BBB National Programs Online Archive

For more than 50 years, companies, consumer groups, and industry associations have relied on the U.S. system of advertising industry self-regulation to provide quick and cost-effective resolution to national advertising disputes and to expeditiously remove misleading advertising from the marketplace. The Online Archive is an exclusive collection of those legal decisions, a database containing detailed analysis of National Advertising Division (NAD), National Advertising Review Board (NARB), and Children’s Advertising Review Unit (CARU) cases.

 

The Online Archive is a unique and valuable resource, providing in-depth knowledge of important advertising issues to help attorneys provide insightful guidance to clients and give marketing professionals the information they need to avoid advertising substantiation problems.

 

A subscription to the Online Archive includes four licenses with unlimited access to the database of more than 6,000 advertising claim substantiation decisions. Government agencies and academics can access the Online Archive without charge by emailing oa@bbbnp.org. Members of the press can request the full text of any decision by emailing press@bbbnp.org

 

 

Authored by attorneys with extensive experience in advertising law and claim substantiation, decisions in the Online Archive cover topics such as:

 

  • Implied claims
  • Puffery
  • Clear and conspicuous disclosures
  • Competent and reliable scientific evidence
  • Truth and accuracy
  • Proper use of endorsements

The decisions also cover a broad range of product and service categories from many different industries, including:

 

  • Beauty and cosmetics
  • Drugs and health aids
  • Dietary supplements
  • Food and beverage
  • Household products
  • Leisure and entertainment
  • Toys and games
  • Websites and web services

 

Features

 

  • Flexible search functionality supports Boolean search operators, proximity search, and simultaneous searching across multiple databases
  • Document review tools include highlighted search terms within retrieved documents
  • Search filters refine results by company, product, issue or claim type, date, document type, or BBB NP Program
  • Find related documents like press releases, case reports, abstracts, and compliance reports

 

Access the Online Archive

Summaries of all case decisions are available in the Case Decision Summaries library. Access to Direct Selling Self-Regulatory Council and Digital Advertising Accountability Program decisions does not require a subscription to the Online Archive.