We frequently hear about the “long arm of the law,” but, in the case of the Federal Trade Commission, just how far does that arm actually reach? The FTC recently filed an amended complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California adding SIA Transact Pro, a Latvian payment processor, and its … Continue Reading
On November 8, 2018, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) held a press conference to announce a lawsuit against what it claims is the largest real estate scam the FTC has ever encountered. According to the FTC Complaint, through false claims in its marketing materials and sales pitches, the Sanctuary Belize Enterprise (“SBE”) took in more … Continue Reading
We wanted to alert retail readers to these developments in price advertising laws in the United Kingdom from our friends at Lewis Silkin. Late last year new U.K. Pricing Practices Guidelines were published by the Chartered Trading Standards Institute, replacing the long standing guidelines which retailers and advertisers had been following for many years. The … Continue Reading
Brexit is likely to cause years of future uncertainty around data protection, including the legal mechanisms for data transfer to countries outside of the United Kingdom (“U.K.”). In the short term, there will be little to no impact on existing data transfer solutions implemented by companies that rely on the U.K. as an entry point into … Continue Reading
It is no surprise that each year more advertisers are turning to bilingual and foreign language advertising to market their products. According to U.S. census data, over 55 million Americans speak a language other than English in the home. Spanish language advertising, in particular, has increased over the years, in response to the growth of … Continue Reading
In March, a new federal law quietly went into effect that places additional pressure on importers to develop compliance systems for their supply chains, including identification of items potentially made with forced labor. The Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015 (Trade Act) prohibits the import into the United States of goods, wares, articles, … Continue Reading
Well not exactly. They do not care for Indonesia Butter-Flavored Cookies labeled as Danish Butter Cookies. But it gave us an opportunity to share one of our favorite country Christmas songs from George Straight with our dear readers: We blogged about this case when it came out this summer. The NAD recommended the company discontinue … Continue Reading
We love a good March Madness legal blog (see here and here and here) and NAD gave us some great fodder this month deciding a case between two large daily fantasy sports league websites. This one wasn’t exactly an upset like so many of the games this year leading to the Sweet 16. DraftKings claimed … Continue Reading
President Obama has created a lot of buzz about opening the Cuban market to Americans, but it is a long way from buzz to profits. On December 17, 2014, the President and various members of his administration announced sweeping changes in the 50-plus year economic embargo against Cuba. Normalization of diplomatic relations, increased travel, the … Continue Reading
It’s the time of year when we Americans honor the Stars and Stripes, but people all over the world get starry-eyed over celebrities. Recognizing this, advertisers like to use celebrity images in advertising. Recently, we wrote about Katherine Heigl’s $6 million lawsuit against Duane Reade for a tweet using her photo without her permission, and … Continue Reading
Editor’s Note: As promised, here is an update on ASA Developments from our friends at Lewis Silkin LLP. We were very interested in this case development from the UK around the issue of whether good faith reliance on a third party’s representations is sufficient due diligence to support claims. Below you will find an alert … Continue Reading
Last year, the Supreme Court of Canada’s much-anticipated Richard decision signaled a shift in Canadian consumer protection law and a rejection of the traditional “buyer beware” standard. What the Richard decision means for businesses marketing products on both sides of the border remains an open question, although for the time being caution should be exercised … Continue Reading
British Sky Broadcasting (“Sky”) together with members of the public challenged whether references in Virgin Media’s adverts for a “Free TiVo Box activation” for the TiVo service from Virgin were misleading and could be substantiated. The complainants suggested that the ads were misleading because they failed to make it clear that an installation charge of … Continue Reading
There has been a great deal of discussion in the US about the need for, and manner of, disclosure in tweets by celebrities and others that are paid for in some fashion by advertisers. Not surprisingly, the British are wrestling with the same issue as evidenced by the discussion below of a recent decision by the Advertising … Continue Reading
Editors’ Note: In the UK the advertising industry is a self-regulating industry, the regulatory body for which is the Advertising Standards Authority (the “ASA” ). The ASA adjudicates complaints that are brought against advertisers on the basis of the Code of Advertising Practice (the “CAP” code). Challenges on the basis of the code can be … Continue Reading
