It pays to tell the truth when it comes to claiming a product was ‘Made in the USA.’ Just ask RHG & Company (Vital Nutrients), as the company recently settled a class action lawsuit. Primary plaintiff Heather Maxin filed the Vital Nutrients class action lawsuit in late October 2016. Maxin’s class action lawsuit allegations include calling out Vital Nutrients for making ‘Made in USA’ claims, with one of more components of a product sourced from outside of the United States.
According to the class action website www.RHGsettlement.com, Vital Nutrients products include “Made in USA representations on the products themselves and on the company’s website.” Maxin has repeatedly said she would not have purchased Vitamin D3 from Vital Nutrients, if she had known the vitamin was manufactured outside of the United States.
Eligible class member of the Vital Nutrients class action settlement must have purchased one of the company products between August 1, 2012 and February 27, 2017. The products involved in the class action settlement must contain language on the labels and/or bottles that reads ‘Made in the USA.’ Vital Nutrients denies that any of the products involved in the class action settlement originated anywhere but the United States. The company agreed to the class action settlement to avoid the high costs of protracted litigation
What You Need to Know
Class counsel has stated that under the terms agreed to by Vital Nutrients, the company will pay more than $900,000 in cash awards to eligible cash members, as well as pay for attorney fees, administration costs, and other settlement costs. Eligible class members have until May 30, 2017 to opt out of the settlement or object to any provisions of the agreement. The class action settlement website defines class member eligibility as “anyone who purchased any Vital Nutrients product in the United States between Aug. 1, 2012 and Feb. 27, 2017 that contained an unqualified Made in USA label, or were otherwise represented as having been made in the United States.”
The potential award is $6 per product, with a cap per class member of $150. Class members can receive the maximum amount by submitting proof of purchases with the submission of a valid and timely claim form. The deadline to file a claim form is November 27, 2017. A judge in the Heather Maxin v. RHG & Company Inc., Case No. 3:16-cv-02625-JLS-BLM, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California case has set the final hearing date on September 28, 2017.
Abbas Kazerouinan and Matthew M. Loker from Kazerouni Law Group represent the class counsel in the Vital Nutrients class action settlement. Defense counsel Lee S. Brenner is handling the settlement for Vital Nutrients.
