Tag Archives: first amendment

Selling scammy books is protected by the First Amendment when selling scammy products isn’t

Posted on March 12, 2020 by

Federal Trade Comm’n v. Agora Financial, LLC, 2020 WL 998734, No. 1:19-cv-3100-SAG (D. Md. Mar. 2, 2020) The defendants do relatively well here by selling scammy and deceptive books. To the extent that the deception is contained in the books, … Continue reading →

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Cal. court says “controversial” claim is therefore not factual

Posted on March 3, 2020 by

Serova v. Sony Music Entertainment, 44 Cal.App.5th 103 (2020) Hard to believe the reasoning in this case could get worse, but they may have achieved it. The California Supreme Court told the court of appeals to reconsider its earlier decision … Continue reading →

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YouTube’s terms of service/content policies aren’t commercial advertising or promotion

Posted on March 2, 2020 by

Prager Univ. v. Google LLC, No. 18-15712 (9th Cir. Feb. 26, 2020) YouTube isn’t a public forum and didn’t engage in false advertising by telling users it supported freedom of expression. Prager “University” (it’s not) complained that YT was discriminating … Continue reading →

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e-cigarette sellers must substantiate greater population-level safety to make “safer” claims

Posted on December 30, 2019 by

Nicopure Labs, LLC v. Food & Drug Admin., No. 17-5196 (D.C. Cir. Dec. 10, 2019) In the Tobacco Control Act, Congress gave the FDA additional authority to regulate tobacco because previous measures “failed adequately to curb tobacco use by adolescents.” … Continue reading →

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court enjoins bar on “fake meat” labels; implications for FDA standards of identity?

Posted on December 16, 2019 by

Turtle Island Foods SPC v. Soman, No. 4:19-cv-00514-KGB (E.D. Ark. Dec. 11, 2019) Unsurprisingly, the court here enjoins provisions of Arkansas law that tried to restrict the use of “meat” terms for meatless alternatives. The worrying part is that the … Continue reading →

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scientific debates can ordinarily be resolved in false advertising cases

Posted on September 23, 2019 by

Pax Water Technologies, Inc. v. Medora Corp., 2019 WL 4390567, No. LA CV18-09143 JAK (AGRx) (C.D. Cal. Aug. 5, 2019) The parties compete in the market for water treatment technologies for municipalities, public water agencies and districts, and private parties. … Continue reading →

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Southern Poverty Law Center’s “hate group” designation isn’t false advertising, false association

Posted on September 23, 2019 by

Coral Ridge Ministries Media, Inc. v. Amazon.com, Inc., No. 17cv566-MHT, 2019 WL 4547064 (M.D. Ala. Sept. 19, 2019) Coral Ridge sued the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), Amazon.com, and the AmazonSmile Foundation. It alleged that, “because of its religious opposition … Continue reading →

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a made-up credential implying a doctorate is inherently misleading

Posted on August 15, 2019 by

Wilson v. Ohio State Chiropractic Board, 2019 WL 3801546, No. 18AP-739, 2019 -Ohio- 3243 (Ct. App. Aug. 13, 2019) The Board disciplined Wilson for deceptive advertising, and the court of appeals upheld the discipline.  Two bits of interest: (1) Wilson … Continue reading →

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IPSC: Closing Plenary

Posted on August 10, 2019 by

Stephanie Plamondon Bair, Brigham Young University J. Reuben Clark Law School Innovation’s Paradox Innovation begets innovation in a virtuous cycle … at least sometimes. Not all innovations are productive, which is fine; it’s trial and error. But some innovations may … Continue reading →

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Keurig unsuccessfully argues that false advertising law unconstitutionally compels speech

Posted on July 3, 2019 by

Smith v. Keurig Green Mountain, Inc., No. 18-cv-06690-HSG, 2019 WL 2716552 (N.D. Cal. Jun. 28, 2019) Smith brought a putative class action against Keurig, alleging that its “recyclable” single-serve plastic coffee pods were mislabeled as such because they are not … Continue reading →

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