ADventures in Law

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If you haven’t been tuned in to the latest advertising law updates (we get it), here’s the scoop: the National Advertising Division held its annual conference in Washington, D.C., this week and Federal Trade Commission (FTC or the Commission) Commissioner Mark R. Meador took the mic for the <a href="https://www.ftc.gov/system/files/ftc_gov/pdf/2025-09-16-meador-nad-keynote.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">keynote address</a>. His message? Trust is everything.

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Commissioner Meador began his address by focusing on “kitchen table” issues, which he defined as economic issues that confront ordinary American families. He cited to two enforcement actions that took place earlier this year that involved companies touting false and misleading earning (moneymaking) opportunities. Meador emphasized that Americans “deserve better and they need better” because “family budgets don’t have line items for scams, for breaches of trust that cost them their livelihoods.”&nbsp;

In line with his discussion about these alleged “scam” cases, Meador took a minute to discuss the Supreme Court’s <em>AMG</em> case, which, for more than 40 years provided the legal mechanism for the FTC to get redress for consumers. While Meador stated that “wholly apart from the legal merits of that ruling,” which he believes was accurate, the decision “stripped the Commission of one of the most powerful weapons in its arsenal.” Meador noted that despite this setback, the FTC has worked tirelessly to find other avenues to get consumer redress. But he agreed, it’s not enough. Commissioner Meador urged Congress to pass legislation stating that Section 13(b) permits monetary relief – which he believes will help the FTC “better serve American families.”

Commissioner Meador next addressed another key enforcement priority – protecting kids in the digital age. He noted that kids are being shaped by an “incredibly sophisticated information ecosystem.” Meador emphasized that kids do not have the sophistication to make informed judgments on these platforms, especially when platforms have employ “a whole host of strategies to make sure nobody ever leaves their platforms.” He cited to “infinite scroll, autoplay, haptic feedback, dark patterns and so much more.”

To demonstrate the Commission’s commitment to addressing these issues, he cited to a few enforcement actions from earlier this year that focused on using children’s data without consent. Meador also discussed the particularly disturbing news stories about children’s engagement with artificial intelligence chatbots and the devastating consequences it has led to.

His bottom line? Kids aren’t equipped to navigate these platforms safely, and regulators need to step in before things get worse.

Subscriptions + Click-to-Cancel = Still on the Radar

Following Commissioner Meador’s formal remarks, he addressed a question about his position on the recent Restore Online Shoppers’ Confidence Act (ROSCA) enforcement and the vacated Click-to-Cancel Rule. While Meador declined to confirm whether or not the Commission was planning to reintroduce the rule, he noted that he is very supportive of the policy behind it. Meador noted his frustration that the rule was vacated because the “previous administration” failed to complete all the required rulemaking steps. Reviving the Rule, he stated, would require the Commission to expend a considerable amount of resources and “reinvent the wheel.” Nevertheless, Meador confirmed that the Commission is still considering how to proceed. He further emphasized that these subscription cases remain a “very important enforcement policy” and that the Commission has other tools to address these kinds of cases, including ROSCA.

Commissioner Meador wrapped up his formal remarks with a reminder – that good advertising runs on trust. He praised the industry’s efforts to self-regulate but made it clear: Enforcement is still very much on the table.

Scams, Screens and Subscriptions: FTC’s Meador Lays Down the Law