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Direct Marketing
| PRACTICE LINKS Direct Marketing HIGHLIGHTS Federal Trade Commission compliance, including the FTC’s “mail order rule” State abandoned property law compliance and audit defense, including unclaimed gift cards and gift certificates Trademark, copyright, patent infringement, and unfair competition issues, including business processes patent litigation Federal, state, and local regulation of advertising and sales practices, including pricing and product comparisons Consumer product safety laws and reporting obligations/recalls with the Consumer Product Safety Commission Federal product labeling requirements Privacy and data security Disclosure requirements for publicly-traded companies Foreign trade matters, including Canadian trade issues Printing, advertising, supply, and delivery contracts Computer and software licensing agreements Corporate transactions unique to direct marketers, including acquisitions and sales of businesses
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IN STEP WITH A RAPIDLY EVOLVING INDUSTRY
Our work began with L.L. Bean, Inc. of Freeport, Maine, for whom we have proudly served as general counsel for almost 50 years. We now represent over 100 other direct marketing companies, including as special counsel for tax, litigation, trade regulation, intellectual property, privacy, national and international commercial transactions, and vendor relations matters. Our clients include Reader’s Digest, America Online, Talbots, PC Connection, PC Mall, Barnes & Noble, Scholastic Book Clubs, Random House Books, Bertelsmann, J. Jill, Woot.com, Crutchfield, HSN, Guthy-Renker, Frontgate, and a host of other exciting companies of all sizes involved in all aspects of direct marketing. We also serve as tax counsel for the Direct Marketing Association, the nation’s largest trade association representing the interests of direct marketers.
UNIQUE ISSUES IN TAXATION
Brann & Isaacson has been in the forefront of the battle against states seeking to force out-of-state retailers to collect use taxes on mail order sales, representing clients in administrative and court proceedings in over 40 states. Among other things, we have obtained injunctions prohibiting tax officials in California, Louisiana, Tennessee, and Pennsylvania from demanding such tax collection from our clients. The firm also works closely with its clients to develop proactive tax strategies through “nexus audits,” corporate restructuring, anonymous negotiations with the Multistate Tax Commission and individual state revenue departments, and obtaining of advisory tax rulings. We often file amicus curiae (friend of the court) briefs in United States Supreme Court cases involving tax, patent, and constitutional issues of significance to the industry.
EXPANDING INTO FOREIGN MARKETS
Brann & Isaacson assists direct marketers in developing international markets for their products. Our work includes the negotiation of strategic alliances with overseas business partners and service providers. We also work regularly with clients to secure international protection for valuable trademarks, address customs issues, determine applicable product safety and privacy standards, and analyze tax and other international trade issues.
NAVIGATING THE LEGAL MINEFIELDS IN E-COMMERCE
For many of Brann & Isaacson’s clients, direct marketing means electronic commerce. The Internet presents enormous opportunities, but also introduces a host of new legal issues. Federal, state, and foreign governments compete for authority over Internet sellers and service providers, generating not only jurisdictional questions, but also issues ranging from information security, advertising rules, and consumer rights and remedies to privacy, multi-jurisdictional taxation, and intellectual property protection. Our lawyers have spoken widely on the subject of electronic commerce, and have guided clients in coping with the unique challenges associated with commercial activity on the Internet.
LEADING NATIONAL AUTHORITIES
A national reputation has enabled Brann & Isaacson to concentrate on issues of importance to direct marketers. Our attorneys have published numerous articles in trade journals and professional publications, and frequently speak before groups and institutions such as the Direct Marketing Association, the Promotional Marketing Association, the National Catalog Operations Forum, the Committee on State Taxation, the New York Society of Certified Public Accountants, the Institute for Professionals in Taxation, the New England Mail Order Association, and the Multistate Tax Commission. They have lectured at Harvard Law School, the University of Connecticut Law School, the University of Southern California Law School, and the Darden School of Business of the University of Virginia. They have also testified on tax and Internet policy issues before congressional committees and state government study commissions.