CBD oil. Photo: ElRoi/Shutterstock.comPutative Class Action Alleges Florida Company Leads 'Wild West' of Cannabis Industry
Is Green Roads of Florida LLC misleading consumers about the potency of its products? A putative class action lawsuit says yes.
September 23, 2019 at 06:16 PM
3 minute read
A team of attorneys from Kopelowitz Ostrow Ferguson Weiselberg Gilbert in Fort Lauderdale compared the cannabidiol, or CBD, market to the Wild West, in a putative class action lawsuit filed in the Southern District of Florida.
Their filing accuses private company Green Roads of Florida LLC of leading the charge by misrepresenting how much CBD is in its products.
CBD is a naturally occurring ingredient found in cannabis plants, including hemp. Unlike marijuana, it usually contains small amounts of the psychoative compound THC or tetrahydrocannabinol. Instead of getting customers high, it's used to treat medical conditions.
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Green Roads of Florida is headquartered in Deerfield Beach. It has won multiple awards, and sells CBD products, including oil, gummies, capsules, topicals, syrups, tea and coffee. It's also the largest privately owned CBD company in the United States, according to its website.
But the lawsuit claims the company uses its packaging, labeling and website to make customers think they've ingested more CBD than its products contain.
Green Roads spokesperson Rachel Sandler said the company plans to fight the lawsuit.
"Green Roads' commitment to quality, purity and transparency is unparalleled in this industry," Sandler said. "Based on our initial review of the complaint, we believe this suit is without merit. We are now in the process of a full review, and we look forward to defending ourselves."
Meanwhile, the complaint describes the budding CBD industry as a place where unscrupulous players can roam almost unchecked. It points to news reports about some CBD companies making unsubstantiated claims, while others sell products with enough THC to make customers fail a drug test.
"Green Roads is a leader in this Wild West of CBD products," the complaint said. "Unfortunately, Green Roads' success has been partially fueled by misrepresenting the levels of CBD contained in the products."
The company's CBD gummies, "Relax Bears," are advertised as having a total of 300 milligrams of CBD when, according to the complaint, they really have about 258 milligrams. Likewise, the complaint alleges Green Roads claims its oil contains 17 milligrams of CBD per milliliter, when it has about 13.
Named plaintiffs Brook Snyder in Florida and Ryan Terry in Ohio claim if they'd known, they wouldn't have paid nearly $44 for the oil and more than $104 for a "Relax Box," which comes with gummies, CBD tea and oil.
Plaintiffs attorneys Daniel Tropin, Jonathan Streisfeld, Joshua Levine and Jeffrey Ostrow are handling the case, but declined to comment.
The complaint alleges unjust enrichment and violation of Florida's deceptive and unfair trade practices. It seeks an injunction, damages, restitution and disgorgement of profits, interest, attorney fees and costs.
Read the complaint:
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