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Morrison Foerster’s Class Dismissed blog provides insights and reports on the latest news, developments, and trends that affect consumer-facing companies. Subscribe to receive the latest updates by attorneys from our nationally recognized Consumer Class Action and Product Liability practices.

July 03, 2024 - CPSC, Consumer Products, Product Liability, Retail
Lithium-Ion Battery Safety Heavily Featured at 2024 NFPA Conference
By: Erin M. Bosman, Matt Robinson and Rachel A. Kaiser
Lithium-ion batteries are rechargeable batteries, commonly found in devices used every day, including cell phones, e-cigarettes, and laptops. Lithium-ion batteries are also found in electric vehicles, e-scooters, and other micro-mobility vehicles. The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), a nonprofit organization that seeks to eliminate
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June 20, 2024 - Appellate & Supreme Court, Arbitration, Class Action
Beware of Conflicting Terms: When Customers Entered into Multiple Contracts, SCOTUS Says Courts Must Decide Which One Governs Arbitrability
By: Adam J. Hunt and Jenny Morris
On May 23, 2024, the United States Supreme Court decided Coinbase, Inc., v. Suski , No. 23-3, serving a reminder to companies with mandatory consumer-facing arbitration provisions that contractual consistency is a key to enforceability. In Justice Jackson’s unanimous opinion, the Court found that
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June 17, 2024 - Class Action, Consumer Products, False Advertising, Food Misbranding
Health Halo Trend Continues With poppi "Gut Healthy" Sodas
By: Claudia M. Vetesi and Lauren N. Margolies
Are Prebiotic Drinks Plaintiffs’ Bar’s Next Target? Late last month, San Francisco resident Kirstin Cobbs initiated a class action lawsuit against poppi after purchasing its product, poppi prebiotic soda, believing the product to be “gut healthy.” Poppi sodas are packaged in cans with label
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May 06, 2024 - Privacy
Getting BIPA Right: Biometric Identifiers Must Identify
By: Purvi G. Patel and Elisabeth Hutchinson
The Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (“BIPA”), 740 ILCS 14/1 et. seq., is one of the most hotly litigated privacy statutes in the country. As it stands, there is no clear appellate authority on BIPA’s reach in at least one critical aspect. Namely, whether
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April 30, 2024 - Class Action, Consumer Products, FDA
Implied Preemption for Dietary Supplements Is Here to Stay
By: Erin M. Bosman, Julie Y. Park, Alexandra Preece Barlow and Ashley E. Quinn
On April 15, 2024, in a big win for the continued validity of implied preemption, the Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal of the First Circuit’s preemption-based dismissal of a proposed misbranding class action. The plaintiff claimed that the label of a dietary
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April 26, 2024 - Consumer Products, Environmental Law
Now is the Time for PFAS Manufacturers and Importers to Prepare for TSCA's Retrospective Reporting Requirements
By: Krista S. deBoer and Michael A. Fine
Manufacturers and importers of Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (“PFAS”) must report information regarding all PFAS produced or imported since January 1, 2011 , by either May 5, 2025, or November 10, 2025. The EPA recently finalized a rule requiring certain reporting and recordkeeping for
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March 22, 2024 - Consumer Products, CPSC, Product Liability
CPSC at ICPHSO: Reese’s Law and Mandatory eFiling Requirement
By: Erin M. Bosman, Julie Y. Park and Matt Robinson
In this final installment of our series (see part 1 , part 2 , and part 3 ) discussing CPSC’s presence at the 2024 International Consumer Product Health and Safety Organization’s annual symposium, we present two smaller, but important, CPSC updates: Implementation of Reese’s
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March 21, 2024 - Consumer Products, CPSC, Product Liability
CPSC at ICPHSO: E-Commerce Platforms and Product Safety Responsibilities
By: Erin M. Bosman, Julie Y. Park and Matt Robinson
This third installment of our series (see part 1 and part 2 ) highlights regulators and other stakeholders’ growing focus on e-commerce platforms’ role in protecting consumers from unsafe products, as the percentage of online consumer product sales continues to increase. In addition to
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March 20, 2024 - Consumer Products, CPSC, Product Liability
CPSC at ICPHSO: Office of Compliance Activity
By: Erin M. Bosman, Julie Y. Park and Matt Robinson
This second installment of our series highlights CPSC’s Office of Compliance Activity and continued aggressive enforcement efforts. Multiple presenters emphasized CPSC’s continued aggressive enforcement. Commenters frequently repeated the statistic that CPSC obtained over $52 million in civil penalties in its fiscal year 2023. Further,
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March 19, 2024 - Consumer Products, CPSC, Product Liability
CPSC at ICPHSO: 2024 Enforcement Priorities
By: Erin M. Bosman, Julie Y. Park and Matt Robinson
The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) was well represented at the International Consumer Product Health and Safety Organization’s annual symposium in Orlando, which took place in February. Agency representatives provided a number of insights to consumer product safety stakeholders. This week, we will be
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