US appeals court overturns dismissal of Avon lawsuit
dismissed a class-action lawsuit that alleges direct-selling
cosmetics company Avon inflated figures in its financial reports by
accounting for shipments dispatched to representatives who had not
ordered the products.
Following the June 24 appeals court ruling, the cases will be returned to the Los Angeles County Superior Court for reconsideration.
The overturned rulings had dismissed complaints that Avon had artificially boosted its performance by forcing sales representatives to pay for unordered beauty products, even after they had returned the goods to the company.
The Los Angeles County Superior Court had previously dismissed the plaintiffs' claims. The court had held that the facts stated in the complaint did not support allegations of fraudulent concealment, breach of contract and unfair competition.
The class-action lawsuit was filed last January, naming four plaintiffs who described their experiences as Avon sales representatives, but in March the court held that three of the plaintiffs were not eligible for the class action.
The law firm representing the plaintiffs Huron Maki & Johnson has estimated that the number of individuals who could potentially join in the class-action to be in the thousands.
