Karina Basso  |  September 29, 2014

Category: Consumer News

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Triple leaf class action lawsuitTriple Leaf Tea Inc.’s motion to dismiss a false advertising class action lawsuit was denied last Tuesday by the presiding California federal judge. The claims filed against Triple Leaf allege the tea company falsely advertised its brand name herbal tea as a safe diet product when it allegedly contained cancer-causing laxatives.

In response to the claims of false labeling, U.S. District Judge Maxine M. Chesney ruled that plaintiff Eunice Johnson had sufficiently supported her claim that Triple Tea Leaf’s Dieter’s Tea label had the potential to mislead consumers and factor into their decision to buy the tea to use as a dieting aid.

The judge also tossed Triple Leaf’s argument that primary jurisdiction over the Triple Leaf false advertising class action was held by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). In her memo denying Triple Leaf’s motion to dismiss the false advertising class action lawsuit, Judge Chesney stated:

“The court finds [Triple Tea Leaf’s] argument, in the absence of any further showing, insufficient to demonstrate the propriety of the court’s abstaining from deciding [Johnson’s] claims in order to give the FDA the ability to do so, particularly given that there is no showing or suggestion that the FDA has expertise in analyzing false advertising claims[.]”

In light of Judge Chesney’s ruling regarding the labeling and jurisdiction claims, Johnson’s Triple Leaf class action lawsuit will proceed with the following claims: breach of implied warranty, breach of express warranty, violations of California Consumers Legal Remedies Act, violation of unfair competition law, and violation of false advertising law.

Eunice Johnson, a resident of California, filed this false advertising class action lawsuit against Triple Leaf earlier this year in April after she bought the Triple Leaf tea product “Dieter’s Green.” In addition to claiming that the Dieter’s Green label misleads consumers into believing the tea is a weight loss aid, Johnson also alleges the “statement on the front of the package, ‘Traditional Herbal Support While Dieting’ is deceptive because ‘Senna,’ the ‘predominate ingredient,’ is ‘not effective in weight loss and may have an opposite effect and cause bloating and cramping[.]’” In actuality, senna is a laxative, which is reportedly dangerous in cases of long term use.

According to the Triple Leaf false advertising class action lawsuit, if an individual consumes too much senna, it could potentially lead to several dangerous side effects, including hepatitis, liver failure, cancer, and a development of laxative dependency.

This is not Triple Leaf’s first attempt to dismiss this false advertising class action lawsuit. Earlier this year, Triple leaf argued that Johnson could not represent a nationwide class of consumer because she bought the Triple Leaf brand tea in Kansas City, M., but is a resident of California. However, Judge Chesney denied this argument, reasoning that Triple Leaf is headquartered in California. The judge has also denied a number of other arguments by Triple Leaf in the past few months.

Johnson seeks to represent herself in this Triple Leaf false advertising class action lawsuit and “a class consisting of persons who reside anywhere in the United States and purchased Dieter’s Green, Ultra Slim or Super Slimming teas anywhere in the United States.”

Eunice Johnson is represented by Ronald A. Marron, Skye Resendes and Alexis M. Wood of the Law Offices of Ronald A. Marron APLC.

The Triple Leaf Tea False Advertising Class Action Lawsuit is Eunice Johnson v. Triple Leaf Tea Inc., Case No. 3:14-cv-01570, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.

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