Ellen Berge counsels clients on legal matters related to advertising and marketing consumer products and services through radio, television, direct mail, telemarketing, Internet, affiliate marketing, social media, mobile and other direct response marketing channels. She also advises lead generators, call centers, media companies, fulfillment houses, payment processors and other third parties that serve direct response marketers. She assists clients with ongoing regulatory compliance matters for their marketing promotions with an understanding of current trends in regulatory compliance and law enforcement as well as the scrutiny of competitors and class action plaintiffs. She advises clients on developments regarding various consumer protection laws and guidelines such as Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act, the Telephone Consumer Protection Act and related Federal Communication Commission rules, the Federal Trade Commission’s Telemarketing Sales Rule, the CAN-SPAM Act, various legal guidelines for the marketing of “free” offers, the use of negative option marketing and recurring shipping programs, and the use of endorsements and testimonials in advertising.
Ms. Berge routinely completes end-to-end compliance assessments for companies involving detailed reviews and recommendations relating to the company’s lead generation activities through sales, fulfillment, and customer service and complaint response management. She has drafted numerous internal and external company policies and procedures on matters relating to the use of telemarketing, email, social media, pricing claims, product claims, affiliate marketing and other marketing strategies. Ms. Berge also regularly assists clients in the drafting, negotiation and management of agreements for marketing, fulfillment, customer care, public relations, applications development, telecommunications, and information technology services and other business arrangements.
Ms. Berge has experience practicing before the Federal Trade Commission and various state regulatory authorities in a variety of law enforcement matters including by responding to civil investigative demands, subpoenas and other legal process. She frequently provides advice and counseling in litigation matters based on her experience in the substantive areas of advertising and marketing law.
