By Ricardo Carvajal & Riëtte van Laack – FTC filed a complaint in the district court of New Jersey alleging that certain of Gerber’s advertising claims for its hydrolyzed-whey-based infant formula constitute deceptive acts or practices and the making of false advertisements, in violation of the FTC Act. …
By Jennifer M. Thomas – For the past few days, industry has reacted with anxiety to the government’s decision to pursue an order to show cause why Bayer, Corp. should not be held in contempt of that company’s 2007 consent decree with FTC due to its …
By Riëtte van Laack – This case dates back to November 2004, when the FTC filed a complaint in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, alleging that defendants, including the National Urological Group, Inc., Hi-Tech Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Jared Wheat and Stephen …
By John R. Fleder – The National Advertising Division (“NAD”) of the Council of Better Business Bureaus has administered an industry sponsored, self-regulatory program for many years in which national advertisers can complain about their competitors’ advertising. NAD reviews the advertising and issues public decisions regarding …
By Wes Siegner – Does meeting the FTC legal standard for claim substantiation protect claims from action by the National Advertising Division (“NAD”)? If you think the answer should be “yes,” read on. FTC consent decrees often leave open the possibility that unsubstantiated claims may be resumed …
By Riëtte van Laack – Defendants Wellness Support Network, and co-owners Robert and Robyn Held, marketed two diabetes products – Diabetic Pack and Insulin Resistance – as medical foods. In 2005 and 2006, FDA issued two Warning letters to them (here and here), claiming the products …
By Riëtte van Laack – On Friday, February 7, 2014, the FTC filed its long-awaited brief in the D.C. Circuit action concerning POM Wonderful LLC’s (“POM’s”) advertising for its pomegranate products (see our previous post here). Not surprising, the FTC asserts that POM’s ads were deceptive. First, …
By Riëtte van Laack – On January 7, the FTC announced an initiative “Operation Failed Resolution” stating that it wants to protect consumers against deceptive weight loss claims. Among other things, the FTC announced actions against four companies for advertising fad weight-loss products, issued an updated …
By Joseph W. Cormier – Last week, the Administrative Conference of the United States ("ACUS") made four recommendations to the Executive Branch and independent agencies, three of which may be of interest to readers of this blog. Among its first recommendations this year, the ACUS …
By John R. Fleder – The Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (“COPPA”) will celebrate its super, sweet 16 next year. The FTC handles most COPPA enforcement and will no doubt mark the occasion with not-so-super or sweet enforcement. The FTC has issued an amended COPPA rule, …
FTC Chairwoman Edith Ramirez announced on Monday the appointment of Jessica Rich to head the agency’s Bureau of Consumer Protection ("BCP"). Ms. Rich is a 20-year veteran of the FTC with experience overseeing policy work and enforcement especially in the areas of privacy, data security, and …
Environmental seals and certifications have received renewed attention recently. The Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”), last week, submitted comments to a private group that is in the process of revising its certification program for “sustainable” seafood. The FTC did not take a stance on the program, …
By JP Ellison – You may not recall our prior April 2009 blog post about the FTC’s settlement with Kellogg over its marketing campaign for Frosted Mini-Wheats. To briefly recap, Kellogg had claimed that “its cereal was “clinically shown to improve kids’ attentiveness by nearly …
By Riëtte van Laack – As previously discussed, in 2011, the FTC filed an action against Garden of Life and its owner (collectively “GOL”) asking the District Court to order GOL to show cause why it should not be held in civil contempt. The case stems …
As it does every spring, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) has released its annual report. The new report, which covers 2012, makes clear that the FTC remains as focused as ever on health-related advertising – especially where advertising allegedly promotes products for weight loss or …
