Cosmetics & Personal Care Products

States are increasingly stepping into the spotlight with new restrictions, reporting obligations, ingredient bans and related enforcement initiatives. Our panelists will look to cover developments emerging from California, Washington, Oregon, and other active states, and discuss practical strategies for maintaining compliance across multiple jurisdictions.

• Reviewing key developments under the California Safe Cosmetics Program, PFAS restrictions, and emerging ingredient-related requirements
• Understanding Washington State’s lead and heavy metal restrictions and broader chemicals management initiatives
• Assessing how companies are navigating overlapping and conflicting state requirements while preparing for the next wave of state regulatory activity

California continues to lead the nation in packaging regulation, creating significant compliance challenges for cosmetics and personal care companies. Between the state’s packaging EPR framework and other recyclability restrictions, legal, regulatory, packaging, and marketing teams must work closely together to navigate this landscape.

• Understanding the implications of California’s SB 54 packaging EPR law for cosmetics and personal care companies
• Reviewing California’s SB 343, with respect to restrictions on recyclability claims, use of the chasing arrows symbol, and determining whether packaging qualifies as recyclable
• Assessing the unique challenges beauty brands face when evaluating the recyclability of pumps, dispensers, compacts, tubes and multi-material packaging
• Exploring practical strategies for aligning packaging design with regulatory compliance and marketing claims

Cosmetics companies invest heavily in clinical studies, consumer perception surveys, and product testing, yet claims remain one of the most active areas of regulatory scrutiny and litigation risk. From efficacy claims and comparative advertising to “clean,” “natural,” and “sensitive skin” messaging, companies must ensure that marketing claims are adequately substantiated and can withstand challenges from competitors, regulators and plaintiffs’ attorneys.

• Examining recent NAD challenges and enforcement trends affecting cosmetics and personal care products
• Reviewing substantiation requirements for efficacy, clinical, comparative, and quantitative claims
• Assessing emerging risks surrounding “clean,” “natural,” “non-toxic,” and “sensitive skin” claims
• Understanding where the line is drawn between cosmetic claims and drug claims, and how companies can reduce regulatory and litigation exposure
• Learning practical lessons from recent claim challenges, class actions, and competitor disputes to strengthen claim review and substantiation practices

The litigation landscape continues to evolve, with plaintiffs increasingly targeting alleged product injuries, ingredient safety concerns, contamination claims, and emerging chemical restrictions. At the same time, state regulatory activity and ingredient bans are creating new opportunities for litigation, even where federal requirements remain unchanged.

• Reviewing recent PFAS, Prop 65, heavy metal, and ingredient contamination litigation affecting cosmetics and personal care products
• Examining developments in hair relaxer, hair dye, and other product liability litigation alleging personal injury and long-term health effects
• Assessing how state ingredient restrictions and regulatory actions may contribute to future litigation exposure
• Developing practical strategies for product safety assessments, risk management, litigation preparedness, and defending ingredient-related claims

Retailers are increasingly establishing their own standards around ingredients, product safety, sustainability, and claims substantiation and beauty brands must navigate a rapidly changing regulatory landscape, in order to maintain access to key retail channels.

• Understanding how retailers evaluate product claims, ingredient profiles, and product safety considerations
• Assessing liability considerations for private-label and retailer-exclusive brands
• Exploring how retailers are responding to evolving packaging requirements, recyclability claims, and environmental marketing obligations
• Assessing practical strategies for managing supplier relationships, contractual protections and consumer trust in an increasingly complex regulatory landscape

A new growing trend in the industry has been around wellness, preventative health, and healthy aging, expanding beyond traditional cosmetic positioning. From longevity-focused skincare and peptide-based products to beauty supplements and products marketed to GLP-1 users, companies are exploring new ways to connect beauty, wellness, and health.

• Understanding regulatory and substantiation considerations for ingestible beauty products, peptides, and other emerging product categories
• Assessing opportunities and risks associated with products marketed to GLP-1 users and consumers seeking wellness-related beauty solutions
• Exploring where the line is drawn between cosmetic, supplement, and drug claims, and how regulatory and litigation exposure can be reduced

Artificial intelligence is rapidly transforming the beauty industry, from personalized product recommendations and virtual try-on tools to AI-generated advertising and, claims support. While these technologies offer significant opportunities for innovation and consumer engagement, they also raise complex legal, regulatory, and privacy considerations.

• Exploring the use of AI-generated advertising and marketing content, including emerging legal considerations
• Navigating the regulatory, privacy, and disclosure considerations surrounding AI-powered personalization tools, skin diagnostics, product recommendations, and the collection and use of consumer data
• Assessing privacy and consumer protection considerations involving AI-powered products and services
• What legal and, regulatory developments should cosmetics companies be monitoring as AI adoption continues to accelerate?

A growing wave of dupes, decants, look-alikes, and counterfeit products is creating new legal, regulatory, and reputational challenges. Join our panel as we examine the evolving ‘copycat economy’ and discuss practical strategies for protecting intellectual property, maintaining consumer trust, and responding to sophisticated competitive threats.

• Understanding the distinctions between dupes, look-alike products, decants, unauthorized resellers, and counterfeit goods, and when legal liability may arise
• Examining available tools for brand owners seeking to protect their products and brand identity
• Assessing the role of social media platforms, and influencer marketing in the growth of copycat products