Amy Mudge is an experienced attorney and partner in Venable's regulatory and advertising and marketing practice groups. She represents clients before the Federal Trade Commission, Department of Justice, state attorneys general and the National Advertising Division.
Ms. Mudge's clients span across a wide range of industries including agriculture, Internet services, pharmaceuticals, dietary supplements and car rentals. She also has experience establishing effective compliance programs providing antitrust and marketing law training.
Ms. Mudge is the co-editor of a blog about issues critical to advertising and consumer law entitled allaboutadvertisinglaw.com which can be accessed at www.allaboutadvertisinglaw.com.
Significant Matters
Consumer Protection Matters
· Obtained summary judgment on behalf of Avis Budget Group in putative consumer class action related to fuel charges
· Represented consumer vision products manufacturer in FTC investigation regarding "Made in USA" claims, favorably settled
· Represented Budget Rent A Car System, Inc. in connection with an FTC investigation related to fuel charges, favorably settled, and a putative consumer class action, voluntarily dismissed after dispositive motion briefing
· Represented Mobile Content Provider and Aggregator before the FTC and the Florida Attorney General in investigations related to mobile content marketing and billing, favorably settled
· Represented VeriSign before the FTC in investigation related to alleged misleading marketing practices, resolved favorably by persuading FTC to accept class action settlement in lieu of consumer redress
· Represented Viacom with respect to an FTC investigation into marketing of violent entertainment to teens
· Represented dietary supplements manufacturer in an FTC investigation related to weight-loss claims, favorably settled
· Providing general advertising and marketing advice to clients including Luxottica, Philip Morris USA, Dollar Tree, Swarovski, Sanderson Farms and Specialty Foods
Antitrust Matters
· Represented GlaxoSmithKline in In re Wellbutrin SR Antitrust Litigation, defending current monopolization class actions asserting that patent infringement actions were shams designed to keep generic competitors off the market, successfully defeated indirect purchaser class certification
· Represented Philip Morris USA in RJ Reynolds Co. v. Philip Morris, a monopolization challenge alleging that shelf space/category management program improperly excluded competitors, successfully defeated on summary judgment
· Defended major sports association in several state attorney general investigations (closed with no enforcement)
· Represented Guardian Industries in In re Flat Glass Antitrust Litigation, price fixing cases coordinating activities in multidistrict court action, as well as multiple state court cases, resulted in favorable settlement
· Represented Fair Labor Association providing antitrust counseling to organization and its members dedicated to eliminating sweatshop conditions in the apparel and footwear industry
Industries
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Task Force
Dietary Supplements, Cosmetics and Functional Foods
Green Businesses
Pharmaceuticals
Judicial Clerkships
Honorable Sam C. Pointer, Jr., Chief Judge, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama, 1995 - 1996
Memberships
Chair, Private Advertising Litigation Committee, ABA Antitrust Section
Vice-Chair, Health Care and Pharmaceuticals Committee, ABA Antitrust Section (2008-2009)
News
February 16, 2012, New advertising attorneys' move to Venable continues to draw coverage
February 13, 2012, Multiple publications feature new advertising attorneys' move to Venable
February 9, 2012, Venable Adds Noted National Advertising and Consumer Protection Lawyers Randal Shaheen and Amy Mudge
Publications
May 10, 2012, Advertising News & Analysis - May 10, 2012
Jeffrey D. Knowles, Roger A. Colaizzi, Gary D. Hailey, Leonard L. Gordon, Stuart P. Ingis, Amy Ralph Mudge, Randal M. Shaheen, Damon W.D. Wright, Ilene Ringel Heller, Michael A. Signorelli, Ariel S. Wolf
Advertising Alert
May 4, 2012, Advertising News & Analysis - May 4, 2012
Jeffrey D. Knowles, Roger A. Colaizzi, Gary D. Hailey, Randal M. Shaheen, Amy Ralph Mudge
Advertising Alert
April 2012, Made in U.S.A: Time for a Change?
Randy Shaheen, Amy Mudge, and Annie Lee examine the effects of the FTC's enforcement of claims by manufacturers that their products are "Made in U.S.A." in light of changes in manufacturing and evolving consumer perceptions of these claims.
Randal M. Shaheen, Amy Ralph Mudge, Annie H. Lee
The Antitrust Source
April 26, 2012, Advertising News & Analysis - April 26, 2012
Jeffrey D. Knowles, Roger A. Colaizzi, Gary D. Hailey, Amy Ralph Mudge, Randal M. Shaheen, Ralph S. Tyler
Advertising Alert
March 29, 2012, Advertising News & Analysis - March 29, 2012
Jeffrey D. Knowles, Roger A. Colaizzi, Gary D. Hailey, Leonard L. Gordon, Stuart P. Ingis, Randal M. Shaheen, Amy Ralph Mudge, Setareh Deljo-Roland, Michael A. Signorelli
Advertising Alert
March 15, 2012, Advertising News & Analysis - March 15, 2012
Advertising Alert
August 2011, Privacy & Consumer Protection
Amy Ralph Mudge
Law360
February 2011, Federal Trade Commission Releases Proposed Revisions to "Green Guide"
Amy Ralph Mudge
Environmental Law in New York, Volume 22 No. 2
Fall 2010, Has the FTC Changed the Game On Advertising Substantiation?
