CSPI's Director of Litigation Named Advocate of the Year
November 13, 2008
WASHINGTON—The nonprofit Center for Science in the Public Interest is pleased to announce Stephen Gardner, director of its litigation project, was named Advocate of the Year by the National Association of Consumer Advocates (NACA). That organization presented the award at its annual meeting in Portland, Oregon on Oct. 25.
CSPI's litigation project, led by Gardner since its founding in 2004, has negotiated settlements or voluntary changes in marketing practices with Anheuser-Busch, Frito-Lay, Quaker Oats, Pinnacle Foods, and others. Gardner's negotiations with representatives of soda companies led to the industry’s 2006 voluntary agreement with former President Clinton to remove most soda from schools. CSPI's litigation project also forged an agreement with Kellogg agreed to adopt nutrition standards for foods advertised to young children, and prompted KFC to accelerate its switch from artificial trans fat to healthier oils for deep-frying.
After earning a law degree from the University of Texas, Gardner served as director for several nonprofits, assistant attorney general in New York and Texas, a visiting assistant professor of law and later assistant dean of clinical education at Southern Methodist School of Law. Prior to joining CSPI, he practiced privately and for the National Consumer Law Center, the nation's leading advocates for low-income consumer justice. Gardner is the author and co-author of several law-related publications, such as "Lost in the Supermarket: Consumer Confusion and Marketing Mania" and "The Practice of Consumer Law."