Crocs Case at Federal Circuit Set to Shape False Advertising Law

The Federal Circuit is poised to decide whether Crocs Inc. can be liable for false advertising after describing its foam technology as “patented” over several decades when the company didn’t actually have such a patent.

A federal judge in Colorado likened the advertising references to a form of “plagiarizing” that’s “not covered by the Lanham Act’s false advertising prohibition.” But a panel of judges on the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit appeared skeptical of that analysis, suggesting Crocs may ultimately be on the hook for its promotional statements.

“Crocs undertook a definitive marketing plan that’s grounded on ...