Promotion and sweepstakes laws vary widely across the fifty states and under federal regulations, creating complex challenges for today’s innovative marketers. This blog explores the latest updates and trends in promotion and marketing law, offering practical insights to help brands stay compliant while pushing creative boundaries. We’ll also discuss noteworthy, questionable, and groundbreaking promotional campaigns to encourage thoughtful discussion among marketing and legal professionals.
Pennsylvania Suit Against Musk for Operating an Illegal Lottery
In a follow up to my previous post Who Needs Rules? Elon’s Election $1MM A Day Giveaway, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania filed a Civil Action today in the Court of Common Pleas in Philadelphia County seeking an injunction to stop the alleged illegal lottery being operated by America PAC and Elon Musk by offering Pennsylvania residents the chance to win $1,000,000 for signing their petition and getting others to do so too. This lawsuit does not allege campaign violations, but alleges that the promotion is “indisputably an unlawful lottery” – along the lines I already indicated.
According to the Verified Complaint the Commonwealth alleges that the promotion deploys “deceptive, vague or misleading statements that create a likelihood of confusion or misunderstanding” including that there are no rules and that they don’t show how a person’s private information is protected. The Verified Complaint also adds that the “random” selection of winners appears false when multiple winners that have been selected have shown up at Trump rallies in Pennsylvania.
Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina and Wisconsin – what say you?