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In light of the United States Supreme Court’s consideration this week of the Pom Wonderful v. Coca Cola case (you can get up to date information on that case at Ad Age here, or some great background on it from Adweek here ), it feels appropriate to review the best ways to avoid getting into legal trouble due to false advertising claims.

It isn’t just outright lying in advertising that gets you in trouble with regulators, but also making claims or omissions that could mislead regulators, competitors or consumers.

As the Pom case makes clear, it isn’t just outright lying that gets you in trouble with regulators, competitors and consumers (although, definitely don’t do that, of course), but also making claims or omissions in your advertising, product labeling or marketing efforts that could be claimed to mislead a buyer about your client’s product or service.

Avoid a costly interaction with your lawyer by doing, or avoiding, these things, always:

DO: Be truthful in claims about the performance, reliability, functions and features of whatever product or service is being promoted. This not only applies to the way a product works, but also includes its origin and the way it is manufactured. For example, the industry saw a fair amount of “greenwashing” occurring in advertising a few years ago, when marketers made claims either about the environmental impact of their products, or the “eco-friendly” way in which they were made. That led to a regulatory clarification in the form of the FTC’s Green Guides about how to avoid these claims.

DO NOT: Make any claims about the product or service that you or your client cannot verify. Have whatever product research, consumer or professional surveys, or scientific research that lays the foundation for your claims at hand so that it can be produced if a claim is challenged. This is especially true when you are making claims about other products on the market, such as in comparative advertising. If you can’t prove it, don’t say it.

DO: Make full disclosures about any consideration given for testimonials or recommendations in marketing, or about any conditions or content in your marketing that could mislead a consumer. This means not just identifying a paid spokesperson, but also disclosing when someone was given free product to try, free event tickets, or any other sort of compensation for their contribution to the advertising. It also means disclosing any conditions surrounding the marketing that could impact the results depicted (you know – the eyelash extensions in mascara ads or the closed racetrack depiction in a tire commercial).

DO NOT: Assume, if you are an Agency, that compliance with false advertising rules is merely a contact sport for the advertiser. Anyone involved in the process can be held liable under most regulations and statutes that govern false advertising, including the advertiser, the Agency, and anyone else involved who knowingly, or sometimes, negligently, fails to follow the rules. You’re all in it together.

How do you and your clients keep up to date and compliant with false advertising rules? Share your tips in the Comments below.