Amy Ralph Mudge
Antitrust
February 22, 2010, Regulation of Environmental Marketing Claims
Amy Ralph Mudge
PLI's Environmental Regulation and Commercial Implications 2010 Handbook
November/December 2008, Current Issues in Dietary Supplement Marketing
Amy Ralph Mudge
FDLI Update
July 7, 2008, Made In The U.S.A., Except In California
Amy Ralph Mudge
Advertising Compliance Service
December 2007, Carbon Neutral: The New Green - Substantiation Issues for the Next Generation of Environmental Claims
Amy Ralph Mudge
The Antitrust Source
June 2006, Reasonable Security: The FTC's Focus on Personal Privacy Initiatives Highlights the Importance of Integrated Information Security Programs
Amy Ralph Mudge
Privacy & Data Security Law Journal
Summer 2004, Pricing Laws are No Bargain for Consumers
Amy Ralph Mudge
Antitrust
Events/Speaking Engagements
Past Events
March 30, 2012, "The Supreme Court Redirects Class Action Defense" at the American Bar Association's Antitrust Law 2012 Spring Meeting
Amy Ralph Mudge
March 28, 2012, "Three Minute Drill," ANA Advertising Law & Public Policy Conference
Amy Ralph Mudge
March 11, 2012, "Can You Substantiate That?: Alerting Marketers About Increased FTC Scrutiny" at the International Home & Housewares Show 2012
Jeffrey D. Knowles, Roger A. Colaizzi, Amy Ralph Mudge
January 12, 2012, "Challenging Competitors' Comparative Advertising" Evaluating Legal Options to Respond to False or Misleading Marketing
Amy Ralph Mudge
September 9, 2011, "What To Do When a Competitor Engages in False Advertising" at Colorado's Bar Association's Advertising Law Conference 2011,
Amy Ralph Mudge
March 30, 2011, Regulation of Environmental Marketing Claims" at ABA's 59th Annual Spring Meeting
Amy Ralph Mudge
February 3, 2011, "Substantiation: Is the FTC Changing the Rules? Will the Courts Go Along?" at ABA's Antitrust Section Consumer Protection Conference
Amy Ralph Mudge
October 12, 2010, "The Revised FTC Green Guides: A Summary from the FTC" ABA Antitrust Section Private Advertising Litigation Committee Program Panel Discussion
Amy Ralph Mudge
October 4, 2010, "Green or Greenwash? A Guide to Honesty Claims in Sustainability Advertising" at the National Advertising Division (NAD) Annual Conference 2010
Amy Ralph Mudge
August 12, 2010, "Consumer Protection Developments and Competition Consequences: A Round Table of Authorities and Experts" for ABA's Antitrust Section Post-Annual Leadership Meeting
Amy Ralph Mudge
April 22, 2010, "ABA Antitrust Section Spring Meeting, Moderated False Advertising Litigation: The Lanham Act Preliminary Injunction Hearing"
Amy Ralph Mudge
February 3, 2010, "Antitrust for General Counsels in the Hospitality Industry" for HospitalityLawyer.com Hospitality Law Conference
Amy Ralph Mudge
January 28, 2010, "FDLI's Food Hot Topics Conference" for Claims Substantiation and Fraud Issues Litigation Panel
Amy Ralph Mudge
December 7, 2009, "November 2009 Developments in Consumer Protection Law" at ABA Antitrust Section Consumer Protection and Private Advertising Litigation Committees Brown Bag
Amy Ralph Mudge
September 14, 2009, "Recent Developments in Pharmaceutical Marketing Enforcement and Litigation" for ABA Antitrust Section Private Advertising Litigation Committee Brown Bag Panel
Amy Ralph Mudge
June 1, 2009, "Ethical Issues Regarding Advising Clients on Antitrust Issues" for the Eastern Hospitality Law Conference
Amy Ralph Mudge
February 20, 2009, "Going Green v. Seeming Green: Current Issues in Environmental Marketing Substantiation" at North Carolina Bar Association's 2009 Business Law and Corporate Counsel Section Annual Meeting
Amy Ralph Mudge
February 9, 2009, "Antitrust Traps in the Hospitality Industry" for HospitalityLawyer.com Hospitality Law Conference
Amy Ralph Mudge
January 16, 2009, "Recent Developments in Dietary Supplements Enforcement, Regulation and Litigation" for ABA'a Antitrust Section Health Care Committee Brown Bag Panel
Amy Ralph Mudge
June 11, 2008, "Focus on Consumer Litigation: Strategies for Minimizing Liability" at ACI's 2nd Annual In-House Counsel Forum on Dietary Supplements, Nutraceuticals and Functional Foods
Amy Ralph Mudge
May 23, 2007, "Informa Life Sciences EU Pharmaceutical Law Forum - US Antitrust Issues in Lifecycle Management"
Amy Ralph Mudge
March 2007, "Antitrust Issues with Drug Pricing" for ACI's 5th Annual In-House Counsel Forum on Government Regulation of Prescription Drug Pricing
Amy Ralph Mudge