Acquiring legal advice for selling fitness programs online?

7 replies
The obvious answer would be to ask a Laywer, but earlier today I contacted a Lawyer in my city over the phone and his reply was that he may not be able to help in this area.

I know that on Warrior Forum there are many people marketing (as affiliates) products in the fitness niche but my position is that I am marketing my own product via my website.

The product is a simple exercise program for clients who want to improve their fitness levels - any exercise can lead to injury - although I am a personal trainer, I am not yet aware of the laws surrounding the sale of programs online or on ClickBank.

I don't want legal advice, but I'd really appreciate feedback on who I might be able to make contact with that could offer advice in this area.

Thanks.

David.
#acquiring #advice #fitness #legal #online #programs #selling
  • Profile picture of the author Mark Tandan
    Hey David,
    I'm not a lawyer but have marketed affiliate fitness products.

    To clarify, your product is an exercise program, NOT a physical product or gadget, correct?
    Because if that's the case, I'd suggest you take a look at the Beachbody website which mainly markets exercise programs.

    Their only legal disclaimer is they advise all participants to consult their doctor before beginning any exercise program.
    From that and recent threads in this forum on a similar topic, I believe such a disclaimer is all you really need. But it needs to be right out in the open.

    If you wanted to contact someone to confirm, I'd suggest contacting Beachbody affiliate program directly. Tell them you're interested in signing up and you want to know what legal information you need to include on your site. That should get you a definitive answer.
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    • Profile picture of the author Domain 1
      Originally Posted by Mark Tandan View Post

      Hey David,
      I'm not a lawyer but have marketed affiliate fitness products.

      To clarify, your product is an exercise program, NOT a physical product or gadget, correct?
      Because if that's the case, I'd suggest you take a look at the Beachbody website which mainly markets exercise programs.

      Their only legal disclaimer is they advise all participants to consult their doctor before beginning any exercise program.
      From that and recent threads in this forum on a similar topic, I believe such a disclaimer is all you really need. But it needs to be right out in the open.

      If you wanted to contact someone to confirm, I'd suggest contacting Beachbody affiliate program directly. Tell them you're interested in signing up and you want to know what legal information you need to include on your site. That should get you a definitive answer.
      Thanks for your reply Mark - And yes it's a downloadable fitness exercise program that would involve running, weight baring exercises and other. The issue is that there are so many people out there that get injures WHILE WORKING 1 TO 1 with personal trainers let alone unsupervised.

      When you are not supervising someone there is an increased danger of a minor or even serious injury, there's no room for error legally I would think.

      Thanks.
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  • Profile picture of the author Mark Tandan
    Ya I hear you and am frankly impressed by your consideration for users of your program. I am sure there are many users of Beachbody programs that have injured themselves (I've done p90x and insanity and they are intense workouts). But Beachbody seems to get away with just a basic disclaimer - however I'm sure they can finance a pretty powerful legal team.
    At this point I'd say you just may want to consult a lawyer, or at the least and to keep costs down, a law clerk or law student.
    Hope you find the answer you're looking for!
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  • Profile picture of the author Rbtmarshall
    beachbody also has a legal team on the ready for any MLM or product related disputes.

    they probably know a disclaimer does very little, so they put the minimum in there. anybody can sue you, and the lawyer you asked probably did not want any part of what you're doing because he knows there is a chance somebody will sue eventually, and the disclaimer you asked him for isn't protection enough. he'd rather chase ambulances than protect you from them.
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    • Profile picture of the author Domain 1
      Originally Posted by Rbtmarshall View Post

      beachbody also has a legal team on the ready for any MLM or product related disputes.

      they probably know a disclaimer does very little, so they put the minimum in there. anybody can sue you, and the lawyer you asked probably did not want any part of what you're doing because he knows there is a chance somebody will sue eventually, and the disclaimer you asked him for isn't protection enough. he'd rather chase ambulances than protect you from them.
      It's possible, however when that time comes that someone will sue, it may come down to such things as whether or not the seller was negligent - This is why I am applying my mind to the acquisition of knowledge in all areas surrounding the legalities from what could be deemed as negligence to the type of insurance needed.

      Anyway thanks for replies.
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      • Profile picture of the author JohnMcCabe
        Here's an idea...

        Call the first lawyer back and ask him who he would go to for similar advice. In other words, if he can't help you, can he provide a local referral?

        If that doesn't work, try another lawyer.
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        • Profile picture of the author Domain 1
          Originally Posted by JohnMcCabe View Post

          Here's an idea...

          Call the first lawyer back and ask him who he would go to for similar advice. In other words, if he can't help you, can he provide a local referral?

          If that doesn't work, try another lawyer.

          Now he wants to help.. turns out he can offer generic advice relating to "online retail".

          Trying him anyway.
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