Tag: Consumer Protection

The Department of Justice filed a civil penalties complaint alleging that Lithionics Battery, LLC ("Lithionics") and Steven Tartaglia violated Section 5(a) of the FTC Act, 15 U.S.C. § 45(a) and violated the Made in USA Labeling Rule, 16 C.F.R. Part 323 (the “MUSA Labeling Rule”), in connection with the labeling and advertising of certain battery systems containing significant imported content as “Made in USA." The complaint further alleges that Lithionics' expressed or implied representations that its products are all or virtually all made in the United States are false or unsubstantiated. 

In October 2017, a federal district judge issued an order finding several defendants, including repeat offender Jared Wheat, in contempt for violating previous court orders related to the sale of weight-loss dietary supplements. The order imposed a more than $40 million judgment against the defendants, part or all of which the FTC may use to provide refunds to deceived consumers who bought the products. In May 2020, the Commission announced that it was mailing refunds totaling more than $8.5 million to defrauded consumers.

The FTC sued Kohl’s, Inc. and Walmart, Inc. for falsely marketing dozens of rayon textile products as bamboo. Both companies also are charged with making deceptive environmental claims, touting that the “bamboo” textiles were made using ecofriendly processes, while in reality converting bamboo into rayon requires the use of toxic chemicals and results in hazardous pollutants. The court orders settling the complaint require the companies to stop making deceptive green claims or using other misleading advertising, and pay penalties of $2.5 million and $3 million, respectively.