Skinnygirl Margarita Lawsuit: Bethenny Frankel Sued Over Advertising
Are Real Housewives star Bethenny Frankel's Skinnygirl Margaritas all-natural? Not according to a recently-filed Skinnygirl Margarita lawsuit.
Reneta Bonar is the named plaintiff in the suit. She claims that Skinnygirl Margaritas are falsely advertised as being "all-natural."
Apparently the alcoholic beverage contains a small amount of sodium benzoate, a preservative, according to TMZ.
The lawsuit also comes on the heels of Whole Foods' decision not to reorder Frankel's "guilt-free" margaritas.
Whole Foods decided to veto the Skinnygirl Margarita line because of the fact that the product has some unnatural ingredients, according to several reports.
Bonar alleges she was duped by false advertisements and claims that the drink was all-natural, according to TMZ. She says other buyers of the product were similarly deceived by the margarita line's false advertising.
Bonar is asking that Beam Global Spirits, the company that owns Skinnygirl Margarita, launch a "corrective" advertising campaign. She is also seeking an unspecified amount of monetary damages, reports TMZ.
FTC rules mandate that advertising generally must follow several rules. One of the rules is that advertising must be truthful and non-deceptive. Businesses also need to be able to provide evidence to back up claims made in their ads.
Assuming the case doesn't settle, the Skinnygirl Margarita lawsuit will likely hinge on whether or not the court believes the ads really were deceptive.
Is Skinnygirl Margarita "all-natural" even if it has a bit of a preservative in it? Bethenny Frankel herself has taken to the web to defend her product, writing in her blog that the product is made of natural ingredients and is labeled according to U.S. regulations, E! Online reports. Stay tuned to see if this lawsuit has legs or not.
Related Resources:
- Talk About a Chaser! Bethenny Frankel Sued Over Skinnygirl Margarita Health Claims (E! Online)
- Essential Advertising Rules for Your Businesses (FindLaw)
- 'Skinnygirl' Bethenny Frankel Sued For $100M by Ex-Manager (FindLaw's Celebrity Justice)
- Real Housewives' Sonja Morgan Must Pay $7M, Court Rules (FindLaw's Celebrity Justice)