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Cleaning cat litter can be a dirty business and, according to a new lawsuit, marketing litter boxes can be even dirtier. The maker of Meowant brand self-cleaning litter boxes filed a lawsuit against its rival PetPivot, alleging that PetPivot is paying influencers to spread crap about how Meowant's litter boxes allegedly spread crap, rather than clean it.
The claws come out in the first line of the complaint: "Plaintiffs bring this lawsuit against Defendant in combat...." I suspect that's a typo, but I like it better than what the Plaintiffs probably intended to say because it sets the right tone. This is, indeed, combat and if the allegations in the complaint are correct, the battlefield may end up littered with casualties.
Meowant alleges that PetPivot engaged two TikTok influencers to post fake review videos that widely spread false and misleading messages about Meowant litter box products. It's not clear why Meowant thinks PetPivot provided the influencers direction on the videos, but the videos all contain links to PetPivot's TikTok Shop storefront, so there's likely some connection between the parties.
The complaint asserts claims for unfair competition and false advertising, injury to business reputation and trademark dilution, defamation, and tortious interference. Meowant asks the court to award injunctive relief, as well as the defendants' profits, various damages, litigation costs, and attorneys' fees.
We only have one side of the story, and it's too early to tell how the case will turn out, but the lawsuit illustrates how brands can get in trouble over what their influencers do. Brands may be held responsible even if they aren't directly involved in the challenged content. The FTC and NAD, for example, have both held brands responsible for content created by influencers. We'll see what this court says.
In the meantime, brands should take steps to prevent their influencers from doing things that could get them dragged into court (or through the litter).
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