Jessica Alba's company has agreed to pay $1.55 million to settle a class action lawsuit that claimed the company lied about the ingredients in its products.
CNN reported that The Honest Company settled the case in which it was accused of misleading customers into thinking its soaps and cleaning products didn't contain a chemical called sodium lauryl sulfate, when, in fact, they did.
The company heavily marketed that it didn't contain the chemical. TMZ said that SLS, a common cleaning agent, is found in the products in a different compound. Honest had said that it used sodium coco sulfate (SCS) instead, which is a softer cleaner detergent. However, a Wall Street Journal investigation determined that SLS is a component of SCS.
Jessica's company said customers who felt duped can get a check or credit within the company, pending court approval of the deal. TMZ said Honest will change the marketing and said it's already reformulated products that contained the chemical.
"We vigorously deny any and all allegations alleged in the lawsuit — specifically that any of our cleaning products contain SLS," spokeswoman Karen Richman said in a statement. "However, given the fact that continued litigation could be protracted and expensive, we have settled this lawsuit to limit further costs and distraction to our business."
The Honest company is no stranger to lawsuits. In 2016 the Organic Consumers Association sued the company over its organic baby food (OCA claimed a quarter of the ingredients weren't organic.) That case was later dismissed. In 2015, it also faced a class action lawsuit over its sunscreen. That case is still in litigation.