Amway sues Procter & Gamble over Website

The federal lawsuit contends Procter & Gamble paid consulting fees and provided information to Sidney Schwartz, the man it names as the author of an Internet Web site called "Amway: The Untold Story."

"P&G has encouraged, paid for and otherwise assisted Schwartz' dissemination of malicious attacks against Amway with the intent of interfering with Amway's prospective and actual business relationships," the lawsuit states.

"As a direct and proximate result of P&G's conduct, Amway has lost sales and has been otherwise damaged in an amount to be proven at trial."

Ada-based Amway seeks compensatory damages, attorney fees and punitive damages.

Amway lawyer Mike Mohr declined to name a specific dollar figure but said damages could run into the millions.

Procter & Gamble spokesperson Wendy Jacques said the company has not fully reviewed the lawsuit but considers the claim "ridiculous" and an attempt to deflect attention from two lawsuits it filed against Amway.

"Based upon what we have seen ... this appears to be a desperation suit as we advance both of our cases against Amway and its distributors in Salt Lake City and Texas," Jacques said.

"We will seek to have it dismissed."

She said the company hired Schwartz as a consultant in one of its lawsuits against Amway, and he is no longer on the company's payroll.

Yesterday's lawsuit does not name Schwartz as a defendant. The "Amway: The Untold Story" Website features testimonials from unnamed people who accuse Amway of "causing bankruptcy and divorces," as well as tips on how to rescue anyone who has "joined Amway and is now a tape-spouting zombie."

The lawsuit is the latest development in a three-year legal battle between the two companies.

In 1995, Procter & Gamble sued an Amway distributor in Utah for a voice-mail message it alleged linked the company to satanism.

Procter & Gamble added Amway Corp. as a defendant to the lawsuit in 1996, contending the voice mail was intended to hurt Procter & Gamble's business.

Procter & Gamble filed a similar lawsuit in Houston in 1997.

Both lawsuits still are pending.

Mohr, Amway's lawyer, said yesterday's lawsuit is not about free speech but about what he contends were Procter & Gamble's deliberate actions to damage Amway's business by encouraging the dissemination of information it knew would be used misleadingly.

He alleges the Internet Website was part of larger efforts, including deceptive news releases, that Procter & Gamble has undertaken to blame Amway for the satanism rumors that have plagued it for years.

The lawsuit filed yesterday contends Procter & Gamble provided Schwartz with "boxes of documents" for his Website and "hired attorneys in three different states to try and thwart Amway's efforts to get the truth about P&G and Schwartz."

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