On May 29, 2015, the Federal Trade Commission
("FTC") announced the approval of the final orders for
two U.S. companies, TES Franchising, LLC ("TES") and
American International Mailing, Inc. ("AIM"), settling
complaints that the companies had engaged in deceptive trade
practices in violation of Section 5 of the FTC Act. The FTC alleged
that TES and AIM had falsely claimed on their websites that they
were certified under the U.S.-EU Safe Harbor Framework and the
U.S.-Swiss Safe Harbor Framework, respectively, even though their
certifications had lapsed years ago.
Notably, the TES matter also turned on alleged
misrepresentations concerning the nature of the company's Safe
Harbor dispute resolution procedures. Specifically, TES
stated on its website that Safe Harbor related disputes would be
settled by arbitration in Connecticut and that the costs would be
split between the consumer and TES. However, TES's
official Safe Harbor certification, located at the Department
