Insights on Consumer Products

On July 28, 2015, Mead Johnson Nutrition Company, an Illinois-based pediatric food producer, settled FCPA charges brought by the SEC for over $12 million.

On July 27, 2015, the Food and Drug Administration published a Supplemental Proposed Rule (SPR) that amends its Proposed Rule on Nutritional Labeling published on March 3, 2014.

On July 20, 2015, the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois certified a liability-only class of Illinois plaintiffs in a nearly ten-year-old case involving allegedly defective, moldy Kenmore-manufactured Whirlpool Corporation (Whirlpool) washing machines.[1] 

Arent Fox LLP is pleased to announce the addition of highly-regarded San Francisco-based labor partner Rob Carrol to the firm’s Labor & Employment practice and newly launched Alcohol Beverage team.

Arent Fox LLP represented Deutsch Family Wine & Spirits in its acquisition of the award-winning Redemption Whiskey portfolio from Bardstown Barrel Selections, Inc.

On June 22, 2015, the FCC released an order authorizing interconnected VoIP providers to obtain telephone numbers directly from the Numbering Administrators, rather than through intermediaries or wholesale carriers.

The United States District Court in Nevada issued an Order on June 1, 2015 dismissing the complaint filed by alleged victims of a data security breach suffered by Amazon.com d/b/a Zappos.com (Zappos).

The Federal Trade Commission sent a new warning for companies engaged in geolocation tracking. Specifically, the FTC recently reached a settlement agreement with Nomi Technologies, a company that offers services allowing retailers to track the movements of customers in and around their stores.

A “must read” for marketers that feature celebrity or consumer endorsements in their ads, or any company operating contests or sweepstakes on social media.

Publisher Sega of America, Inc. (Sega) and developer Gearbox Software, L.L.C. (Gearbox) are involved in a battle centered around Aliens: Colonial Marines (ACM), a videogame based upon the hit film Aliens. 

A US Bankruptcy Judge recently approved the sale of a package of RadioShack’s intellectual property assets—including consumer data obtained from RadioShack customers—to General Wireless Inc., the hedge fund affiliate that acquired over 1,700 RadioShack stores in February.

A California appeals court recently held that a retailer does not violate California privacy law by collecting and recording birth dates of consumers who buy alcohol with credit cards.

The Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (Federal Circuit) recently reversed the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board’s (Board) refusal to register the mark PRETZEL CRISPS on the grounds that the mark is generic for pretzel crackers.

According to Lumber Liquidators’ most recent Securities and Exchange (SEC) disclosures, the US Department of Justice (DOJ) is pursuing criminal charges against the company under the Lacey Act (16 U.S.C. §§ 3371-3378) for allegedly importing products containing illegally harvested wood.

On May 5, 2015, the Bureau of Industry and Security and the Directorate of Defense Trade Controls issued proposed rules concerning the transfer of certain items from US Munitions List Category XII to the Commerce Control List as part of the President’s Export Control Reform Initiative.

Automotive suppliers should take note that California’s Proposition 65 now imposes a duty on suppliers to warn consumers about risks associated with exposure to several plasticizers or softeners added to certain soft plastics that are commonly used in automotive products.

This is the third installment from Birgit Matthiesen for a planned series of cross-border trade updates.

Earlier this week, the owners of the egg distribution firm, Quality Egg, LLC (Quality Egg), were sentenced to three months in prison, given one year of supervised probation, and required to each pay a $100,000 fine after pleading guilty to selling eggs in 2010 that were contaminated with salmonella.

Last week, 14 state attorneys general sent a letter to Congress requesting that it investigate the herbal supplements industry, as well as consider giving the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) stronger oversight authority over the marketing of such products in the US.

In a recent non-precedential decision, the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board ruled that the fast food chain Del Taco, Inc. (Del Taco) no longer enjoys trademark rights in the NAUGLES brand associated with Naugles, Inc., a California-based fast food chain that Del Taco acquired in the late-1980s.

The US Food and Drug Administration recently sent a Warning Letter to Skin Authority, LLC, due to marketing claims used by the company to promote its personal care products.

In 2013, David and Katina Spade purchased a mattress from Select Comfort Corp. (doing business as Sleep Number) that featured remote control operation of the height of the foot and head portions of the mattress.

In a precedential ruling, TTAB held that SMART BALANCE for frozen foods was not likely to be confused with SMART ONES for frozen foods in light of the weakness of the common term “SMART,” the differences in the marks, the 17-year peaceful co-existence of the parties’ marks, and more.

On March 24, 2015, the Supreme Court issued its much anticipated second trademark decision of the term, holding that US Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) decisions concerning likelihood of confusion generally have preclusive effects in federal court.

In the non-precedential ruling, the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB or Board) found that the marks “MASQUERADE” and “MASCARADE” are likely to be confused for different alcoholic beverages. In re 8 Vini, Inc., Serial No. 85857391 (January 16, 2015) [not precedential].