Lobbyist: Choose ad words carefully
By Furniture Today Staff -- Furniture Today, February 17, 2002
GREENSBORO, N.C. — The American Furniture Manufacturers Assn.'s Washington lobbyist warned furniture makers to choose carefully the words written in sales and marketing literature in order to avoid being sued for deceptive marketing practices.
"You should not expect to get out of a deceptive marketing case for just the price of the product," said Russ Batson, AFMA's vice president of governmental affairs.
He said many deceptive marketing suits have stemmed from a manufacturer's use of the term "solid wood," and many leather upholstery producers are inviting legal trouble with their nebulous descriptions of covers that combine leather and vinyl.
"One lawsuit waiting to happen is over the term 'leather match'," Batson said. "I don't think anybody really knows what that means."
He said the majority of deceptive marketing suits originate in California and a handful of Southeast states that have marketing regulations that are tilted in favor of plaintiffs who sue manufacturers.
He cited an example in Alabama, where the owner of a BMW was awarded $4 million for emotional distress because the paint job on his new car was defective.
| Batson |
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