The Federal Court of Australia has ruled that UK-based Reckitt Benckiser's Nurofen made misleading pain relief claims.
According to the Australian court, the firm's Nurofen Specific Pain products are formulated with the same ingredient, ibuprofen lysine 342mg.
Reckitt Benckiser made misleading representations of its Nurofen Specific Pain products and that each of them were said to be formulated to treat a specific type of pain, when the products are identical.
The court has ordered the company to remove Nurofen Back Pain, Nurofen Period Pain, Nurofen Migraine Pain and Nurofen Tension Headache products from retail shelves in the country within three months.
In addition, the court has asked the company to pay the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission's (ACCC) costs and publish online and newspaper corrective notices as well as implement a consumer protection compliance programme.
The UK firm admitted that it had engaged in the contravening conduct and consented to the orders made by the court.
Reckitt Benckiser spokeswoman Montse Pena was quoted by AFP as saying: "Nurofen did not set out to mislead consumers.
"Nurofen has cooperated with the ACCC in relation to these proceedings and will fully comply with the court order made today."
ACCC chairman Rod Sims said: "The ACCC took these proceedings because it was concerned that consumers may have purchased these products in the belief that they specifically treated a certain type of pain, based on the representations on the packaging, when this was not the case."
Reckitt Benckiser currently markets products such as Mortein, Clearasil, Finish, Airwick and Gaviscon, in addition to Nurofen.
