“Cool to be KIND: Second Circuit Rejects ‘Expert’ Survey Evidence, Ends Long-Running ‘All Natural’ Class Action” by Jennifer Adams

In a Legal Backgrounder published by Washington Legal Foundation on July 8, 2024, Jennifer Adams writes:

“False advertising challenges to “all natural” and similar “natural” claims have been among the most prolific litigation trends for consumer product companies. Currently, there is no legal or regulatory definition of “natural,” and cases have either settled before reaching this core issue or are disposed of on other grounds. The years-long battle surrounding KIND Bar’s “All Natural” claim was poised to be the first case to reach this question.

Instead, it ended abruptly in summary judgment for KIND when the district court excluded expert testimony on consumers’ perception of “natural,” a ruling that prevented the plaintiffs from defining that term. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit recently affirmed¹ this decision, thereby weakening “natural” false advertising challenges and potentially attenuating the rate of future cases to similar undefined, ambiguous terms.”

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