Williams-Sonoma ‘Natural’ Labeling Class Action Moves Forward

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A Williams-Sonoma class action lawsuit involving claims of false advertising impacting more than 60 scented products made by the high end retailer, will move forward after a California federal judge denied a motion to dismiss the case.

According to the Williams-Sonoma class action lawsuit, the company labeled a variety of their products, including soaps and lotions, as natural.

The consumer who lodged the Williams-Sonoma natural products class action alleges that these items contain synthetic ingredients and therefore should not be referred to as natural.

Williams-Sonoma attempted to argue that no reasonable consumer could have truly been deceived by the labeling, but U.S. District Judge Richard Seeborg rejected that argument.

This means that the Williams-Sonoma class action lawsuit will continue over the allegations of false advertising.

The company argued that the statement listed on the products in question says that the active ingredients are derived from natural products, which is in itself a true statement.

However, as far as the Williams-Sonoma argument that no reasonable consumer could believe this means that the product is entirely natural, the judge says the defendants were asking for too much at such an early stage of the case.

The Williams-Sonoma class action lawsuit was originally brought by plaintiff Brian Kutza in June 2018.

The products included in the Williams-Sonoma class action lawsuit include cleaners and room sprays.

Kutza argues in the proposed Williams-Sonoma class action that these items are marketed as natural even though they all contain synthetic ingredients.

The plaintiff says that he bought the products in question largely because he believed they were made with natural and not synthetic ingredients.

Kutza also argues in the Williams-Sonoma class action that the company alleges the products are plant-based and natural in other areas of their marketing.

One such statement mentioned in the Williams-Sonoma class action lawsuit is pulled from the company’s website and references that the items are made with “completely natural ingredients.”

Although the plaintiff’s claims of state false advertising laws and unfair business practice law violations will continue in the Williams-Sonoma class action lawsuit, the judge dismissed warranty claims brought in that same suit under state and federal law.

Williams-Sonoma also sought dismissal of the plaintiff’s injunctive relief request, which was denied by the judge. Williams-Sonoma attempted to argue that there’s no plausible claim for the plaintiff’s arguments that he won’t buy the products again.

Kutza previously argued that the ingredient list on the products in question does not differentiate between active and inactive ingredients. Some of those ingredients, he claims, are not natural.

The consumers in the Williams-Sonoma class action lawsuit are represented by James A. Morris and Shane E. Greenberg of Morris Law Firm, Adam M. Goffstein of Goffstein Law LLC and Daniel J. Orlowsky of Orlowsky Law LLC.

The Williams-Sonoma Natural Scented Products Class Action Lawsuit is Kutza v. Williams-Sonoma Inc., Case No. 3:18-cv-03534, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.