Straight Talk From NAD: Recent Case Outlines When Comparative Claims Must Be Qualified

Sometimes advertising lawyers can be real drama royals. But I do think the latest in the teeth-straightening wars at NAD (link to SmileDirect press release below) deserves some attention. I am not yet sure if this signals a new direction for NAD or if this case will be more limited to cases with comparative savings messages. But its recommendation goes beyond what I would have expected.

Based on cases spanning many years, the summary of how to make comparative claims is basically as follows:

• Claims may not contain false disparagement.
• Comparative claims must be narrowly tailored (to a product, not a line, if appropriate).
• Comparisons should be apples to apples; if comparing products that are different, this should be clear (e.g., comparing company's premium lasagna to a competitor's best-selling regular lasagna as long as this is clear (link)).