Cannabis Company Settles CBD Chocolates Class Action Lawsuit

A Canadian company has agreed to settle a proposed class action lawsuit that claimed CBD chocolates sold by the company don’t contain the amount of CBD and THC advertised.

Lead plaintiff Charles Ballard says he and other consumers were misled into purchasing Bhang CBD chocolates as a result of false advertising.

The settlement notice, filed Oct. 2 in U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, consists only of a single sentence: “In accordance with Local Rule 16-15.7, Plaintiff hereby submits this Notice of Settlement to notify the Court that the lawsuit has been settled in its entirety as to all parties and all causes of action.”

The plaintiff had alleged violations of the California Consumer Legal Remedies Act, the California False Advertising Law, and the California Unfair Competition Law, as well as breaches of express warranty and implied warranty of merchantability, fraud, and negligent misrepresentation on the part of Bhang Corp.

Ballard says he purchased Bhang Medicinal Chocolate at various locations in California between 2016 and 2018. However, he says, had he and the proposed Class Members known the labels on Bhang products misrepresented the THC or CBD content, they would not have purchased them or would not have paid a premium for them.

According to the CBD chocolates class action lawsuit, independent lab tests performed at the request of the plaintiff on the products in question revealed the THC or CBD content in the products did not conform to the products’ labeling or marketing.

“The actual amounts and/or levels of THC and/or CBD are substantially less than stated on the front and back of the labels, packaging, and marketing materials by Defendants,” the class action lawsuit says.

Ballard argued in his complaint that consumers purchase these medicinal products based on the amount of THC or CBD they contain.

“The amounts and/or levels of THC and/or CBD are not only material, but the primary reason consumers purchase THC and/or CBD products such as Bhang Products.”

The plaintiff alleged that Bhang “carried out a joint scheme with a common business plan and policies in all respects pertinent hereto and that all acts and omissions herein complained of were performed in knowing cooperation with each other.”

He believes company shareholders, executives, managers and supervisors participated in or authorized the use of the misleading claims about the CBD chocolates.

In his CBD chocolates class action lawsuit, Ballard had proposed two Classes: a Nationwide Class consisting of any U.S. resident who purchased the Bhang Products for personal use and not for resale between Dec. 4, 2014, and Dec. 31, 2018; and a California Class of individuals residing in California who purchased the products during the same period.

The products named in the CBD chocolates class action lawsuit are all Bhang chocolate bars sold prior to Dec. 31, 2018, including: Dark Chocolate, Milk Chocolate, Toffee Chocolate, Pretzel Chocolate, Sugar-Free Dark Chocolate, Fire Chocolate, Ice Chocolate, Cookies & Cream Chocolate, Cherries & Cream, CBD Caramel Dark Chocolate, Parisian Espresso, Caramel Mocha, Dark Blueberry, Full Spectrum CBD Dark Chocolate and Full Spectrum CBD Milk Chocolate.

Ballard argued the case should be certified as a class action lawsuit because the aggregate claims of all Class Members would exceed $5 million.

While the terms of the CBD chocolates class action lawsuit settlement are unknown, the plaintiff sought the following relief: an order declaring the defendants had violated the law; a permanent injunction to stop Bhang from “making, disseminating, or causing to be made or disseminated before the public in this state, in any advertising device, any statement concerning products offered for sale that are untrue or misleading;” an order enjoining the company from continuing the alleged unfair practices and business acts; an award of actual damages, restitution or disgorgement; an order to correct or destroy all misleading labeling terms; compensatory and punitive damages; prejudgment interest on all amounts awarded; injunctive relief as the Court deemed appropriate; and attorneys’ fees and court costs.

He also had demanded a jury trial.

Have you purchased CBD chocolates and suspected they did not contain the amount of CBD advertised? Tell us about your experience in the comments section.

The plaintiff is represented by Ross Cornell of the Law Offices of Ross Cornell APC and Reuben D. Nathan of Nathan & Associates APC.

The CBD Chocolates Class Action Lawsuit is Charles Ballard, et al. v. Bhang Corporation, et al., Case No. 5:19-cv-02329-JGB-KK, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.

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