made it a priority to combat fake and misleading reviews. For example, just this year alone, the FTC announced a settlement with a retailer over its failure to post negative reviews, announced a settlement with another retailer over its failure to disclose that reviews were incentivized, partnered with six states to file…