Supreme Court Review Of Athena Cosmetics Case, Federal Preemption Argument Unlikely

Federal food and drug law does not impliedly preempt Allergan's suit against Athena Cosmetics alleging that the defendant's RevitaLash products compete unfairly against the drug firm's Latisse treatment in California, according to a brief filed by Solicitor General Donald Verrilli with the Supreme Court. Athena has argued that the absence of FDA action against its eyelash enhancers signals that their cosmetic positioning is lawful, but Verrilli disagrees, maintaining that such litigation can supplement rather than conflict with FDA regulation.