Agencies held liable for client ads, promos

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard nonagency clients tell me that “the agency has taken care of everything,” or agency clients say, “That’s the client’s responsibility” when it comes to developing promotions, sweepstakes or advertising campaigns. This includes such issues as clearing promotions, sweepstakes, trademarks, advertising copy, packaging copy, Internet stuff – you name it. True, an agency or client often has had a promotion or campaign properly reviewed, although it is not always the case. The fact is, we are all in this together. Agencies and their clients need to work in concert (or each do their own work) and make sure they communicate about these important legal issues because we are all accountable.