New Balance Asks Judge to Deny Cert. for ‘Made in USA’ Class Action

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Last week, New Balance Athletics Inc. asked a California federal judge to deny Class certification to a class action lawsuit over allegations it falsely advertises its athletic shoes as being completely made in the United States.

Plaintiffs Sheila Dashnaw, William Meier and Sherryl Jones filed the New Balance class action lawsuit earlier this year, claiming New Balance misrepresents many of its shoes as being “Made in the USA” when the shoes are actually made up of a significant percentage of foreign-made components.

The plaintiffs are seeking certification of a Class of California consumers who purchased New Balance shoes identified as “Made in the USA.”

In its motion opposing Class certification, New Balance acknowledges that certain parts of the shoes, such as the soles, cannot be manufactured in the United States. Therefore, the company imports those parts and incorporates them into the final product.

New Balance points to its commitment to U.S. manufacturing and hiring of American workers, even though the profit margins on shoes manufactured in the United States are significantly lower than those for shoes made in foreign countries.

The company also denies that it misleads consumers about the origin of its shoes.

“Consistent with its commitments as a good corporate citizen, New Balance fully discloses the nature of its domestic manufacturing to its consumers,” New Balance argues in its motion opposing certification of the Made in USA class action lawsuit.

“New Balance expressly notifies its customers that, ‘Manufactured in the US for over 75 years and representing a limited portion of our US sales, New Balance MADE is a premium collection that contains a domestic value of 70% or greater.’”

New Balance says it includes similar language in all of the materials that accompany New Balance “Made in the USA” shoes and in its advertising.

Further, New Balance claims that most of the putative Class Members were not influenced by the “Made in the USA” claims. The company says a survey of 300 California residents who purchased New Balance “Made in the USA” shoes since 2015 found that only two percent of respondents said they purchased the shoes because they were allegedly made domestically. Even when presented with a list of potential factors that enticed them to purchase the New Balance shoes, only 28.7 percent indicated the Made in USA claims were factored into their purchasing decision.

“That means that more than 70% of all members of the asserted class are entirely indifferent to any ‘Made in the USA’ claims made by New Balance, qualified or not,” New Balance argues.

New Balance argues that there are six factors that warrant the judge’s denial of Class certification: 1) the plaintiffs lack standing to bring certain claims; 2) the proposed Class is not ascertainable; 3) there is insufficient commonality of law and fact to predominate over individual issues; 4) the plaintiffs’ claims are not typical of the Class; 5) the plaintiffs aren’t adequate representatives of the proposed Class; and 6) the plaintiffs’ damages model is unreliable and inadequate.

“With the exception of ascertainability, each of these reasons alone justifies denial of Plaintiffs’ Motion,” New Balance argues.

The plaintiffs are represented by Aubry Wand of the Wand Law Firm and Todd M. Schneider, Jason H. Kim and Kyle G. Bates of Schneider Wallace Cottrell Konecky & Wotkyns LLP.

The New Balance Made in USA Class Action Lawsuit is Sheila Dashnaw, et al. v. New Balance Athletics Inc., et al., Case No. 3:17-cv-00159, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California.

UPDATE: On Oct. 5, 2018, a proposed settlement in a class action lawsuit alleging New Balance falsely marketed its shoes as “Made in USA” will need to be clarified before it can be approved, ruled a California federal judge.

UPDATE 2: On Jan. 24, 2019, a $750,000 settlement has been preliminarily approved to resolves claims that New Balance shoes are falsely advertised as “Made in the USA.”

UPDATE 3: On April 1, 2019, the California New Balance “Made in the USA” class action settlement is now open. Click here to file a claim.

UPDATE 4: On Sept. 21, 2019, Top Class Actions viewers started receiving checks from the California New Balance shoes class action settlement worth as much as $20. Congratulations to everyone who filed a valid claim and got PAID!