Competition Bureau Canada (the Bureau) announced just before Christmas that it is seeking public comments on draft guidelines (the Guidelines) for assessing environmental claims for compliance with Canada’s Competition Act (the Act). The Act was amended in June 2024 by adding two specific provisions to existing general prohibitions for false and misleading representations and unsupported
Antonia Stamenova-Dancheva
Antonia Stamenova-Dancheva counsels clients on a wide range of matters, including compliance with federal and state requirements governing product safety, consumer protection, and advertising. She represents clients before various agencies, including the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), the National Advertising Division (NAD), and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). Antonia also has extensive litigation experience representing companies in consumer class actions.
Prior to joining Keller and Heckman, Antonia served as product safety and compliance counsel at a major online retailer, where she represented their interests before the CPSC and State Attorneys General. She spent more than a decade in the Los Angeles and Washington, DC offices of a large New York-based law firm where she was directly involved in litigation strategy and day-to-day management of all aspects of civil litigation. Antonia leverages her combined in-house and private practice experience to understand her clients’ needs and, if necessary, to guide them through litigation.
California Becomes First State to Impose Extended Producer Responsibility on Textiles
California recently became the first state to adopt an extended producer responsibility (EPR) scheme for textiles by adopting Senate Bill 707, the Responsible Textile Recovery Act of 2024 (the RTRA or Act). Specific requirements will become effective in 2026. EPR is a regulatory approach that shifts the burden of recycling and reuse of products away…
CPSC Approves eFiling Rule for Certificates of Compliance
On December 18, 2024, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) approved a final rule to implement electronic filing (eFiling) of certificates of compliance (CoC) for imported consumer products that are subject to a CPSC rule, ban, standard, or regulation (Final Rule). A 24-month effective date will apply to covered consumer products imported into a…
CPSC Extends Comment Period on Expansion of eFiling Beta Pilot Test
On September 10, 2024, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC or the Commission) published a notice extending the comment period for its expansion of the eFiling Beta Pilot Test to October 10, 2024. This extension is referred to by CPSC staff in training materials as the “eFiling voluntary stage” to differentiate it from the…
FTC Finalizes Rule Against Fake Reviews and Testimonials
On August 14, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC or Commission) announced its Final Trade Regulation Rule on the Use of Consumer Reviews and Testimonials (Final Rule) to rein in what it believes is the widespread practice of using fake reviews and testimonials to boost sales of products or services. The long-awaited Final Rule was…
CPSC Proposes Significant Changes to Rule Governing Certificates of Compliance
The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC or Agency) recently published a Supplemental Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (SNPR) (88 Fed. Reg. 85760 (December 8, 2023)) to revise the existing rule on Certificates of Compliance (CoC or certificates), 16 CFR § 1110 (Rule 1110). The last time CPSC proposed changes to Rule 1110 was in 2013, when…
Health Canada Steps Up CCCR Labeling Recalls
Manufacturers and distributors of household cleaners and similar chemically-based consumer products sold in Canada should be aware of an uptick in recalls by Health Canada for violations of the labeling requirements of the Consumer Chemicals and Containers Regulations, 2001 (CCCR) under the Canada Consumer Product Safety Act (CCPSA). The CCCR establishes detailed product classification criteria…
FTC Warns Two Trade Associations and 12 Online Influencers to Better Disclose Financial Connections
On November 13, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC or Commission) sent warning letters to the American Beverage Association (AmeriBev), The Canadian Sugar Institute, and a dozen dietitians and influencers promoting the safety of artificial sweetener aspartame or the consumption of sugar-containing products on TikTok and Instagram. The letters allege that the dieticians and…
Ninth Circuit Affirms State Privacy Law Claims Not Preempted by COPPA
On July 13, 2023, a three-judge Ninth Circuit panel denied Google’s challenge of its earlier decision in Jones v. Google, which held that state privacy law claims in a putative class action are not preempted by the federal Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). The December decision reversed a lower court’s dismissal of the…
Generac to Pay $15.8 Million Civil Penalty for Failure to Immediately Report Portable Generator Hazards
On May 3, 2023, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) issued a provisional order with a $15.8 million civil penalty against Wisconsin-based Generac Power Systems, Inc. (Generac) over charges that for more than two years, Generac failed to report serious hazards caused by some of its portable generators. According to the CPSC, from October…