Case: 1:17-cv-01530 Document #: 98-1 Filed: 01/28/19 Page 1 of 10 PageID #:583

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF ILLINOIS
EASTERN DIVISION

LORI COWEN et al.,

Plaintiffs, Case No. 1:17-cv-01530

v. Judge Robert W. Gettleman

LENNY & LARRY’S, INC.,

Defendant.

THEODORE H. FRANK,

Objector.

DECLARATION OF THEODORE H. FRANK

Declaration of Theodore H. Frank

No. 1:17-cv-01530
 Case: 1:17-cv-01530 Document #: 98-1 Filed: 01/28/19 Page 2 of 10 PageID #:584

I, Theodore H. Frank, declare as follows:

1. I have personal knowledge of the facts set forth herein and, if called as a witness, could

and would testify competently thereto.

2. My business address is Hamilton Lincoln Law Institute, 1629 K Street NW, Suite 300,

Washington, DC 20006. My telephone number is (703) 203-3848. My email address is

tfrank@gmail.com.

3. I am an attorney who has argued and won seven cases in the Seventh Circuit.

My class membership
4. In preparation for my October Term 2018 Supreme Court oral argument, I decided

that I needed to lose substantial weight. In June 2018, my personal trainer put me on a high-protein

and low-calorie diet of 1694 calories a day, with a minimum of 154 grams of protein. In other words,

over 36% of my calories were to come from protein. This required me to change my eating habits,

and in July 2018, I went to a GNC store to explore high-protein products I hadn’t previously

purchased.

5. On July 13, 2018, I purchased three Lenny & Larry’s Cookies at a GNC store in

Washington, D.C. A true and correct copy of my receipt is attached as Exhibit 1. I filed a claim in the

litigation on December 24, 2018, with the confirmation code JIU73ITX. A true and correct copy of

the claim form receipt is attached as Exhibit 2.

6. I was attracted to the Lenny & Larry’s Cookies because they were advertised as high-

protein, and there were not other cookie-like products being offered. The front label prominently

displayed that the cookie was 16 g of protein and 8 g to 10 g of fiber, and a quick glance at the nutrition

label said the product was 180 to 200 calories a serving. I was quickly purchasing a variety of products

to experiment what I wanted to include in my diet, and a 180-calorie cookie with 16 grams of protein

would have 32 to 35% of its calories from protein, so would fit reasonably within my diet.

7. Because I was not wearing my glasses and was scanning labels quickly, I did not notice

until I got home with the purchased products that the fine print revealed that the labels were

misleading. In fact, “180 calories” referred to a “two-ounce serving” of half of a cookie, and a whole

Declaration of Theodore H. Frank

No. 1:17-cv-01530 1
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cookie would have 22 g to 24 g of sugar, and only 16-18% of calories came from protein.

8. As such, the cookie was completely inappropriate for my diet, since a single cookie

would effectively have to serve as a meal, but would provide insufficient protein for the calories

consumed. The three cookies I purchased are still in my pantry unopened. One of them has passed

the expiration date, and I am unlike to consume the other two ever. I would not have purchased the

cookies at all if I had not been fooled by the misleading labels.

9. It was not unreasonable for me to believe the product was 16 g of protein and 8-10 g

of fiber for 180-200 calories, because several other products I purchased, such as the Quest and One
bars, had similar or better ratios of proteins to calories.

10. According to the complaint, the cookies do not even contain 16 g of protein.

11. I will never purchase or consume these formulations of Lenny & Larry’s cookies, so

the offer of free product is worthless to me.

12. The waiver in the settlement waives all claims of consumer fraud relating to the

labeling, including claims such as mine, which were not raised in the complaint.

13. If the complaint’s allegations are true, Lenny & Larry’s will continue to defraud

consumers. If the complaint’s allegations are false, the attorneys are getting paid for bringing a

meritless lawsuit. As it is, the attorneys are effectively getting a giant commission on a million dollar

advertising campaign for the cookies, which are being valued at full retail value for being given away

to non-class members, though the cost to Lenny & Larry’s is likely less than a third of that, while

waiving any number of consumer fraud complaints relating to the labeling of the cookies, including

consumer fraud complaints that the attorneys had no reason to investigate given the complaint.
Center for Class Action Fairness
14. I founded the non-profit Center for Class Action Fairness (“CCAF”), a 501(c)(3) non-

profit public-interest law firm based out of Washington, DC, in 2009. In 2015, CCAF merged into the

non-profit Competitive Enterprise Institute (“CEI”) and became a division within their law and

litigation unit. Later in January 2019, CCAF will become part of the Hamilton Lincoln Law Institute,

a new non-profit public-interest law firm founded in 2018.

Declaration of Theodore H. Frank

No. 1:17-cv-01530 2