TENTATIVE RULING
Defendants Johnson & Johnson, Ethicon, Inc. and Ethicon US, LLC's demurrer to plaintiff The People of the State of California's complaint is overruled. The safe harbor provisions do not preclude plaintiff's claims. The state has the power to police deceptive marketing of federally regulated products. Plaintiff has plead sufficient facts to state a claim for violations of unfair competition and false advertising, which are not required to be set forth with specificity. The false advertising law prohibits the dissemination in any advertising media of any "statement" concerning real or personal property offered for sale, "which is untrue or misleading, and which is known, or which by the exercise of reasonable care should be known, to be untrue or misleading." (Bus. & Prof. Code, § 17500.) Any violation of the false advertising law under Business and Professions Code section 17500 necessarily violates the unfair competition law. (Committee On Children's Television, Inc.
Hearing Date
October 13, 2016
Category
Civil - Unlimited
Type
Misc Complaints - Other
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TENTATIVE RULING
Defendants Johnson & Johnson, Ethicon, Inc. and Ethicon US, LLC's demurrer to plaintiff The People of the State of California's complaint is overruled. The safe harbor provisions do not preclude plaintiff's claims. The state has the power to police deceptive marketing of federally regulated products. Plaintiff has plead sufficient facts to state a claim for violations of unfair competition and false advertising, which are not required to be set forth with specificity. The false advertising law prohibits the dissemination in any advertising media of any "statement" concerning real or personal property offered for sale, "which is untrue or misleading, and which is known, or which by the exercise of reasonable care should be known, to be untrue or misleading." (Bus. & Prof. Code, § 17500.) Any violation of the false advertising law under Business and Professions Code section 17500 necessarily violates the unfair competition law. (Committee On Children's Television, Inc.