(1) ENGAGED IN THE BUSINESS.—The term ‘‘en-
gaged in the business’’ means a person who manufac-
tures, markets, distributes, advertises, or sells a quali-
fied product in the person’s regular course of trade or 
business. 
(2) MANUFACTURER.—The term ‘‘manufacturer’’ 
means, with respect to a qualified product, a person 
who is lawfully engaged in the business of manufac-
turing the product. 
(3) PERSON.—The term ‘‘person’’ means any in-
dividual, corporation, company, association, firm, 
partnership, society, joint stock company, or any 
other entity, including any governmental entity. 
(4) QUALIFIED PRODUCT.—The term ‘‘qualified 
product’’ means a food (as defined in section 201(f) 
of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 
U.S.C. 321(f))). 
(5) QUALIFIED CIVIL LIABILITY ACTION.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subparagraph 
(B), the term ‘‘qualified civil liability action’’ 
means a civil action brought by any person 
against a manufacturer, marketer, distributor, 
advertiser, or seller of a qualified product, or a 
trade association, for damages, penalties, declar-
atory judgment, injunctive or declaratory relief,
restitution, or other relief arising out of, or re-
lated to a person’s accumulated acts of consump-
tion of a qualified product and weight gain, obe-
sity, or a health condition that is associated with 
a person’s weight gain or obesity, including an 
action brought by a person other than the person 
on whose weight gain, obesity, or health condi-
tion the action is based, and any derivative ac-
tion brought by or on behalf of any person or 
any representative, spouse, parent, child, or other 
relative of that person. 
(B) EXCEPTION.—A qualified civil liability 
action shall not include— 
(i) an action based on allegations of 
breach of express contract or express war-
ranty, provided that the grounds for recov-
ery being alleged in such action are unre-
lated to a person’s weight gain, obesity, or 
a health condition associated with a per-
son’s weight gain or obesity; 
(ii) an action based on allegations 
that— 
(I) a manufacturer or seller of a 
qualified product knowingly violated a 
Federal or State statute applicable to
the marketing, advertisement, or label-
ing of the qualified product with intent 
for a person to rely on that violation; 
(II) such person individually and 
justifiably relied on that violation; and 
(III) such reliance was the proxi-
mate cause of injury related to that 
person’s weight gain, obesity, or a 
health condition associated with that 
person’s weight gain or obesity; or 
(iii) an action brought by the Federal 
Trade Commission under the Federal Trade 
Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 41 et seq.) or by 
the Federal Food and Drug Administration 
under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cos-
metic Act (21 U.S.C. 301 et seq.). 
(6) SELLER.—The term ‘‘seller’’ means, with re-
spect to a qualified product, a person lawfully en-
gaged in the business of marketing, distributing, ad-
vertising, or selling a qualified product. 
(7) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ includes each of 
the several States of the United States, the District of 
Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Vir-
gin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Com-
monwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and any
other territory or possession of the United States, and 
any political subdivision of any such place. 
(8) TRADE ASSOCIATION.—The term ‘‘trade asso-
ciation’’ means any association or business organiza-
tion (whether or not incorporated under Federal or 
State law) that is not operated for profit, and 2 or 
more members of which are manufacturers, marketers, 
distributors, advertisers, or sellers of a qualified prod-
uct.
Union Calendar No. 75 
109TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 554 
[Report No. 109–130] 
A BILL 
To prevent legislative and regulatory functions from 
being usurped by civil liability actions brought or 
continued against food manufacturers, market-
ers, distributors, advertisers, sellers, and trade 
associations for claims of injury relating to a per-
son’s weight gain, obesity, or any health condi-
tion associated with weight gain or obesity. 
JUNE 14, 2005 
Reported with an amendment, committed to the Com-
mittee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, 
and ordered to be printed