The attorneys at McCune Wright Arevalo, LLP, have filed a class action lawsuit against FIGS, Inc., a medical apparel company, for misrepresenting its products and misleading medical professionals. Since 2013, the company has been marketing its health care apparel as “antimicrobial,” claiming that it kills bacteria and infection immediately upon contact.
Can Silver Kill Bacteria?
In recent years, various medical companies, including FIGS, Inc., have been selling scrubs and lab coats made with silver-impregnated fabrics. Supposedly, silver has antibacterial properties that can combat pathogenic microbes and strains of bacteria that have grown resistant to traditional antibiotics.
Case Background
Avegail Torres, a nurse at Kaiser Permanente Ontario Medical Center, spent $747.76 on FIGS medical apparel, in 2016. Her inquisitive husband, also a nurse, started researching the company’s marketing material claims; after all, the idea that silver ions can make fabric both antibacterial and antifungal is quite revolutionary.
However, Torres’s husband discovered two studies published in Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology, in 2017, and the Journal of Hospital Medicine, in 2013, that countered FIGS, Inc.’s claims that silver-impregnated fabrics can kill bacteria and infections in medical scrubs.
The Class Action Lawsuit
McCune Wright Arevalo, LLP, is representing Torres’s suit against FIGS, Inc. The class action lawsuit holds the company accountable for acts of fraud, negligent misrepresentation, fraudulent concealment, and other violations of California’s Consumer Legal Remedies Act and False Advertising Law.
The suit alleges that FIGS started removing any online ads or marketing materials that claim its products are antimicrobial around June and July 2019, but failed to inform its customers that FIGS had falsely advertised the antimicrobial characteristics of its scrubs, which could lead to health and safety risks. As the suit explains, “FIGS’ conduct is reprehensible. Not only has it caused plaintiff and the class to suffer monetary damages – it creates additional risk to the health and safety of medical professionals by creating a false belief that FIGS’ scrubs kill bacteria and infection on contact.”
On August 2, 2019, Craig Clough of Law360 contacted Attorney David Wright of McCune Wright Arevalo, LLP, for more information about this class action lawsuit. Attorney Wright emailed him the following statement, which is posted in Clough’s article on the Law360 website: “In this lawsuit, we are seeking to hold FIGS, Inc. accountable to its consumers for representations FIGS made regarding the qualities and attributes of its medical scrubs.”
Are You Ready to Pursue Justice & Compensatory Damages?
The award-winning legal team at McCune Wright Arevalo, LLP, firmly believes that civil litigation can inspire corporations to make positive policy changes. If you’ve been harmed by a product or are the victim of false advertising, contact our product liability lawyers to explore your legal options today.
Contact McCune Wright Arevalo, LLP at (909) 345-8110 to discuss your case with a qualified legal representative.