• by Wendy Davis  @wendyndavis, April 20, 2016

The Federal Trade Commission and weight loss supplement company Roca Labs have arrived at a "substantial agreement" to settle charges stemming from its online marketing practices, including attempts to stifle bad reviews, according to new court papers.

On Wednesday, U.S. District Court Judge Mary Scriven in the Middle District of Florida stayed the legal proceedings, in order to give the FTC and Roca Labs additional time to finalize the deal.

News of the settlement comes around six weeks after the FTC and Roca Labs attended a formal mediation session.

The charges against Roca Labs date to September, when the FTC sued the company for allegedly engaging in an unfair business practice by trying to prevent buyers from publishing reviews. The case appeared to mark the first time the FTC said in court that suppressing commentary is in itself an unfair practice.

Roca Labs, which touts its weight-loss products as more effective than gastric bypass surgery, allegedly said in a former version of its sales terms (sent in package inserts and also available online) that Web reviews would be considered defamatory. The company also told consumers that they would be subject to $100,000 in damages for posting reviews, according to the FTC.

The agency also alleged that Roca Labs didn't disclose that it paid users to post positive reviews, and that it violated consumers' privacy by disclosing their personal health information in court filings and other documents.

In October, Scriven granted the FTC's request for an injunction banning the company from continuing to tell consumers that they can't post negative reviews. She rejected Roca Labs' argument that the FTC isn't authorized to set terms of private contracts between companies and consumers.

Roca Labs was involved in several lawsuits before the FTC filed its complaint. For instance, 2014 Roca Labs sued a Pennsylvania resident and an Illinois resident who both allegedly posted public complaints about the products on Web sites operated by the Better Business Bureau. Roca Labs dropped the matter later that year.

Scriven directed the FTC and Roca Labs to submit a progress report by Aug. 1, unless the case has been settled before that date.