The Council for Responsible Nutrition (CRN) filed a reply brief with the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, calling for a preliminary injunction to halt enforcement of New York’s age restriction law on certain dietary supplements.
The filing responds to the New York State Attorney General’s defense of a lower court’s refusal to grant a preliminary injunction pending an outcome of CRN’s litigation asserting the law is unconstitutional. The reply brief argues the Attorney General does not meaningful address the association’s arguments about the bill’s infirmities.
The bill was signed in October 2023 and went into effect in April 2024, with New York becoming the first and only state to ban the sale of weight-loss and muscle-building supplements to consumers under 18 years old.
“This law in New York is not just an unnecessary burden on businesses, but it is also predicated on the unscientific notion that eating disorders are somehow caused by supplement usage, which has been shown to be untrue,” said Steve Mister, president and CEO of CRN. “What this law does do, however, is threatens to limit consumer access to products that support their health. By focusing on marketing claims rather than the actual ingredients in these products, the law violates free speech rights and could make it harder for all consumers, including adults, to purchase safe and beneficial supplements.”
Megan Olsen, senior vice president and general counsel at CRN, added, “Our reply brief demonstrates how the New York Attorney General’s arguments to dodge the First Amendment reckoning just don’t hold up. The law is too broad, lacks evidence to support its claims, and could lead to fewer choices, and less truthful information getting to consumers without actually protecting anyone.”
For more information, visit www.crnusa.org.
