Class Action Lawsuit Says GNC Sold OxyElite Pro Despite Health Risk

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A new class action lawsuit has been filed against GNC Holdings Inc. over OxyElite Pro, a diet supplement that has been linked to liver damage. Dallas-based USPLabs LLC, the manufacturer of the supplement, is also included as a defendant.

The class action lawsuit alleges that both GNC and USPLabs were aware that the OxyElite Pro line of products was reported to cause severe liver damage. Despite this alleged knowledge, the companies continued to market and sell the product, putting consumers at risk.

In November 2013, USPLabs voluntarily recalled the OxyElite Pro line of products was after receiving a warning letter from the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA).

Plaintiff Sandeep Barot filed the OxyElite Pro class action lawsuit, claiming that he purchased the OxyElite Pro 90 Count Super Thermo capsules every two months between March 2010 and October 2011 from a GNC retail store in New Jersey. He paid approximately $40 each time he purchased the product. Although he does not claim to have suffered liver damage, he says he took the pills for weight loss, mental focus and energy. He says that he would not have purchased the product if he had known he would be exposed to dimethylamylamine (DMAA) and aegeline, ingredients that have been associated with adverse health effects.

According to the class action lawsuit, GNC sold the OxyElite Pro products from January 2008 and continued to do so even after the FDA issued its initial warning letter to USPLabs regarding the dangers of DMAA. The FDA’s warning letter was issued on April 27, 2012, and a second warning letter was issued on Oct. 11, 2013. GNC continued to sell the product until USPLabs voluntarily recalled the product in November 2013.

The Hawaii Department of Health submitted 20 medical records to the FDA. Of these records, 70 percent had ingested OxyElite Pro products prior to becoming ill. According to the class action lawsuit, these patients had no other consistent commonalities other than their exposure to OxyElite Pro. Most of the patients were reportedly healthy prior to consuming the product, and most patients recovered from their illness after they stopped taking OxyElite Pro.

“Defendants USPLabs and GNC marketed and sold the product without a proper and adequate warning, and without modifying the product so it could be fit for human consumption,” the class action lawsuit says.

Barot’s class action lawsuit brings claims for unjust enrichment, breach of the implied warranty of merchantability, and violations of the New Jersey Consumer Fraud Act and the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act.

A similar OxyElite Pro class action lawsuit was filed against GNC and USPLabs in Hawaii shortly after the November 2013 recall. In October 2013, the FDA announced that 29 people in Hawaii developed acute hepatitis after taking OxyElite Pro, and concluded that aegeline was the likely cause of the condition.

USPLabs has already reached a settlement for a class action lawsuit in California, which will result in refunds for Class Members.

Barot is represented by William Riback of the Law Offices of William Riback LLC.

The OxyElite Pro Class Action Lawsuit is Sandeep Barot v. USPLabs LLC, et al., Case No. 1:14-cv-00562, in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey.

UPDATE: According to court documents filed on Sept. 22, 2014, USPlabs and GNC have agreed to pay $2 million to settle a class action lawsuit over the sale of OxyElite Pro and Jack3d supplements.

UPDATE 2: Instructions on how to file a claim for the USPlabs supplement class action settlement are now available! Click here or visit www.USPlabsClassAction.com for details.

UPDATE 3: Class action settlement payments averaging $36.77 were mailed to approved claimants on April 27, 2015.