SLS 20RS-574 ENGROSSED
2020 Regular Session
SENATE BILL NO. 395
BY SENATORS CLOUD, FESI, HEWITT, JOHNS, MILLIGAN, ROBERT MILLS,
MIZELL, REESE AND WHITE AND REPRESENTATIVES AMEDEE,
BUTLER, CARRIER, DEVILLIER AND MIKE JOHNSON
ADVERTISING. Provides relative to false, misleading, or deceptive advertising. (8/1/20)
1 AN ACT
2 To enact R.S. 51:1429, relative to unfair or deceptive acts or practices; to provide relative
3 to advertisement for certain professional services; to provide relative to a false,
4 misleading, and deceptive statement in an advertisement; to provide for violations,
5 actions, and penalties; to provide for definitions, terms, conditions, and procedures;
6 and to provide for related matters.
7 Be it enacted by the Legislature of Louisiana:
8 Section 1. R.S. 51:1429 is hereby enacted to read as follows:
9 ยง1429. Unfair or deceptive trade practice or act; misleading assertion of
10 monetary result obtained
11 A. As used in this Section, the following words and phrases shall have the
12 following meanings:
13 (1) "Actually received" means the net amount of money received by a
14 person, calculated by deducting from the person's gross recovery all expenses
15 including but not limited to attorney fees, broker fees, expert witness fees,
16 interest, court costs, costs of collection or recovery, and all other expenses
17 related to litigation.
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Coding: Words which are struck through are deletions from existing law;
words in boldface type and underscored are additions. SB NO. 395
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1 (2) "Advertisement" means any communication to the public regarding
2 services provided for a fee including but not limited to a communication
3 transmitted through any of the following:
4 (a) Print media, such as a telephone directory, legal directory,
5 newspaper, magazine, or other periodical publication.
6 (b) Outdoor advertising, such as billboards and other signs.
7 (c) Radio and television commercials.
8 (d) Any communication accessed by a computer, tablet, or handheld
9 device, such as a text message, instant message, or digital advertisement of any
10 kind.
11 (e) A recorded message the public may access by telephone.
12 (3) "False, misleading, or deceptive statement" means any
13 communication that states or infers that a person actually received an amount
14 of money that they did not actually receive.
15 (4) "Media entity" means a radio broadcast station, television broadcast
16 station, cable television company, newspaper company, periodical company,
17 billboard company, or bona fide news or public interest website operator.
18 (5) "Monetary result obtained" means any amount claimed to have been
19 recovered on behalf of a client through a legal judgment or settlement.
20 (6) "Person" means an individual, partnership, unincorporated
21 association of individuals, joint stock company, corporation, limited liability
22 company, or other legal entity of any kind. "Person" shall not include a media
23 entity.
24 B. No person in any advertisement shall make, or permit to be made, a
25 false, misleading, or deceptive statement about a monetary result obtained on
26 behalf of a client or fail to disclose information necessary to prevent the
27 information supplied in an advertisement from being false, misleading, or
28 deceptive.
29 C.(1) Any violation of this Section shall be an unfair or deceptive trade
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1 practice declared unlawful by this Chapter and shall subject the violator to any
2 and all actions and penalties provided for in this Chapter.
3 (2) For the purpose of this Section, each iteration of an advertisement
4 constitutes an unfair or deceptive trade practice.
5 (3)(a) The provisions of this Section shall not apply to any advertisement
6 agency or media entity responsible for the production or publication of any
7 advertisement found to be in violation of this Section.
8 (b) The carriage, distribution, transmission, or display of any
9 advertisement, including but not limited to those for legal services, by a media
10 entity shall not be considered a violation of this Section.
11 D. In addition to all other remedies provided for in this Chapter, any
12 person who is found to have made, or to have permitted to be made on his
13 behalf, a false, misleading, or deceptive statement under the provisions of this
14 Section shall be liable to the attorney general for all costs, expenses, and fees
15 related to investigations and proceedings associated with the violation, including
16 attorney fees. An action to recover costs, expenses, fees, and attorney fees shall
17 be ancillary to and shall be filed and heard in the same court as a civil action
18 filed under the provisions of this Section.
19 E. The remedies and rights provided for in this Section are in addition
20 to and shall not preclude any right or remedy otherwise authorized by law,
21 including the enforcement of professional rules against the person by any
22 licensing board or court.
The original instrument was prepared by Michelle D. Ridge. The following
digest, which does not constitute a part of the legislative instrument, was
prepared by Beth O'Quin.
DIGEST
SB 395 Engrossed 2020 Regular Session Cloud
Present law provides that unfair methods of competition and unfair or deceptive acts or
practices in the conduct of any trade or commerce are unlawful.
Proposed law provides that no person in any advertisement shall make, or permit to be made,
a false, misleading, or deceptive statement about a monetary result obtained on behalf of a
client or fail to disclose information necessary to prevent the information supplied in an
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advertisement from being false, misleading, or deceptive.
Proposed law defines "actually received", "advertisement", "media entity", "monetary result
obtained", "false, misleading, or deceptive statement", and "person".
Proposed law excludes a media entity as a person.
Proposed law provides that any violation of proposed law shall be an unfair or deceptive
trade practice declared unlawful and shall subject the violator to any and all actions and
penalties pursuant to the Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law. Proposed
law provides that each iteration of an advertisement constitutes an unfair or deceptive trade
practice.
Proposed law does not apply to any advertisement agency or media entity responsible for the
production or publication of any advertisement found to violate proposed law.
Proposed law does not apply to a media entity that is responsible for the carriage,
distribution, transmission, or display of any advertisement found to violate proposed law.
Proposed law provides that in addition to all other remedies provided in the Unfair Trade
Practices and Consumer Protection Law, any person who is found to have made, or to have
permitted to be made on his behalf, a false, misleading, or deceptive statement under the
provisions of proposed law shall be liable to the attorney general for all costs, expenses, and
fees related to investigations and proceedings associated with the violation, including
attorney fees.
Proposed law provides that an action to recover costs, expenses, fees, and attorney fees shall
be ancillary to and shall be filed and heard in the same court as a civil action filed for the
unfair or deceptive trade practice.
The remedies and rights provided in proposed law are in addition to and shall not preclude
any right or remedy otherwise authorized by law, including the enforcement of professional
rules against the person by any licensing board or court.
Effective August 1, 2020.
(Adds R.S. 51:1429)
Summary of Amendments Adopted by Senate
Committee Amendments Proposed by Senate Committee on Commerce, Consumer
Protection, and International Affairs to the original bill
1. Adds a definition for "media entity" that includes a radio broadcast station,
television broadcast station, cable television company, newspaper company,
periodical company, billboard company, or bona fide news or public interest
website operator.
2. Adds to the definition of "person" that a media entity is not considered a
person.
3. Adds a provision that a media entity that produces or publishes any
advertisement for legal services, shall not be in violation of an unfair or
deceptive trade practice that has been declared unlawful by this Chapter.
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Coding: Words which are struck through are deletions from existing law;
words in boldface type and underscored are additions. SB NO. 395
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4. Adds a provision that the carriage, distribution, transmission or display of
any advertisement for legal services by a media entity, shall not be in
violation of an unfair or deceptive trade practice that has been declared
unlawful by this Chapter.
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Coding: Words which are struck through are deletions from existing law;
words in boldface type and underscored are additions.