Insights

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and National Advertising Division (NAD) of BBB National Programs laid out their enforcement priorities during the 2025 ANA Masters of Advertising Law Conference, at which Crowell & Moring attorneys spoke on and attended various panels.

The Federal Circuit recently held that a claim that a product is protected by patents when it is not may constitute false advertising. Defendants in this case, Dawgs Inc., accused the makers of Crocs of using the terms “patented,” ‘proprietary,” and “exclusive” in its advertising in a manner that misled consumers about the nature, characteristics, or qualities of its own products and the products of its competitors. Specifically, Dawgs alleged that Crocs made promotional statements that a patent covers its Croslite shoe material, that Croslite has numerous tangible benefits found in all of Crocs’ shoe products and that, because Croslite is “patented,” others’ products lack these same benefits. Crocs, Inc. v. Effervescent, Inc., No. 2022-2160, 2024 U.S. App. LEXIS 25001 (Fed. Cir. Oct. 3, 2024).

It seems most everyone has been closely monitoring Taco Bell’s cancellation proceedings directed to federal trademark registrations covering the TACO TUESDAY trademark.  On July 15, 2023, one of the registrants, Spicy Seasonings, LLC, withdrew its registration after decades of ownership, supporting Taco Bell’s allegations that the phrase is generic and therefore not protectable as a trademark.

Private companies account for over 71% of global emissions and are a vital group in the fight to reach net zero. This article explores the trend towards uniform environmental reporting standards in a bid to incentivize firms to improve their environmental performance.