By Theresa Schliep

Law360 (December 15, 2020, 7:50 PM EST) -- A proposed class of consumers sued Snow Teeth Whitening LLC, accusing the business and its celebrity promoters Rob Gronkowski and Floyd Mayweather of exaggerating the effectiveness of its teeth whitening products and falsely claiming the items can protect against the coronavirus.

In a complaint filed Monday in New York federal court, named plaintiff Burton Kraus said that Snow charges steep prices for a teeth whitening LED mouthpiece that doesn't actually whiten customers' teeth. The company has also falsely alleged that its teeth whitening lights can help protect against the novel coronavirus, a claim that is not supported by science, according to the complaint.

National Football League player Gronkowski, former professional boxer Mayweather and Snow chief executive officer Joshua Elizetxe have participated in the scheme to dupe people into buying the company's products, Kraus said.

Steven Mintz, an attorney with Mintz & Gold LLP who is representing Kraus, told Law360 on Tuesday that they hope the suit prevents Snow and its celebrity partners from "ripping people off."

"It's unfortunate that the defendants, including celebrities Floyd Mayweather and Rob Gronkowski, are taking advantage of consumers by claiming that their light accelerates the whitening process, which it does not do," Mintz said in a statement to Law360. "What's worse is that in March the defendants began their efforts to profit from the pandemic by falsely suggesting they had a virus killing option."

Kraus also said in his suit that Snow has overstated the popularity of its products. The company has claimed that it has customers in more countries than actually exist; boasted of winning editorial awards that it hasn't; and claimed it received clearance from the Food and Drug Administration, even though the agency doesn't approve teeth whitening products, according to the complaint.

Among Snow's false claims are those on its website and social media channels stating that it won an award from Allure magazine in 2019 even though a different teeth whitening product won that year, the complaint said.

Testing has confirmed that light devices sold by Snow do not help whiten teeth, while company executive Elizetxe has lied in saying that the company's serum contains a photo-catalyst that would aid the whitening process, Kraus said. The LED mouthpiece sold by Snow doesn't accelerate or aid the teeth whitening done by the company's whitening serum, according to the complaint.

And even though that whitening serum is a basic mix of two types of peroxide, Snow has claimed that it's a proprietary product, Kraus said. He's seeking to represent a class of "all individuals residing in New York" who have purchased some of the company's whitening products.

The company's claims that its lights can provide protection against germs and bacteria also carry no weight, the complaint said. It's asking for at least $149 in money damages for each member of the class and alleges violations under New York General Business Law, breach of express warranty, breach of implied warranty of merchantability and unjust enrichment.

Gronkowski and Mayweather have promoted the company on social media and have teeth whitening products named after them, according to the complaint.

Elizetxe did not respond to a request for comment. Representatives for Gronkowski and Mayweather could not be reached for comment.

Burton Kraus is represented by Steven G. Mintz and Steven W. Gold of Mintz & Gold LLP.

Legal counsel information for Snow Teeth Whitening, Joshua Elizetxe, Rob Gronkowski and Floyd Mayweather wasn't immediately available Tuesday.

The case is Burton Kraus v. Snow Teeth Whitening LLC et al., case number 2:20-cv-06085, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York.

--Editing by Daniel King.

For a reprint of this article, please contact reprints@law360.com.