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Leonard L. Gordon

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Len Gordon, chair of Venable’s Advertising and Marketing Group, is a skilled litigator who leverages his significant experience working for the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to help protect his clients’ interests and guide their business activity. Len regularly represents companies and individuals in investigations and litigation with the FTC, state attorneys general, the Department of Justice (DOJ), and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). Len also represents clients in business-to-business and class action litigation involving both consumer protection and antitrust issues. He also counsels clients on antitrust, advertising, and marketing compliance issues.

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This month, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton launched an investigation into major grocery chains’ use of chemical pesticides on produce labeled “organic” by the manufacturer. Paxton’s  office expressed concern that the grocery chains may be deceiving consumers who base their purchasing decision on the belief that organic produce has not been treated with pesticides.

Texas AG Investigation into Organic Produce

Before labeling produce as certified “organic,” a manufacturer must comply with regulations issued by U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), including limits on synthetic substances and pesticides. Central to the investigation is Produce Maxx, a chlorine-based pesticide commonly used in grocery stores. Although the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) permits Produce Maxx to be sprayed on produce and considers it safe to consume, the USDA requires certified “organic” produce to have chlorine pesticides rinsed off before consumption.Continue Reading Texas Attorney General Probes Pesticide Use on “Organic” Produce at Grocery Chains

Last week, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) filed a lawsuit in federal court against JustAnswer LLC and its CEO, arising from the company’s subscription program. According to the complaint, JustAnswer operates an online platform that engages “experts” where consumers can ask questions through online chats or phone calls about various subject areas.

The complaint alleges JustAnswer advertised a nominal fee for consumers to join the platform and receive an answer to their question (often $1 or $5). However, the FTC alleged that after the customer agreed to the nominal charge, JustAnswer simultaneously enrolled customers in an autorenewing subscription and charged them a much larger monthly fee ($28–$125) and continued to automatically charge consumers every month until the consumer canceled the subscription.Continue Reading FTC Lawsuit Targets JustAnswer for Alleged ROSCA and Subscription Disclosure Violations

Last week, an Eleventh Circuit panel unanimously upheld a federal district court’s summary judgment ruling in favor of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) concerning advertising and disclosure practices related to a national fuel card program. The decision affirms the FTC’s authority to seek and obtain broad injunctive relief for unfair or deceptive acts and practices, particularly where fee disclosures and consent mechanisms are found to be inadequate.

In its opinion, the three-judge panel rejected a number of arguments challenging the scope of the district court’s relief and confirmed that forward-looking injunctive measures were appropriate given the record before it. The panel affirmed summary judgment on all five counts of the FTC’s complaint against the company and on four of five counts asserted against its chief executive officer.

The ruling may bring to a close more than seven years of litigation, spanning multiple changes in FTC leadership and enforcement priorities, as well as the Supreme Court’s decision in AMG Capital Management, LLC v. FTC, which narrowed the agency’s ability to obtain monetary relief under Section 13(b) of the FTC Act.Continue Reading FTC Wins Eleventh Circuit Ruling Over Hidden Fees and Deceptive Marketing

New York City’s consumer regulator has long been part of the local compliance backdrop. It now deserves sustained, strategic attention. The appointment of Samuel Levine, formerly the director of the Federal Trade Commission’s Bureau of Consumer Protection (during the Biden administration), as commissioner of the New York City Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (DCWP) signals a shift in how the City is likely to use its existing consumer protection authority.

Recent mayoral executive orders further signal that DCWP will devote additional attention to the review of fee disclosures (often characterized by regulators as “hidden junk fees”) and subscription models, including through monitoring, investigation, and, where deemed appropriate, enforcement under existing city law. DCWP’s role in shaping expectations for pricing, disclosures, and marketplace conduct will now become more consequential for companies that operate in New York City or reach its consumers.Continue Reading Why New York City’s Consumer Regulator Belongs on National Compliance Radar

In a rare course correction, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has reopened and vacated its 2024 consent order against Rytr LLC, a generative AI-powered company. The unusual move reflects a significant strategic reset of how federal regulators will approach AI technology, especially when alleged harms are hypothetical rather than concrete.

In 2024, the FTC filed an administrative complaint against Rytr, a company that sold an AI-powered writing assistant service that could generate testimonials and customer reviews. The FTC alleged that the AI-powered tool could generate reviews and testimonials that were not related to the user’s actual inputs or experience, and such reviews could therefore be deceptive.

