Avon Escapes Animal Testing Class Action Lawsuit

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Avon Escapes Animal Testing Class Action Lawsuit

By Courtney Coren

A California federal judge has dismissed a class action lawsuit accusing Avon Products Inc. of deceiving customers by falsely advertising its products as cruelty-free, even though the cosmetics company engages in animal testing in China and other countries.

Plaintiffs Maria Beltran, Renee Tellez and Nichole Gutierrez agreed to drop the Avon animal testing class action lawsuit, putting an end to the dispute. The plaintiffs initially sought more than $100 million from Avon and other cosmetics companies over their animal testing policies. They made the decision to end the class action lawsuit after Avon filed a motion in opposition to class certification.

Beltran alleged that Avon deceived customers by promising that the company does not test its cosmetics on animals, even though it does perform some tests on animals in order to sell products in other countries, including China. According to their class action lawsuit, Beltran and the potential Class Members would not have purchased Avon products if they had known that the company tested some of its cosmetics on animals, breaking its “cruelty-free” promise.

Beltran filed the Avon animal testing class action lawsuit in February 2012 after the animal rights organization People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) removed Avon from its list of companies that avoid animal testing. Avon had held a spot on this list for more than 20 years.

Beltran also sued Estee Lauder Inc. and Mary Kay Inc., accusing the companies of misleading consumers about their animal testing policies. She sought more than $100 million in compensatory and punitive damages. One month later, Beltran decided to pursue a separate action against the three cosmetic companies. Class action lawsuits against Estee Lauder and Mary Kay are ongoing.

In September 2012, U.S. District Judge Cormac J. Carney found that the plaintiffs did not provide sufficient evidence for their fraudulent advertising claims. However, Judge Carney did not dismiss the class action lawsuits entirely. Beltran filed an amended complaint and added Tellez and Gutierrez as plaintiffs. In the revised complaint, the plaintiffs accused Avon of violating California’s Unfair Competition Law and Consumer Legal Remedies Act. They also accused the company of fraud, claiming that Avon was required to disclose its animal testing policies.

Judge Carney rejected Avon’s motion to dismiss the class action lawsuit in December 2012, finding that the plaintiffs had sufficiently argued that the company fraudulently concealed the fact that it conducts some tests on animals. According to Avon, the company website indicates that Avon avoids animal testing except when it is required to sell products in other companies. In these cases, the company insists that it “will first attempt to persuade the requesting authority to accept non-animal test data.”

The plaintiffs in the class action lawsuit are represented by Richard L. Kellner, Scott Matthew Malzahn and Lina B. Melidonian of Kabateck Brown Kellner LLP.

The Avon Animal Testing Class Action Lawsuit is Marina Beltran, et al. v. Avon Products Inc., Case No. 2:12-cv-02502, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, Southern Division.

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