When companies deceive consumers through false advertising, mislabeling, or fraudulent practices, California law provides powerful tools to hold them accountable.
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Overview
Consumer fraud occurs when businesses use deceptive, unfair, or fraudulent practices to sell products or services. False advertising, hidden fees, mislabeled products, predatory pricing, privacy violations — these practices harm millions of consumers and often go unchallenged because the individual loss seems too small to justify a lawsuit. That's exactly what makes class actions so important in the consumer fraud context.
Federal and California state laws protect consumers from a wide range of corporate misconduct. California's Unfair Competition Law (Business and Professions Code Section 17200), the Consumers Legal Remedies Act, and the False Advertising Law provide robust remedies including restitution, injunctive relief, and in some cases, punitive damages. The federal landscape adds additional protections depending on the industry and the nature of the fraud.
Arns Davis Law has extensive experience pursuing consumer fraud class actions against companies that deceive the public. Our cases have included false labeling of consumer products, deceptive marketing of dietary supplements, and fraudulent business practices across multiple industries. We've recovered millions for consumers — and forced companies to change the practices that caused the harm in the first place.
Beyond the dollar recovery, consumer fraud class actions serve a critical deterrent function. When a company knows that deceptive practices will trigger litigation and meaningful financial consequences, it's far less likely to engage in those practices in the first place. That's the broader value of this work — it protects not just the class members in front of us, but every consumer who interacts with that company going forward.
Recent Results in Consumer Fraud
*Past results do not guarantee future outcomes.
See All Firm Results →What You Should Know
Consumer fraud encompasses any deceptive, unfair, or fraudulent business practice that harms consumers. This includes false advertising, misleading product labeling, bait-and-switch tactics, hidden fees, unauthorized charges, data privacy violations, and deceptive sales practices. If a company's conduct would mislead a reasonable consumer, it likely qualifies.
As a named plaintiff in a consumer fraud class action, you need to show that you purchased the product or service and were affected by the deceptive practice. As a class member, you typically need to have purchased the product during the relevant time period. The court determines the specifics of who qualifies as part of the class during the certification process.
Recovery depends on the nature and scope of the fraud. In class actions, the total settlement is divided among class members based on factors like the extent of harm, the number of purchases, and the court-approved distribution plan. Individual recoveries vary, but the collective recovery can be substantial — and the case often forces the company to stop the deceptive practice entirely.
Consumer fraud focuses on deception — the company lied about or misrepresented the product. Product liability focuses on defect — the product itself was dangerous or defective. Sometimes both apply to the same situation. For example, a company might sell a product that's both mislabeled (consumer fraud) and physically harmful (product liability). We evaluate cases for both theories.