Proskauer on Advertising Law
Proskauer on Advertising Law

Tag Archives: California

Court Lets Trader Joe’s Out of Sticky Situation Over Honey Advertising

A magistrate judge in the Northern District of California recently dismissed a putative class action alleging that Trader Joe’s misled its consumers about the purity of its manuka honey.  Moore v. Trader Joe’s Co., No. 4:18-CV-04418-KAW, 2019 WL 2579219 (N.D. Cal. June 24, 2019). Plaintiffs commenced a putative class action lawsuit alleging that Trader Joe’s … Continue Reading

Justin Timberlake Waves Bai Bai Bai to Partially Dismissed “No Artificial Flavors” Beverage Mislabeling Suit

Last month, a judge in the Southern District of California partially dismissed a putative class action against beverage company Bai Brands, LLC (“Bai”) and related defendants. Branca v. Bai Brands, LLC, No. 18-00757 (S.D. Cal. 2019). Plaintiff Kevin Branca filed this lawsuit against Bai, its parent company Dr. Pepper Snapple Group, Inc. (“DPSG”), the CEOs of … Continue Reading

California Court Sours on Starbucks Gummies Lawsuit

Several months ago we covered two Second Circuit decisions that addressed false advertising claims related to ingredients and product labeling of foods, which reached differing results. Applying similar principles, a recent decision from the Southern District of California found that Starbucks’ packaging for its sour gummy candies did not reasonably suggest that the candies were … Continue Reading

Ninth Circuit Denies Review of Class Certification in Beer Labeling Brouhaha

In a 2-1 decision memorialized in a one-page order, a Ninth Circuit panel recently denied Kona Brewing’s request for leave to appeal a grant of class certification to a consumer class claiming that the company’s branding deceptively communicated the false message that Kona beer is brewed in Hawaii. Broomfield v. Craft Brew Alliance, No. 18-80145 … Continue Reading

Ninth Circuit Sends Brain-Booster Claim Case Back to District Court

After Ninth Circuit review, it remains to be seen whether a nutritional supplement maker can claim that ginkgo biloba leaf extract and vinpocetine supplements improve “alertness,” “mental clarity, and memory” in the face of contradictory scientific studies. In Korolshteyn v. Costco Wholesale, No. 17-56435 (2019), the Ninth Circuit reversed a district court order granting summary judgment in favor … Continue Reading

State of Nature: District Courts Diverge in Treatment of “Natural” False Advertising Claims

Two recent contrasting decisions in class action false advertising cases alleging misleading uses of the term “natural” for food products underscore the difficulty in predicting the likelihood of achieving an early stage dismissal in these cases. Late last year, Judge Richard Seeborg in the Northern District of California denied Williams-Sonoma’s motion to dismiss an alleged … Continue Reading

San Francisco City Ordinance Takes a Hard Hit in Ninth Circuit Soft Drink Lawsuit

Can an en banc decision of a federal appellate court be controversial even when every single active judge of that court agrees with the outcome? The answer is emphatically yes, as confirmed by the Ninth Circuit’s January 31, 2019 en banc decision in American Beverage Ass’n et al. v. City & County of San Francisco, … Continue Reading

Kimberly-Clark Unable to Flush Wet Wipes Case

On December 10, 2018, the Supreme Court denied certiorari in Kimberly-Clark Corp, v. Davidson, No. 18-304 (2018), in which Kimberly-Clark sought to overturn a controversial Ninth Circuit decision allowing a plaintiff in a false advertising case to seek injunctive relief on behalf of an alleged consumer class notwithstanding that plaintiff’s complaint acknowledged she was aware … Continue Reading

Failure to Disclose Claims Washed Away in Facial Scrub Case

On December 17, 2018, Judge Andrew J. Guilford in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California granted defendant Unilever’s motion for summary judgment, dismissing all claims in a putative class action concerning St. Ives Apricot Scrub. Browning v. Unilever United States, Inc., 2018 WL 6615064 (C.D. Cal. Dec. 17, 2018). Plaintiffs alleged … Continue Reading

No Use Crying Over Spilled (Almond) Milk: Ninth Circuit Upholds Dismissal of Almond Milk Labeling Suit

On December 20, 2018, the Ninth Circuit affirmed the dismissal without leave to amend of a putative class action complaint against Blue Diamond Growers, which alleged that the term “almond milk” on Blue Diamond’s beverages was misleading. Painter v. Blue Diamond Growers, — Fed.Appx. —, 2018 WL 6720560 (9th Cir. Dec. 20, 2018). The named … Continue Reading

Cheez-Its Class Action Revived in “Whole” by Second Circuit

We recently blogged about the Second Circuit’s December 3, 2018 decision in Jessani v. Monini, where, applying the reasonable consumer standard, the Court of Appeals unanimously affirmed the dismissal with prejudice of a complaint alleging that the label of an extra virgin olive oil product advertised as “truffle flavored” falsely implied that the product contained … Continue Reading

Ninth Circuit Affirms Jury Verdict In Favor of Homeopathic Remedy for Flu-Like Symptoms

