Kelley Drye Ad Law Access Podcast

Paul L. Singer, Abigail Stempson, Beth Bolen Chun, and Andrea deLorimier As we’ve discussed previously, price gouging has been a focus for enforcers in the past few years, and 2025 is proving no different. In the past month alone, California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced that the California DOJ has opened active investigations into price gouging in the aftermath of the Los Angeles fires (an...

Paul L. Singer, Abigail Stempson, Beth Bolen Chun, and Andrea deLorimier A coalition of all 23 democratic attorneys general filed an amicus brief in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland warning against efforts by the Trump Administration to defund and disband the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). The brief comes in the wake of the outgoing CFPB’s call for state action, i...

Gonzalo E. Mon Last year, T-Mobile ran a commercial in which Snoop Dogg breaks down Patrick Mahomes’ ​“top three plays of the day” with additional commentary from influencer Kai Cenat. Mahomes scrambles into a T-Mobile store with a ​“little shimmy, shimmy shake” (like he’s chasing an ice cream truck), holds up an iPhone 16 Pro ​“like a baby lion,” and then takes T-Mobile’s savings and ​“calls it a...

Paul L. Singer, Abigail Stempson, Beth Bolen Chun, John Quaglino Washington Attorney General Nick Brown announced that his office had reached a resolution in its nearly two-year lawsuit against Puppyland, a local pet store that sells and provides financing for (you guessed it) puppies, for claims of unfair and deceptive practices in sales and marketing in violation of the state Consumer Protection...

Comprehensive state privacy laws are the ​“new normal.” Comprehensive state privacy legislation is unlikely to slow down any time soon. In the first few weeks of 2025 alone, nineteen comprehensive privacy bills were introduced across ten states. As more states endeavor to jump on the privacy bandwagon, consumer protection offices will no doubt begin to ramp up education and enforcement efforts. ht...

f you have been following our blogs, it should be no surprise that the Attorneys General remain focused on combatting Organized Retail Crime (ORC) using available state and federal tools. The Attorneys General of Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, and South Carolina co-led a bipartisan letter joined by 34 other Attorneys General (AGs) to encourage Congress to help ​“combat the nationwide organized re...

The DOJ has released new guidance on website accessibility programs, outlining key steps organizations should take to ensure compliance with the ADA. This episode breaks down the recommendations, including setting clear policies, regular testing, and vendor accountability. Read more: https://www.kelleydrye.com/viewpoints/blogs/ad-law-access/doj-provides-guidance-on-website-accessibility-programs#:...

State AGs Double Down on DEI (and ESG) Republican state attorneys general are ramping up their scrutiny of corporate DEI and ESG policies. In this episode, we discuss recent letters sent by state AGs to major financial institutions and Costco, challenging diversity initiatives and climate commitments. Read the full analysis from Paul Singer, Abigail Stempson, and Beth Bolen Chun on the Ad Law Acce...

Revolve, a fashion e-commerce brand, recently faced scrutiny from the National Advertising Division (NAD) over influencer disclosures in its gifting program. In this episode, Gonzalo Mon unpacks NAD’s findings and what they mean for influencer marketing. NAD’s decision raises key compliance concerns under the FTC’s Endorsement Guides, from unclear disclosure instructions to the effectiveness of ha...

Is P&G’s sustainability messaging misleading consumers? A new class action lawsuit accuses Procter & Gamble of greenwashing, alleging that its "Keep Forests as Forests" campaign and "Protect-Grow-Restore" promises don’t hold up under scrutiny. The case claims that P&G’s Charmin toilet paper is sourced from clear-cut boreal forests, with replanting efforts creating so-called "Frankenforests"—single...

A New York health privacy law has moved quickly through both chambers of the state legislature and is up for review by Governor Kathy Hochul. The New York Health Information Privacy Act (“NYHIPA”) bears striking resemblance to similar laws in Washington, Nevada, and Connecticut, but also adopts novel provisions that could make this one of the most stringent privacy laws on the books in the U.S. ht...

On January 24, 2025, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit issued a ruling which vacated the so-called ​“one-to-one” consent requirement for marketing calls and texts adopted by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in its implementing rules for the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). In its ruling, the court held that the rule adopted by the FCC exceeded the agency’s stat...