The FTC challenged the conduct as unfair under Section 5, and as providing the means and instrumentalities for others to make deceptive statements. The final consent order was entered in December 2024, and it included a categorical ban on Rytr from providing any AI-powered service dedicated to consumer reviews or testimonials. Commissioner, now chairman, Andrew Ferguson, dissented from the votes issuing the complaint and approving the settlement.Continue Reading The FTC Walks Back Its Rytr Enforcement Action, Signaling a Shift in Federal AI Regulation

New York has amended its General Business Law to move beyond a deception-based consumer protection standard and authorize enforcement against unfair and abusive practices, giving the Attorney General materially broader discretion to shape marketplace conduct. The new framework resembles federal UDAAP enforcement in that it relies less on detailed statutory rules and more on evolving enforcement judgments about what constitutes “fair” conduct.

In announcing the amendments to New York GBL § 349 contained in the Fostering Affordability and Integrity through Reasonable (FAIR) Business Practices Act, Attorney General Letitia James pointed to lending and debt collection practices, fee structures, billing mechanics that complicate understanding, contract terms viewed as exploitative, student loan servicers, car dealers, nursing homes, health insurance companies, and impacts on vulnerable or limited-English-proficient consumers. The statute also expressly recognizes potential harm to small businesses and nonprofits, extending potential exposure beyond traditional consumer relationships.Continue Reading New York Broadens Attorney General Authority and Embraces Enforcement-Driven Regulation

This week, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Bureau of Consumer Protection issued 13 warning letters to rental housing management software providers focused on the display of the total advertised price of their properties. According to the FTC, the software providers do not allow rental property managers and owners to advertise a total monthly rental price that includes all mandatory fees. This in turn prevents consumers from obtaining complete pricing information on those property owner websites and platforms.

The FTC noted that such practices may be in violation of Section 5 of the FTC Act, which prohibits unfair or deceptive acts and practices, as well as the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, which makes it unlawful to use false, fraudulent, or fictitious statements or representations to obtain, attempt to obtain, cause the disclosure of, or attempt to cause the disclosure of customer information of a financial institution. Violations are subject to civil penalties of up to $53,088 per violation.Continue Reading FTC Begins Rulemaking on Unfair Rental Housing Fees After Issuing Warning Letters

A Connecticut state court recently denied Exxon Mobile Corp.’s motion to strike the Connecticut attorney general’s lawsuit, allowing all the state’s consumer protection claims regarding Exxon’s alleged greenwashing to proceed.

The lawsuit, originally filed in 2020, alleges that Exxon violated the Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices Act (CUTPA) by misleading consumers about the climate impacts of its fossil fuel products and by overstating or misrepresenting its own sustainability efforts. Connecticut asserts that this has amounted to a long-running “systematic campaign of deception,” including alleged “greenwashing.”Continue Reading State Court Clears Connecticut’s Greenwashing Suit Against Exxon

Last week, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a decision issuing a permanent injunction and over $7 million in sanctions against people engaged in an illegal multilevel marketing scheme. The court’s opinion in Federal Trade Commission (FTC) v. Noland sheds light on the scope of the agency’s power to obtain monetary relief after the Supreme Court restricted the FTC’s authority under Section 13(b) of the FTC Act in a 2021 case, AMG Capital Management v. FTC.

In Noland, the defendants attempted to use the AMG Capital decision to challenge the court’s ability to award compensatory sanctions for contempt and redress under Section 19 for a rule violation. The Ninth Circuit affirmed the district court’s rejection of those arguments.Continue Reading Ninth Circuit Affirms the FTC’s Authority to Seek Damages After AMG Capital

Just days after the federal government shutdown came to an end, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) wasted no time returning to enforcement mode, announcing a major settlement with Seek Capital, LLC and its CEO, Roy Ferman. The agency’s action permanently bans the company and its founder from offering business financing, debt relief, or credit repair services, serving as an aggressive post-shutdown reminder that the FTC’s focus on deceptive small-business lending practices remains undiminished.

FTC Targets Deceptive Small Business Lending Practices

According to the FTC’s complaint, filed in November 2024, Seek advertised itself as a source of quick and easy business loans for new and aspiring small businesses, promising “lines of credit” and “cold hard cash.” Both Seek telemarketers and lead generators regularly marketed to small business owners the message that thousands of dollars were easily available and could be pre-approved in minutes.Continue Reading FTC Bans Seek Capital in $48 Million Settlement