Second Circuit Upholds Summary Judgment for Defendants Against Allegations That "All Natural" Label Was Misleading

Yesterday, the Second Circuit upheld the district court's award of summary judgment in favor of the defendant concerning certain class actions claims that “the phrase ‘All Natural’ that appeared on the labels of [Defendant's] products is deceptive and misleading.”  Specifically, the court rejected the plaintiffs' allegations of fraud, as well as consumer protection and false advertising claims, since “plaintiffs had failed to establish how a reasonable consumer would understand the term ‘all natural’ . . . [and so] plaintiffs could not explain how or why they were materially deceived.”  Even though the claims here--that the label of “all natural” on Defendant's products was misleading--had survived a motion to dismiss, plaintiffs had failed to introduce sufficient evidence in support of their theories to avoid summary judgment.

This case has significance for the various “greenwashing” claims currently being pursued in a wide array of state and federal courts across the United States.  In particular, the decision here suggests the utility of continuing to litigate claims following an unsuccessful motion to dismiss, since plaintiffs may not be able to establish, under the more demanding summary judgment standard, that generic environmentally-friendly labels or advertising constitute a violation of law.  Further, the ruling here indicates the difficulties that plaintiffs will encounter in adducing evidence in support of allegations that vague or broad sustainability claims are misleading; the court had rejected plaintiffs' proffered expert reports due to methodological flaws (e.g., a survey with leading questions).  In essence, this decision should encourage defendants that encounter this sort of lawsuit to litigate vigorously, as generic greenwashing claims appear less likely to survive the more rigorous standard of summary judgment.