Civil Liability Of The Endorser In False Advertisements

The primary significance of commercial advertisement is to enhance the awareness and credibility of the existence of the product or service, which is aim to expand the market share of business, and the advertisement has strong social influence actually leading the consumer decision-making. However, the market economy is a kind of benefit economy, some businessmen in pursuit of interests by fair means or foul, which conflict with legal regulation. The false advertisement with testimonial and endorsement, is a derivative of this contradiction, due to the imperfections of the legal system, which seriously harm the legitimate rights and interests of consumers, and that leading to a series of social problems. In recent years, more and more people in our country pay attention to this phenomenon. The difference between the advertisement with testimonial and endorsement and other types is the existence of endorsements and testimonial, namely, the people performed in the ad for products or services to endorse or testify, who is the subject of this paper. Endorser becomes an independent main subject in ad campaign based on endorsements and testimonial. Once the conduct was false, cheating or misleading consumers, endorser should bear civil liability which has its social factors, economics and law basis.If the endorser knows or should know the endorsements and testimonial is false, still in its own name for it, he should take joint and several liability with advertisers, advertising agents, regardless of the endorsers are social groups, organizations or individuals, who also should become the main subject of tort liability. In order to better balance the interests between consumers, endorser and society, the author suggest using fault liability principle to analyze the elements of responsibility of endorser. The endorser has to prove he has do the duty of care. The proof mainly was whether checking up the authenticity, legality of the contents of advertisement and the reasonable qualification of advertisers, advertising agent. When identified the false advertisement with testimonial and endorsement, it better refers to"reasonable person"standard, seeing the endorser's conduct whether would misunderstand the general social consumer. Whether there is a causal relationship between consumers'damage and the false endorsements and testimonial, also according to the general social consumer who will choose the products or services influenced by the conduct, only in the reasonable reliance that constitute a causal relationship.