No lawsuit has been filed against Butterfly Express. The Idaho essential oils company has, however, drawn two federal regulatory actions: a joint FDA and FTC warning letter in July 2020 over COVID-19 treatment claims, and a December 2022 Consumer Product Safety Commission public warning after the company declined to recall essential oils that failed federal child-resistant packaging requirements. Neither action has produced a court case, and no consumer class action has been publicly filed.
The CPSC Warning and Refused Recall
On December 22, 2022, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission urged consumers to immediately stop using four Butterfly Express essential oils: Wintergreen, Birch, Le Sweet Relief, and Le EZ Traveler.1CPSC. CPSC Urges Consumers to Immediately Stop Using Butterfly Express Essential Oils Each contains more than 5% methyl salicylate, a compound the Poison Prevention Packaging Act requires be sold in child-resistant, senior-friendly containers. The agency found that the 20 mL, 240 mL, and 480 mL bottles were not child-resistant, and that the company had failed to provide required certification for its 10 mL and 50 mL bottles.
What made this warning unusual was the company’s response. The CPSC stated that Butterfly Express had not agreed to recall the products or offer any remedy to consumers, which is why the agency issued a direct public warning rather than a joint recall notice. Consumers were told to store the oils out of children’s reach and to dispose of them through a local hazardous waste facility rather than pouring them down the drain.
Butterfly Express disputed the agency’s account on its own website, calling the claim that it refused a recall “simply not true” and “slanderous.”2Butterfly Express. Child Caps The company said the CPSC first contacted it in August 2019, that it launched a program to install child-resistant lids on affected products, and that it contacted customers who had bought Wintergreen and Birch to offer free replacement lids. It also said it submitted lid samples to the CPSC and never received a response indicating they were insufficient. The company further argued that its larger bottles are sold to commercial users and fall outside the CPSC’s consumer-product jurisdiction.
Despite the standoff, no administrative proceeding or federal court filing has been publicly documented. The CPSC noted that the company was “not currently facing legal action” as of late 2022, and the warning remains active.
The FDA and FTC COVID-19 Warning Letter
On July 6, 2020, the FDA and FTC jointly issued a warning letter to Butterfly Expressions LLC, addressed to LaRee Westover and Valaree Westover (Sharp), citing marketing that presented the company’s products as treatments, preventatives, or cures for COVID-19.3FDA. Warning Letter – Butterfly Expressions LLC4FTC. Warning Letter – Butterfly Express LC Butterfly Expressions LLC The letter identified several products by name, including the LeDeliverance essential oil blend marketed as a “viral fighting” first line of defense, a Natural Hand Sanitizer promoted as equivalent to conventional sanitizer, RC-L described as “specific to coronavirus and similar viruses,” LCON, a Flu Kit recommended for “coronavirus pneumonia,” and a CF Formula pitched for “the fight against this most recent pandemic, COVID-19.” The agencies also flagged statements LaRee Westover made in a March 11, 2020 YouTube video, including that viewers could “wash your hands, add a drop of essential oil and squish it around on your hands and you’ll be fine.”
The FDA determined the products were unapproved new drugs under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act and were misbranded because of misleading health claims. The FTC found that the advertising violated the FTC Act because it lacked competent scientific support. The agencies demanded a halt to the sale of these products for COVID-related purposes and a written response within 48 hours, warning of possible seizure and federal court injunctions.
The public record does not show what specific corrective steps Butterfly Express took, and no follow-up enforcement action against the company has been publicly documented.5FTC. Coronavirus Warning Letters
Is There a Class Action or Private Lawsuit?
As of 2026, no class action or individual consumer lawsuit against Butterfly Express has been publicly filed in connection with either the COVID-19 marketing or the child-resistant packaging issue. A warning letter is not a lawsuit; it is a compliance notice that can precede enforcement if a company fails to respond. A CPSC public warning is likewise not litigation. Searchers looking for a settlement claim form or a class action complaint will not find one on the current record.
Who Runs Butterfly Express
Butterfly Express is based in Clifton, Idaho, and is operated by LaRee and Valaree Westover, who sell essential oils, herbs, tinctures, homeopathic products, and what the company calls “blessed waters.”6Deseret News. What Does Educated Tara Westover Family Think About Reconciliation The company’s attorney, Blake Atkin, described it in 2018 as a 22-year-old business with multiple facilities and about 30 employees.7Herald Journal News. Educated Should Be Read With Grain of Salt Says Family Attorney It operates through multiple LLCs, which the Westovers say were organized to meet FDA requirements, and sells through sites including butterflyexpress.shop and butterflyexpressions.net.3FDA. Warning Letter – Butterfly Expressions LLC
The company draws sustained public attention in part because LaRee and Val are the parents of Tara Westover, whose 2018 memoir Educated describes a survivalist upbringing in the same Idaho household. LaRee and Val dispute many of the book’s claims, and Atkin said he considered the book “libelous” but was never instructed to file suit; the parents decided against a defamation case because they believed it would mean losing their daughter permanently. LaRee published her own counter-memoir, Educating, in 2020.