Welcome to RantCrush Top 5, where we take you through today’s top five controversial stories in the world of law and policy. Who’s ranting and raving right now? Check it out below:

Jessica Alba Thinks Honest Company Lawsuits are NBD

Jessica Alba’s Honest Company, which produces home and personal care items like detergent and soap has been under fire for…well, for being not that honest. But during an interview with the “Today” show yesterday, Alba explained she’s not too worried about the suits, saying:

If an organization wants to bring awareness to their cause, I’m an easy target and our brand is an easy target obviously, because I get a different kind of attention than other brands would. We stand by our ingredients, the effectiveness of the products and we’re pretty optimistic that we’re going to win every case.

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The post RantCrush Top 5: August 26, 2016 appeared first on Law Street.

Did you miss the top stories last week at Law Street? Never fear, here they are now. The top story last week was about GoFundMe’s new policies that make it impossible for the now-infamous Kim Davis to set up a fundraiser. Story #2 revolved around a lawsuit against Jessica Alba’s Honest Company, and #3 was about a young man who was sentenced to years on the sex offender registry after he slept with an underage girl. ICYMI, check out the top stories of the week.

#1 No Kim Davis: We Won’t “Go Fund You”

Kim Davis, the clerk who has now gained national notoriety from her refusal to issue marriage licenses to anyone in Rowan County, Kentucky, is in quite a bit of trouble. After her refusal to do her job in the name of protesting the legalization of gay marriage, she was put in jail. But if Davis is looking for crowdsourced help to get her out of that trouble, and the possible fines she may face moving forward, she’s going to have some issues. One of the biggest crowd-funding sites–Go Fund Me–has updated its policies to make it impossible for her to set up a fundraiser. Read the full story here.

#2 Jessica Alba’s Honest Company Hit With Two $5 Million Lawsuits

In her own words she wanted to create “an honest company that’s transparent about their business practices, transparent about their ingredients that go inside, effective, safe.” And with $150 million in revenue last year and a valuation of $1.7 billion it seemed like the Fantastic Four actress’ business model for The Honest Company was poised for lasting success. So how then did a 30 SPF sunscreen trigger two $5 million class-action lawsuits that threaten to dismantle her growing natural product empire? Read the full story here.

#3 Young Man Sentenced to Years on the Sex Offender List May Get a Second Chance

Zach Anderson is the 19-year-old young man whose harsh sentence received national backlash after he had sex with a 14-year-old girl who told him she was 17. His sentence was just vacated by a judge, and a new sentence will be given. But while Anderson may now be getting a gentler sentence, his plight still says a lot about the state of the sex offender laws in our country. Read the full story here.

Anneliese Mahoney

Anneliese Mahoney is Managing Editor at Law Street and a Connecticut transplant to Washington D.C. She has a Bachelor’s degree in International Affairs from the George Washington University, and a passion for law, politics, and social issues. Contact Anneliese at amahoney@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post ICYMI: Best of the Week appeared first on Law Street.

Jessica Alba’s vision was simple.

In her own words she wanted to create “an honest company that’s transparent about their business practices, transparent about their ingredients that go inside, effective, safe.”

And with $150 million in revenue last year and a valuation of $1.7 billion it seemed like the Fantastic Four actress’ business model for The Honest Company was poised for lasting success. So how then did a 30 SPF sunscreen trigger two $5 million class-action lawsuits that threaten to dismantle her growing natural product empire?

Well, starting early this summer, Honest consumers began posting images on social media of severe sunburns, claiming that the company’s all natural sunscreen they used was utterly useless at protecting against harmful UV rays.

@Honest my husband and I are burnt from using your sunscreen but my friends who used @bananaboat were fine. #why pic.twitter.com/VzChI1bwTc

— Alicia Underwood (@AliciaChantelle) August 13, 2015

Don’t buy @Honest sunscreen unless u want to look like this. Second time I’ve tried this stuff and got fried pic.twitter.com/pEhO5GYIkQ

— Lindsy (@LindsyMarshall) July 26, 2015

@Honest this is my very real result from Honest 30 SPF sunscreen. Only spent 1 hour outside. Burnt. #nothappy #red pic.twitter.com/T42TNeg5mj — Brandon Atherton (@bdatherton) June 1, 2015

The social media firestorm caused by the photos drew attention to a history of consumer dissatisfaction dating back to the sunblock’s reformulation. According to Forbes, Honest had attempted in 2014 to squash consumer’s concerns over the greasy white residue left by the sunscreen’s first formulation by decreasing its zinc oxide concentration from 20 percent to 9.3 percent. However reducing the zinc oxide, which is block’s only active ingredient, by more than half may have in effect lowered the natural product’s potency.

Last week consumer Jonathan D. Rubin responded, filing a $5 million class-action lawsuit against Honest alleging that not only is its sunscreen ineffective, but several of its natural products actually contain synthetic additives.

Alba responded to the first lawsuit last week in a statement issued to Pret-a-Reporter saying,

We believe that consumers deserve to know what’s in their products — whether it’s diapers for their children, cleaning products for their families or beauty products for themselves. Our formulations are made with integrity and strict standards of safety, and we label each ingredient that goes into every product – not because we have to, but because it’s the right thing to do.

The allegations against us are baseless and without merit. We strongly stand behind our products and the responsibility we have to our consumers. We are steadfast in our commitment to transparency and openness.

I know my children, Honor and Haven, are growing up in a safer home because of our products.

Then yesterday TMZ reported that a second class-action lawsuit had been filed over the sunscreen seeking another $5 million from Honest. It couldn’t have come at worse time for the company, who plans to debut a new natural cosmetics and facial care product line very soon.

The photographic evidence does seem pretty damning, but a judge will have to decide whether or not it was a faulty reformulation or consumer error that lead to so many consumers seeing red.

Alexis Evans

Alexis Evans is an Assistant Editor at Law Street and a Buckeye State native. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and a minor in Business from Ohio University. Contact Alexis at aevans@LawStreetMedia.com.

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