Babo Botanicals Class Action Settlement Conference Scheduled

A May 27, 2016 settlement conference has been scheduled for Babo Botanicals LLC, and the proposed Class, to present terms of the “all natural” settlement that each party will agree to.

Prior to the May settlement conference, each party will provide the Court with an ex parte position statement, according to recent court documents.

Within the position statements to be submitted to the court, Babo and the proposed Class will outline the terms on which they each are separately wiling to settle the case, which terms are negotiable, and a statement of position.

The Babo Botanicals proposed class action lawsuit was filed in January by plaintiff Jennifer Nicotra who alleged that the family hair and skincare company engaged in false advertising of its products as “natural.”

Nicotra stated that Babo “manufactures, sells, and distributes the Products using a marketing and advertising campaign that is centered around claims appealing to health conscious consumers that their Products offer ‘Natural Solutions’ and/or were ‘Natural’ and/or ‘All Natural.’”

Despite these claims, Nicotra alleged that the “Defendant’s advertising and marketing campaign is false, deceptive, and misleading because the Products contain various artificial and synthetic ingredients, some of which have been associated with the risk of developing severe health problems.”

The Babo Botanicals products in question include fourteen different items encompassing baby lotion, shampoo, bath wash, moisturizing cream, detangling spray, lice repellant shampoo, swim & sport conditioner and sunscreen.

The plaintiff stated that she and other consumers paid a premium for the products, believing them to be “natural solutions” and having “all natural” ingredients based on the alleged misrepresentations set forth by Babo.

“Had Plaintiff known the truth—that the representations she relied upon in making her purchases were false, misleading, and deceptive—she would not have purchased the Products at a premium price,” the complaint read.

Nicotra outlined the synthetic ingredients that were listed on various Babo products, noting that the company’s representations of such ingredients as being “natural” are false, misleading and deceptive to consumer because the ingredients are “synthetic and artificial.”

Nicotra seeks to represent a nationwide Class of consumers who purchased Babo Botanicals products, as well as a New York subclass.

Nine counts of action were brought forth by Nicotra on behalf of herself and the proposed Class including two violations of New York General Business Law, violation of state consumer protection statutes, breach of express warranty, violation of the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, two counts of breach of implied warranty, common law unjust enrichment and negligent misrepresentation.

On behalf of herself and the proposed Class, Nicotra is seeking declaratory and injunctive relief, monetary damages including treble damages, punitive damages, attorneys’ fees and costs as well as any additional relief deemed proper by the Court.

Additional dates have been set for the case proceedings, with a June 30, 2016 deadline for first request for documents and interrogatories, two dates in December for fact discovery completion and exchange of expert reports completed, and a January 2017 date for completion of expert depositions.

The plaintiff is represented by Jason P. Sultzer, Joseph Lipari, and Jean M. Sedlak of The Sultzer Law Group P.C.

The Babo Botanicals False Advertising Class Action Lawsuit is Jennifer Nicotra v. Babo Botanicals LLC., Case No. 2:16-cv-00296, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York.