Jeunesse Class Action Says Company Operates as Pyramid Scheme

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A man from Arizona says the Jeunesse multi-level marketing company is a pyramid scheme that violates federal law.

Plaintiff James J. Aboltin says that Jeunesse LLC and its associated officers, all named as defendants, are operating a pyramid scheme that has been scamming money out of thousands of victims recruited to sell Jeunesse products.

The Florida-based company allegedly deals in a line of youth-enhancing skin care products and dietary supplements, according to Aboltin.

Aboltin argues that Jeunesse’s business model has at its core the essence of an illegal pyramid scheme: a compensation system that rewards participants more for recruiting other participants than for actual product sales.

He says that according to Jeunesse’s “public compensation plan,” distributors are required to build their own organization of other distributors, known as their “downline.”

Each distributor is compensated two ways: from bonuses earned by recruiting new reps, and from commissions from sales by recruits in the distributor’s downline, the lawsuit claims.

“Defendants recruit victims, and induce them to purchase product packages through false material statements and omissions and then distribute proceeds from these sales, at rates based almost exclusively on participants’ recruitment of new victims – rather than on the sale of products to customers outside the distribution channel,” the Jeunesse class action lawsuit states.

According to Aboltin, TruthInAdvertising.org recently investigated Jeunesse’s alleged pyramid scheme and alerted the Federal Trade Commission to the results in October 2015.

TINA allegedly reported it found several alarming aspects of Jeunesse’s operation, including “an emphasis on recruitment over product sales, and claims made by the company, as well as its medical advisory board, that its products can manipulate human genes and cells to slow the aging process.”

TINA.org also reportedly found Jeunesse had been making deceptive and unrealistic claims about how much money Jeunesse distributors could expect to make. Jeunesse allegedly claimed that distributors can make up to $26,000 per week and up to millions of dollars per year.

Aboltin’s Jeunesse class action lawsuit raises five counts of violations under the Racketeer Influence and Corrupt Organizations Act, or RICO, plus one count for consumer fraud under Arizona state law.

If certified by the court, Aboltin’s proposed nationwide Class will encompass all persons who were Jeunesse distributors from Sept. 9, 2009 through the present and were harmed by the company’s alleged pyramid scheme.

For his Arizona state law claims, the plaintiff also proposes a subclass consisting of all Class Members who are Jeunesse distributors and residents of Arizona. He estimates that Class Members number in the hundreds of thousands, and possibly in the millions.

Aboltin seeks a damage award to cover his financial losses and those of all proposed Class Members. He also seeks a judgment declaring the arbitration provision in Jeunesse’s Policies and Procedures to be unenforceable, allowing himself and Class Members to continue to seek relief as a Class.

The plaintiff is represented by attorneys David N. Ferrucci, Jonathan S. Batchelor, and David G. Bray of Dickinson Wright PLLC.

The Jeunesse Pyramid Scheme Class Action Lawsuit is James J. Aboltin v. Jeunesse LLC, et al., Case No. 2:16-cv-02574, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona.

UPDATE: October 2018, the Jeunesse distributor starter kit class action settlement is now open. Click here to file a claim.