On January 10, 2014, the Supreme Court agreed to hear the appeal in POM Wonderful v Coca-Cola. This case explores the tension between how the FDA [Food and Drug Administration] deals with factual statements on labelling versus how the Lanham Act, which governs trade mark law and false advertising law, deals with factual statements on labelling. At trial and then on appeal, the courts below took the view that the mere existence of specific regulations by the FDA relating to labelling preempts the ability of a private company to sue for false statements in the labelling under the Lanham Act. The Supreme Court will determine whether that is a correct interpretation of the FDA regulations.
