Christopher Cole is a co-chair of Crowell & Moring’s Technology & Brand Protection Group, a team that provides interdisciplinary solutions to companies facing challenging competitive and regulatory issues (and a leader of the firm’s global ESG Advisory Team). Chris focuses on false advertising litigation, unfair competition, reputation, brand disparagement, and intellectual property. He is an experienced litigator, handling Lanham Act and consumer class action cases, and defending against Federal Trade Commission (FTC) enforcement and related investigations. He has handled dozens of cases before the National Advertising Division (NAD).
For nearly a decade, Chris been ranked among the top false advertising litigators in the country by Chambers & Partners, which describes him as a “terrific business partner,” “an exceptional lawyer,” and “a huge leader at the Bar in terms of advertising [who] can connect what is important to companies with understanding their limitations.” Chris has also been recognized for his “ability to understand the scientific side of advertising cases.”
Chris’s recognitions also include Legal 500 for Advertising and Marketing Litigation and Transactions, SuperLawyers for Media and First Amendment lawyers in Washington, D.C., and Best Lawyers in America for Advertising Law.
Chris also has a varied and active counseling practice. He is widely respected as an authority on advertising claims substantiation and the associated sciences of product testing and consumer research. He has overseen consumer protection regulatory due diligence in transactions. And, he provides strategic and risk management guidance to some of the world’s leading companies in industries such as food and beverages, media and telecommunications, home appliances, technology, and consumer products.
Chris is an editor of the ABA’s major treatise on Consumer Protection Law and Developments, author of the chapter on “Claims Substantiation” in the ABA’s Advertising Claims Substantiation Handbook, and is a frequent speaker and commentator on advertising issues.
Representative Matters
- Antitrust/Consumer Protection. Worked with trial team as the lead AT&T lawyer on consumer survey and measurement issues in the landmark United States v. AT&T, Inc., et al., litigation by the U.S. government to enjoin AT&T’s merger with Time Warner. In a lengthy section of its opinion, the court relied on the work by Chris and his experienced team in rejecting the opinions of the government’s key consumer survey and media valuation experts, which were key underpinnings to the government’s model of economic injury.
- Class Actions. Defending consumer class action and similar lawsuits brought against major advertisers nationwide, including in California, Florida, Illinois, Missouri, New York and Washington, DC.
- FTC Investigations. Representing major advertisers in conjunction with both ongoing and successfully closed investigations and litigation by the FTC in the areas of telecommunications, beverages, consumer products, and technology.
- NAD/NARB. Handled over 50 NAD and NARB matters in just the last five years for clients such as AT&T, Boehringer-Ingleheim, DIRECTV, Kimberly-Clark, S.C. Johnson, Scotts Company, Intuit, Molson Coors, Honeywell, Whirlpool, and Walmart.
- Lanham Act. Lead counsel in numerous Lanham Act false advertising cases, many involving applications for emergency relief, on behalf of clients such as AT&T, Expedia, Edgewell, Molson Coors, Scotts, 3M, Dyson, and Kimberly-Clark. Co-lead attorney representing Molson Coors in its false advertising case against Anheuser-Busch, arising out of Anheuser’s 2019 Super Bowl campaign in which it attacked Miller Lite and Coors Light for using corn syrup.
- Counseling and risk management. Chris serves as outside counsel to various Fortune 500 companies, providing and coordinating through Crowell & Moring and a network of global firms, worldwide advice in areas of product regulation, advertising, ESG, competition and risk mitigation.
Affiliations
Admitted to practice: District of Columbia
Memberships
Chair, ABA Antitrust Section, Committee on Private Advertising Litigation
Chapter Editor, ABA Treatise on Consumer Protection Law and Developments
Chapter Author, ABA Advertising Claims Substantiation Handbook
Recent Highlights, News & Knowledge
| “Litigation and Standards for Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Claims,” Food and Drug Law Institute Food Advertising, Labeling, and Litigation Conference (September 28, 2022). Panelist: Christopher A. Cole. | Speech/Presentation |
| The Best Lawyers in America 2023 Recognizes 54 Crowell & Moring Attorneys, Three Selected as Lawyer of the Year (August 18, 2022) | Firm News / Announcement |
| Legal 500 United States Ranks Crowell & Moring in Eight Practice Areas in 2022 Guide (June 15, 2022) | Firm News / Announcement |
| “Does Elon Musk Have a Point? The Impact of Bots on Twitter Revenue.,” Advertising & State AG Alert (June 9, 2022). Contact: Christopher A. Cole. | Client Alert / Newsletter |
| StockX Defends Authentication Process Amid Nike NFT Suit — Law360 (June 6, 2022) | Press Coverage |
| Chambers USA 2022 Ranks 70 Crowell & Moring Lawyers and 37 Practice Areas Among Best in U.S. (June 1, 2022) | Firm News / Announcement |
| “What 9th Circ.’s CFAA Decision Means For Data Scraping,” Law360 (May 2, 2022). Author: Christopher A. Cole. | Publication |
| American Forest & Paper Association General Counsels Coordinating Committee Fall Meeting 2021 (April 20, 2022). Speakers: Chris Cole and Preston Pugh. | Speech/Presentation |
| “Fighting Competitors’ Smear Campaigns With False Ad Laws,” Law360 (April 13, 2022). Author: Christopher A, Cole | Publication |
| “Getting the Deal Through: Advertising & Marketing 2022,” Lexology (April 2022). Advisors: Holly Melton, Lauren Aronson, David Ervin, and Chris Cole. | Publication |