On November 8, 2018, the Ninth Circuit affirmed a jury verdict in a consumer class action deceptive advertising case in favor of Defendants Boiron Inc. and Boiron USA, Inc. (together, “Boiron”), the sellers of a homeopathic treatment for flu-like symptoms called Oscillococcinum (“Oscillo”).  Although the Ninth Circuit’s memorandum decision is marked “Not for Publication” and … Continue Reading

Court Puts “FDA-Cleared” Complaint on Ice

The Central District of California recently dismissed, for the second time, a putative class action filed by two plaintiffs who claimed to have purchased Zeltiq Aesthetics, Inc.’s “CoolSculpting” fat-reduction treatments under the allegedly mistaken belief that the treatments had been “approved,” not just “cleared,” by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.… Continue Reading

Ninth Circuit Puts Restitution Claims to Rest in Discount Advertising Case

The Ninth Circuit recently addressed once again the common practice in outlet stores and other retail establishments of juxtaposing the price at which a fashion item is offered for sale with a higher price advertised as a former price, or as the supposed market value, of that item.  Chowning v. Kohl’s Dep’t Stores, 2018 WL … Continue Reading

Diet Soda Lawsuit Fizzles Out

Recently, a plaintiff’s purported class action against Diet Dr. Pepper went flat when a California federal judge held that the term “Diet” alone on a soft drink label does not constitute a claim that the soft drink will assist in weight loss. In Becerra v. Dr. Pepper/Seven Up, Inc., Plaintiff Shana Becerra brought a putative … Continue Reading

Ninth Circuit Finds Grounds to Dismiss Iced Coffee False Advertising Suit

Recently, the Ninth Circuit affirmed a district court’s dismissal of a putative class action claiming that Starbucks deceived its customers by under-filling the liquids in its iced drinks and adding ice to make the cups appear full. Forouzesh v. Starbucks Corp. The Ninth Circuit held that “no reasonable consumer would think (for example) that a 12-ounce … Continue Reading

No More Baby Talk: Class Certification Denied in Gerber False Advertising Suit

The Northern District of California recently denied class certification to a plaintiff who alleged that Gerber Products misbranded nutritional claims about baby food products in violation of state and federal labeling laws.  Bruton v. Gerber Products Co. et al.  The plaintiff had previously moved to certify a damages and an injunctive relief class in 2014.  However, … Continue Reading

New York Federal Court Latest to Dismiss Outlet Pricing Class Action

Last month, Judge Valerie Caproni of the Southern District of New York dismissed with prejudice a putative deceptive pricing class action filed against Burberry.  This is the first decision within the Second Circuit to determine whether shoppers claiming to have been victimized by discount price advertising in outlet stores have suffered actual injury for purposes … Continue Reading

Truffle Kerfuffle: Truffle Lawsuit Not on the Menu for Plaintiffs

Truffles are renowned as one of the rarest delicacies in the world.  Perhaps not quite as rare, but still fairly uncommon, is the dismissal with prejudice of a false advertising class action without the plaintiffs being afforded even a single opportunity to amend their complaint. We are pleased to report today on a victory that … Continue Reading

Court Dismisses “Phantom Markdown” Suit against Saks

Our colleagues at Proskauer’s commercial litigation blog, Minding Your Business, recently covered a dismissal of a discount advertising suit asserted against Saks. The case is Nunez v. Saks Inc., 2017 WL 1184058 (S.D. Cal. Mar. 22, 2017), and Proskauer’s coverage may be found here. *** Want to talk advertising? We welcome your questions, ideas, and … Continue Reading

Made-in-the-U.S.A. Complaint Does Not Make the Cut

In a case decided in December that flew beneath our radar, a judge in the Southern District of California dismissed without prejudice a proposed class action alleging that Citizens for Humanity falsely labeled its jeans as being made in the USA. Hass v. Citizens of Humanity, LLC, 2016 WL 7097870 (S.D. Cal. Dec. 6, 2016). … Continue Reading

FTC and DeVry University Settle False Advertising Claims for $100M

In December 2016, DeVry University agreed to pay $100 million to settle a lawsuit with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) over allegations stemming from DeVry’s advertising about the employment rates and salaries of its graduates. According to the FTC press release announcing the settlement in FTC v. DeVry Educ. Group in the district court for … Continue Reading

California Court Issues Surprising Decision in Discount Advertising Case

On December 15, 2016, the California Court of Appeals in Los Angeles came to a surprising summary judgment decision in Sajid Veera et al. v. Banana Republic, LLC.  The court held that plaintiffs who claimed they were misled by 40% off signs raised a triable issue of whether they suffered an injury-in-fact even though they … Continue Reading

Standing to Assert Injunctive Relief is Not in the Tea Leaves, Court Says

In Lanovaz v. Twinings North America, Inc., Judge Whyte of the Northern District of California recently decided that the plaintiff lacked standing to pursue injunctive relief, and granted summary judgment for defendant Twinings.  The class action alleged that Twinings tea products were misbranded under California law as “natural source[s] of antioxidants.”… Continue Reading
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