The continuing questions over the extent of the FTC’s enforcement authority to obtain monetary relief under Section 13(b) did not stop the Commission from filing a lawsuit on November 1 against multi-level marketer Neora, LLC and its CEO Jeffrey Olson for purportedly operating an illegal pyramid scheme that used deceptive marketing to sell supplements, skin
Make a product that could break? On July 16, 2019, the FTC hosted a workshop to examine repair restrictions on consumer goods and the “Right to Repair” bills proposed in a number of states. Panelists included representatives from trade associations, the repair and technology industries, and state senators. The Nixing the Fix workshop discussed some
In making this announcement, AdvoCare disclosed
Last month, we wrote about the decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit in FTC v. Shire Viropharma Inc., holding that the FTC may only bring a case under Section 13(b) of the FTC Act when the FTC can articulate specific facts that a defendant “is violating” or “is about
The FDA and FTC jointly issued warning letters to three companies selling CBD products online. The letters allege violations of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (“FDCA”) and the Federal Trade Commission Act (“FTCA”). Although this is the first time the FDA and FTC have issued joint warning letters relating to CBD, the FDA
FTC Chairman Joe Simons recently acknowledged the Commission’s plan to use its authority under Section 6(b) of the FTC Act to examine the data practices of large technology companies. In written responses to questions from members of the U.S. Senate Commerce Committee following in-person testimony in November 2018, Chairman Simons confirmed that plans were underway
The FTC recently announced a $5.7 million settlement with app developer Musical.ly for COPPA violations associated with its app (now known as TikTok)—the agency’s largest-ever COPPA fine since the enactment of the statute. The agency charged the app company, which allows users to create and share videos of themselves lip-syncing to music, with unlawfully collecting
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced this week that it would not update its anti-spam rule, completing the agency’s first 10-year review of the regulation.
The FTC last updated the rule, known as the CAN-SPAM Rule, in 2008. The rule requires, among other things, that commercial e-mail messages have a mechanism for allowing the recipient
Most of our posts regarding “Made in USA” claims relate to FTC investigations and enforcement actions. Private plaintiffs, however, also closely watch those claims. For example, in 2018 plaintiffs filed a class action lawsuit against New Balance Athletics Inc. challenging qualified “Made in USA” claims. Although the plaintiffs acknowledged that New Balance qualified the claim
The Federal Trade Commission has long supported advertising industry self-regulation as a means of promoting truthfulness and accuracy in advertising. One of the key aspects of this success has been threat of referral to the FTC: Advertisers that refuse to participate in the self-regulatory process or refuse to comply with recommendations after participating are referred
