If one takes as true the allegations in recent federal court false advertising complaints, then consumers are being duped at every turn by any number of corporate capers. “Crafty” beer manufacturers, purveyors of “all natural” products, and peddlers of misnamed coffee products are just a…
For the past few years, the courts have decided a number of cases involving claims of false advertising and labeling of food products. For example, consumers and health advocates contend that an “all natural” designation is false and misleading if certain ingredients are used and…
The Scotts Company, LLC, a leading provider of home and garden pest control solutions, ran a sweepstakes where consumers were invited to review — good or bad — a Scotts product for a chance to win a $25 gift card. We assume there was also…
In trademark and advertising disputes, one question frequently rises to the top of the discussion between counsel and client: “Do we need a consumer survey?” Because well-designed surveys can act as proxies for what is happening in the marketplace among relevant consumers, many courts and…
Grammar guides advise that “compare to” is the proper formulation when two things are similar — as in “Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day” — whereas “compare with” should be used to point out dissimilarity or contrast. In the legal context, both NAD…
The National Advertising Division is already gearing up for winter, with a recent decision on the tagline “Lightest. Warmest. Guaranteed” for down jackets marketed by Eddie Bauer. Eddie Bauer, LLC, Report #5875 (NAD Case Reports ___). The decision provides useful guidance on the line…
A recent New York Times article serves as a helpful reminder that the use of a person’s name or photograph for commercial advertising and promotional purposes, without the person’s consent, would likely violate state right of publicity laws and potentially contravene a company’s privacy policy…
A recent NAD decision addresses the issue of when an advertising claim is “sensory“ in nature and can be supported by consumer perception evidence, and when a claim is a product performance claim, requiring objective testing for substantiation. See Kimberly-Clark Corp., Report #5866 (July 17,…
Jeffrey CadwellJeff advises clients on the availability, registrability, and stre...
Michael KeyesJ. Michael Keyes is an intellectual property attorney with exten...
Kaleb McNeelyAs a partner in the Trial Group, Kaleb practices primarily in the ...
Sarah RobertsonSarah has over fifteen years’ experience helping clients prot...
Fara SunderjiFara assists clients in the development and execution of all type...
Charlene KroghCharlene Krogh is a Partner in Dorsey’s top-ranked Tradem...
Evan EveristEvan is a partner in Dorsey’s Trademark, Copyright and Adverti...