𝗠𝗮𝘀𝘀𝗮𝗰𝗵𝘂𝘀𝗲𝘁𝘁𝘀 𝗦𝗲𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗲𝘀 𝗥𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗿𝗱 𝗝𝘂𝗱𝗴𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗔𝗴𝗮𝗶𝗻𝘀𝘁 𝗜𝗻𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗲𝘀 The Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office (MA AGO) has secured a landmark $165 million judgment—one of the largest civil penalties ever imposed under the state's Consumer Protection Act—against three UnitedHealth insurance companies. A Suffolk Superior Court ruling found the defendants liable for violating a prior consent judgment...

The FTC released two Notices of Proposed Rulemaking (NPR) and an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPR) that would establish a new Earnings Claims Rule and expand the existing Business Opportunity Rule – changes that according to the FTC’s release ​“would strengthen the agency’s tools to curb deceptive earnings claims in industries where they are pervasive: multi-level marketing (MLM) progra...

TikTok offers an affiliate program through which influencers and other content creators can earn commissions by promoting products from various brands through affiliate links in their videos. Marketing experts often caution brands against trying to exercise too much control over this type of content. If a video looks too scripted, it may not reflect the creator’s voice or resonate with the creator...

2024’s National Association of Attorneys General (NAAG) Capital Forum took place December 9-11. The Kelley Drye State AG Practice team was there as the AGs closed out a year of insights, including Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum’s Presidential Initiative concerning children’s welfare. During the sessions, we heard from two federal agency heads regarding their goals and how they can collabo...

I’ll start by admitting that I don’t know anything about the game of pickleball. Using the word ​“basketball” as an example and working backwards by breaking the word ​“pickleball” into its component parts, I can make an educated guess about what implements are used in the game. But maybe I’d be wrong. That’s why it may make sense to consult experts. https://www.kelleydrye.com/viewpoints/blogs/ad-...

Last year, T-Mobile ran a commercial in which Snoop Dogg breaks down Patrick Mahomes’ ​“top three plays of the day” with additional commentary from influencer Kai Cenat. Mahomes scrambles into a T-Mobile store with a ​“little shimmy, shimmy shake” (like he’s chasing an ice cream truck), holds up an iPhone 16 Pro ​“like a baby lion,” and then takes T-Mobile’s savings and ​“calls it a day.” Snoop te...

With the new year just around the corner and eight new privacy laws coming online next year, December is an excellent time for companies to assess their data collection and processing practices, and take stock of any changes needed to meet additional legal requirements. We break down what you need to know as we head into 2025. https://www.kelleydrye.com/viewpoints/blogs/ad-law-access/new-privacy-l...

Just Play makes Daisy the Yoga Goat, a toy for kids. The company advertises that Daisy has ​“super-soft plush gray fur…and lots of personality” and a recent TV commercial shows Daisy as she independently ​“moves her head, swishes her tail, drinks from her play water bottle, and does downward dog and bird yoga poses.” Change a couple of words and that basically describes my dogs. https://www.kelley...

FDA issued a final rule today updating the requirements food must meet to be marketed as ​“healthy.” FDA says that a ​“healthy” claim ​“implies that the nutrient content of the food may help consumers maintain healthy dietary practices,” and an update was necessary to ensure that foods described as healthy are consistent with current nutrition science, which has evolved significantly since the las...

DC Attorney General Brian Schwalb recently filed a lawsuit against Amazon for allegedly deceiving some District residents into paying for Prime delivery benefits they are not receiving, in violation of the Consumer Protection Procedures Act (CPPA). The complaint alleges Amazon quietly instituted exclusionary practices in its Prime Membership delivery program for certain ZIP codes in DC starting in...

If you’ve been on social media lately, depending on your algorithm, you may have witnessed tween influencers touting expensive skincare routines, or commentators lamenting the rise of the Sephora Kid. Before the holiday, Connecticut AG William Tong urged parents to exercise caution regarding anti-aging skincare products that are being marketed to children and teens by influencers on social media....

Yesterday, President-elect Trump announced his picks to round out the Federal Trade Commission for his second administration. Trump tapped current Republican Commissioner Andrew Ferguson to be elevated to chair the agency, and nominated Mark R. Meador to fill the commissioner vacancy that will be left behind upon Chair Khan’s departure. As we previously discussed in a post here predicting what to...

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, joined by ten other Republican-led states, filed a lawsuit in the U.S. Eastern District of Texas against BlackRock, State Street, and Vanguard, accusing them of illegally conspiring to manipulate coal markets. The 104-page complaint alleges that these investment firms leveraged their substantial ownership stakes in major U.S. coal producers to ​“artificially” con...