Reminder – Truthful Advertising Is Not Optional

We blog frequently about new regulatory developments coming from CPSC or FDA and about enforcement actions brought by those federal agencies as well as state counterparts and private plaintiffs.  But we don't very often discuss actions involving the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and its enforcement of the FTC Act's broad prohibition on unfair or deceptive acts or practices, which incorporates false advertising for consumer products such as food, cosmetics, OTC drugs, medical devices, and goods overseen by the CPSC.  We thought it was worth a quick reminder that this area can be fraught with booby traps for the uninitiated advertiser.

The FTC Act is the primary federal law enforcement tool for preventing false advertising that has the capacity to deceive consumers. Importantly an ad can be considered to be false when it is "misleading in a material respect" whether that misleading nature derives from an actual representation or a material omission.  And of course,