Paparazzi Jewelry Falsely Advertised as Lead-, Nickel-Free, Class Action Alleges

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A proposed class action alleges multi-level marketing (MLM) company Paparazzi, LLC has falsely advertised some of its jewelry and other products as lead- and nickel-free. 

The 17-page complaint says that although Paparazzi had represented on its website as recently as November 2021 that its items were lead- and nickel-free, the jewelry nevertheless contains “detectable levels” of the heavy metals. 

“As a result, the Products’ labeling is deceptive and misleading,” the suit alleges, calling the Paparazzi jewelry at issue “unreasonably dangerous.” 

Cited in the lawsuit is a January 4, 2022 Medium article that relays that third-party lab testing commissioned by a group of ex-Paparazzi consultants and anti-MLM advocates confirmed that all 10 pieces of subject jewelry tested positive for arsenic, cadmium, lead and nickel. According to Medium, all 10 pieces of Paparazzi jewelry tested were above Prop 65 safe harbor levels of hazardous materials, some “far more than others.”

“All but one product were deemed to contain ‘dangerous’ levels of these materials by the testing lab technician,” Medium wrote. 

According to the lawsuit, Paparazzi, whose products are reportedly made in China, removed from its website between November 9, 2021 and January 9, 2022 the “lead-free and nickel-free” representations for certain items. 

Consumers would not have purchased Paparazzi’s jewelry had they known the products contained nickel and lead, the lawsuit contests. 

Per the suit, Paparazzi relayed in a December 22, 2021 statement that some of its jewelry “may contain trace amounts of lead and nickel,” yet assured that the products complied with applicable safety regulations and Prop 65 in California. 

Lead is a carcinogen and developmental toxin known to pose significant health hazards at even low to moderate blood levels, the case says. Nickel, the lawsuit relays, is a known allergen that can cause a reaction upon contact with the skin. 

The case looks to represent all persons who bought Paparazzi jewelry that contained detectable levels of lead and nickel in the United States. 

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