Partner Ed Burbach was quoted in a Law360 article, “FTC Says High Court Ruling Doesn’t Doom Injunction Bid,” about whether the FTC may seek permanent injunctive relief through the courts in its suit against multilevel marketing company Neora LLC, which the FTC alleges operates as an illegal pyramid scheme and falsely claims its dietary products can cure brain disorders such as concussions, Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease.
Burbach, who represents Neora, said the company had been “forced to file this motion” for judgment on the pleadings because, until now, the FTC had refused to drop its monetary claims. Burbach maintains the FTC has to open administrative actions before it can seek injunctive relief in the courts, adding that the FTC’s complaint didn’t “prove” Neora is committing ongoing violations. The allegation that the company operates a pyramid scheme – a term that is not defined under federal law – is “vague” and unsupported by evidence, he said.
“What the FTC is really trying to do is change the law retroactively,” Burbach said, referring to a 10-year statute of limitations in proposed federal legislation known as the Consumer Protection and Recovery Act, which would allow the FTC to recover money for the victims of fraud. “They’re trying to get Congress to pass a law that will give them more power – not going forward, but backwards.”
