ESG Enforcement Tracker

Key facts:

A class-action lawsuit has been filed in the US State of Washington, alleging violation of various state-level consumer protection acts and a general ‘fraudulent concealment’ across 29 US States. The claim focuses on ‘greenwashing’ in Gore-Tex’s advertising of its products, which is claimed to mislead on the environmental effects of PFAs (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) in its products and to have omitted full and fair disclosure on the materials used in its products as a result of its claims of ‘environmental sustainability’. It also claims that the brand’s advertising would confuse consumers on its use of terms around PFCs (perfluorinated compounds). The Claimants rely in part on the US Federal Trade Commissions “Green Guides”, which set out practices for environmental marketing claims.